The Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame added 15 members in the class of 2022, including former men’s basketball standout Aaron Craft and four-time NCAA champion wrestler Logan Stieber. The newest additions will be enshrined on Sept. 9 and honored when the Buckeye football team hosts Arkansas State on Sept. 10.
With the 15 new members, the Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame increases to 473 athletes, coaches and administrators. The football team leads all programs with 132 inductees, while the men’s basketball follows with 47.
The Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame added 15 members in the class of 2022, including former men’s basketball standout Aaron Craft and four-time NCAA champion wrestler Logan Stieber. The newest additions will be enshrined on Sept. 9 and honored when the Buckeye football team hosts Arkansas State on Sept. 10.
With the 15 new members, the Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame increases to 473 athletes, coaches and administrators. The football team leads all programs with 132 inductees, while the men’s basketball follows with 47.
Click here to see the first nine members.
Here are the remaining six inductees (beginning with Shawn Springs in alphabetical order):
SHAWN SPRINGS, FOOTBALL
Springs is one of the greatest cornerbacks in Ohio State history, and in 1996 he was one of the dominant players in college football, winning the Big Ten Conference’s Defensive Player of the Year despite not recording an interception all season. Teams chose not to throw toward Springs, who still led the team with a then-school record 15 pass break-ups and 39 tackles. He was a consensus All-American in 1996 was named First Team All-Big Ten for the second time.
He was a three-year starter for the Buckeyes and appeared in 37 games. Springs collected 152 career tackles, 24 pass break-ups and six interceptions. His 24 pass break-ups total was a school record at the time and that mark still ranks sixth in program history.
In the 1997 NFL Draft, the Seattle Seahawks selected Springs with the No. 3 overall pick. He is tied with Jeff Okudah as the highest-drafted cornerback in school history. The Detroit Lions chose Okudah with the third pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.
LOGAN STIEBER, WRESTLING
Stieber is one of the most accomplished collegiate wrestlers in NCAA history, winning four individual national titles, four Big Ten Conference championships and the Dan Hodge Trophy during his decorated Ohio State career.
He became only the fourth wrestler in NCAA history and the first in the Big Ten to win four individual national championships. He claimed his fourth title on March 21, 2015 — the same year Ohio State won its first team championship under head coach Tom Ryan.
Stieber finished his NCAA career with a 119-3 record and boasts the highest winning percentage (.975) in school history. Two of his NCAA titles were at 133 pounds (2012-2013) and two at 141 pounds (2014-2015). As a senior, he finished 29-0. Over four years as a Buckeye, 96 of his wins were bonus-point victories, and 50 of those were by fall. He ended his collegiate career on a 50-match win streak.
As a high school wrestler at Monroeville, he won four Ohio High School Division III individual titles and helped the Eagles to the team title in 2010. Internationally, Stieber was a freestyle world champion in 2016 and won titles at the 2018 World Cup and the 2018 Pan American Championships.
Stieber is currently an assistant under Ryan on the Ohio State coaching staff.
JONATHAN SWEET, BASEBALL
Sweet was a three-year letterwinner on the baseball team from 1992-94. He earned second-team All-American honors after batting .390 in his final season. The 1994 Big Ten Player of the Year captained the Buckeyes to one of the best seasons in program history when the team went an NCAA-best 49-9 and won the Big Ten regular-season title.
As a sophomore in 1993, Sweet appeared in 63 games and batted .341 while helping the team to a Big Ten title and a runner-up finish at the NCAA regional. Sweet also earned freshman All-American honors in 1992 after hitting .291 with 26 RBI.
Sweet is 14th all-time in Ohio State history with a .351 career batting average and eight career triples. His 1994 season still stands out as one of the best individual years by any Buckeye hitter as he ranks in the top 20 in a single season in batting average (.390), hits (87), doubles (21), RBI (56) and runs scored (63).
In 1994, the Pittsburgh Pirates selected Sweet in the 19th round of the MLB Draft. He played in six professional seasons in the minor leagues. He advanced as far as the Triple-A, playing in Nashville in 1998.
TOM TUPA, FOOTBALL
Tupa was a two-way player for Ohio State and lettered between 1984 and 1987. He held six Ohio State punting after his career, including single-season and career averages of 47.1 (1984) and 44.7 for his career. His 9,564 career yards still rank second all-time and his 2,963 yards in 1987 are suitable for third. Tupa was a 1987 consensus All-American as a punter.
Tupa was 6-4-1 as Ohio State’s starting quarterback in 1987, with his most significant win coming in Earle Bruce’s last game as coach against Michigan. He threw for 2,252 passing yards and still ranks 23rd on Ohio State’s career yardage list.
Tupa had an 18-year NFL career as a punter, playing for seven teams between 1988 and 2005. He was first-team All-Pro in 1999 and was named to the New England Patriots All-1990s decade team. Tupa also won a Super Bowl in 2002 with Tampa Bay.
DAN WHITACRE, WRESTLING
Whitacre competed at heavyweight for Ohio State in wrestling from 1925-27. He was a two-time Big Ten Champion (1926, 1927) and the second Buckeye to win multiple conference titles in Ohio State history. Whitacre was a three-time letterwinner and a pioneer for Ohio State wrestling. The team first competed in 1921, and there were only three Ohio State wrestling teams before he entered school.
After earning his undergraduate degree from Ohio State, Whitacre attended and graduated from the Ohio State University Medical School and was a Columbus physician for the rest of his life. He provided free medical care for Buckeye wrestlers for many years. His son was a captain of the wrestling program in the 1950s.
