Five former Nebraska student-athletes and one legendary coach are members of the 2023 University of Nebraska Athletics Hall of Fame class. Earlier this month the university announced former volleyball player Lori Endicott, football player Tommie Frazier, gymnast Emily Parsons, wrestler Tolly Thompson, soccer player Brittany Timko and track and field coach Gary Pepin are the latest inductees.
Together, Nebraska’s 2023 student-athlete class combines for two team national championships, an individual national championship and 18 All-America honors. As a coach, Pepin oversaw three team national championships, 59 individual national champions and 639 All-America honors. This is his first year for eligibility after retiring last fall. Each member earns a place on the University of Nebraska Athletics Hall of Fame Plaza, where their granite plaques will be installed. That plaza is on the east side of Memorial Stadium, by the NU Coliseum, and is open to the public.
“We are honored to recognize the achievements of these elite individuals, and we look forward to celebrating their accomplishments as we induct them into the University of Nebraska Athletics Hall of Fame this fall,” Nebraska Director of Athletics Trev Alberts said in a statement. “The five student-athletes had a tremendous impact on the University of Nebraska and deserve to be recognized for their contributions as Cornhuskers. We are also excited to honor Coach Pepin, who served more student-athletes than any other coach in the history of Nebraska Athletics and has an unmatched résumé as one of the greatest track and field coaches in NCAA history.”
Endicott played for the Huskers from 1985-88 and became the first Nebraska volleyball player to gain conference player of the year honors and to play in the Olympics. The Springfield, Missouri, native played a key role on the Huskers’ national runner-up team during her sophomore season. She went on to repeat as Big Eight Player of the Year in her junior and senior seasons. She led the program in all-time assists with 3,117 at the time of graduation, which is now No. 10 in program history. Endicott then became a member of Team USA for the 1992 and 1996 Olympics, earning a bronze medal in the 1992 Barcelona Games.
Frazier is regarded as one of the best college football quarterbacks of all time. He led Nebraska to the Big Eight title in all four seasons. The Huskers played for national championships in his final three seasons. He won Big Eight Freshman/Newcomer of the Year in 1992 when he became the first true freshman to start at quarterback for Nebraska. Nebraska went 33-3 with Frazier under center, culminating with perfect championship seasons in 1994 and 1995. Frazier won Big Eight Offensive Player of the Year in 1995 and finished second in the Heisman Trophy voting. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2013 and his No. 15 was retired by Nebraska in 1996.
Parsons was an 11-time All-American and won 114 career event titles for the women’s gymnastics team, both school records (she shares the All-American mark). The St. Charles, Missouri, native was a first-team All-American in four different events, including the all-around. She’s a former three-time regional gymnast of the year and four-time regional champion in the floor exercise, three-time winner in vault and two-time in the all-around. Parsons was the 2005 Big 12 Newcomer of the Year and went on to become 2007 Big 12 Co-Gymnast of the Year. In that 2007 season she won national titles in the all-around, vault, beam and floor exercises.
Thompson, who wrestled from 1993-97, still leads the program in career wins. The Janesville, Iowa, native went 157-21 throughout his Husker career to become the first ever Husker to eclipse 150 wins. He’s a three-time All-American and three-time conference championship who ultimately won the 1995 NCAA Heavyweight Championship. Thompson went 38-13 as a freshman, setting a program record for wins. He went a combined 119-8 in his final three years with a national championship and two national third-place finishes to his record. He’s the only Husker wrestler in history with multiple 40-win seasons and his 157 victories ranked him No. 8 in NCAA history at the time he graduated.
Timko followed a successful career at Nebraska with a decorated international soccer career. The British Columbia native won Big 12 Player of the Year honors in 2004 and 2005, then shared the distinction in 2006. She’s the only three-time Big 12 Player of the Year and a two-time All-American. She scored 41 goals with 42 assists in 71 matches and her 124 career points put her in the top five in program history. Timko is also one of only two players in program history with 40 goals and 40 assists. She won the Golden Boot as top scorer at the 2004 FIFA U-19 World Championships. Timko also won two bronze medals while playing in Canada’s two third-place finishes at the Women’s World Cup. She was inducted into the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame in 2020.
Pepin is the sixth coach inducted into the Nebraska Athletics Hall of Fame after leading the women’s track team from 1981 to 2022 and the men’s track team from 1984 to 2022. He’s the longest-serving head coach in Nebraska Athletics history. Pepin’s teams won three national championships and 73 conference titles. The Nebraska women’s track team won the indoor and outdoor conference track championships every year from 1981 to 1995. Pepin is a 28-time conference coach of the year, 11-time regional coach of the year and the 1995 National Indoor Track Coach of the Year. He was inducted into the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2008.