The Liberty University Athletics Hall of Fame inducted its sixth class at a Sept. 19 ceremony on the Club Pavilion level of the Williams Stadium Tower. The five new members — representing men’s basketball, football, track & field, and cross country, as well as women’s track & field — were also recognized during halftime of the Sept. 20 Flames Football home game against Bryant University.
Established in 2009, Liberty’s Hall of Fame, located on the concourse level of the Vines Center, now has 32 members. Each has left an indelible mark and lasting legacy on Liberty’s Athletics program, which started as a National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) affiliate in 1972 and now competes in 20 sports at the NCAA Division I level.
Matt Hildebrand
Men’s Basketball, 1991-94
Hildebrand helped usher Flames Basketball into a new era when Liberty joined the Big South Conference during his sophomore season (1991-92). By his senior year in 1994, the native of Sturgis, Mich., had thrust the Flames into the national spotlight against No. 1-ranked North Carolina in the program’s first NCAA Tournament appearance. He guided them to their first-ever Big South Conference title before facing the top-seeded Tar Heels in the NCAA Tournament opener. Liberty led the game with 10 minutes remaining in regulation, thanks to Hildebrand’s 20 points and five assists. He started every game he played during his stellar 116-game career, finishing with 1,515 career points scored, 3,729 minutes played, and 207 career three-point field goals. He finished with an 88.2 career free-throw shooting percentage (398-of-451), which ranks him among the top 25 in the all-time NCAA Division I record books. Hildebrand is one of four players in program history to have his jersey retired, and he still holds single-game, season, and career records, including the program mark for best career three-point field goal shooting percentage (42.9 percent, 207-of-483).
Wayne Haddix
Football, 1983-86
Haddix was Liberty’s first standout defensive back when he arrived in Lynchburg from Middletown, Tenn., in 1983. He left his mark on Liberty’s record books with 151 career tackles (85 solo, 66 assisted), five forced fumbles, and eight passes defended. Haddix became the first player in program history invited to the Senior Bowl and the second to play in the Blue-Gray game. His speed allowed him to lead the Flames in punt returns three of his four seasons, and he still holds the program’s single-game punt return record. Haddix became the 10th player in program history to sign a free agent professional contract (New York Giants, 1987). He played five seasons in the NFL, highlighted by his seven interceptions for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 1990, when he became the first alumnus to earn a trip to the NFL Pro Bowl.
Mike Decker
Men’s Track & Field, 1999-2001
Decker came onto the scene as a sophomore and quickly dashed into Liberty’s record books, setting standards that current Flames athletes still chase. Decker is one of just four athletes in program history to earn three or more All-America honors during their track & field careers — all in the 400 meters (at the 2000 and 2001 indoor nationals and the 2000 outdoor nationals). He was also a U.S. Olympic trials 400-meter dash participant in 2000. The native of Buena Vista, Va., was a three-time Big South Conference Men’s Track & Field Athlete of the Year (1999, 2000, and 2001) and a 20-time Big South champion (12 individual events and eight relays). As a senior, Decker won every Big South and IC4A race (both indoor and outdoor) he competed in. During his career, he netted Liberty 142 career points at Big South Track Championships and 113 at IC4A Championships. Decker is the program’s current record holder in the 200-meter (indoor) and 400-meter (indoor and outdoor) events.
Delethea Quarles
Women’s Track & Field, 1987-89
After transferring to Liberty following her freshman season, Delethea Quarles helped the Lady Flames start a dominating run in the Mason-Dixon Conference and jump-start the program’s success at the Division I level. The native of Covington, Va., helped Liberty claim indoor and outdoor track championship titles during her junior and senior campaigns (1988 and 1989), sparked by her standout performances in the heptathlon. She also earned All-America honors in 1987 and 1988, placing fifth in the heptathlon at the NCAA Division II National Championships. Quarles was the first student-athlete in program history (men’s or women’s) to score more than 200 points in a season and one of only 11 in program history to do so at any level of competition (227.5 points as a senior). The 1989 Penn Relays 100-meter hurdles champion held the program record in the event for more than 20 years before it was broken in 2010. She served as an assistant coach on Liberty’s staff for eight years (1990-97) before serving in the same capacity at the University of South Carolina, where she has helped more than 20 student-athletes earn All-America honors.
Jake Matthes
Men’s Cross Country/Track & Field Coach, 1976-91
Matthes was the initial architect of one of the most successful programs in the first four decades of Liberty’s Athletics Department. He started the men’s cross country program in 1976 and the men’s track & field team and women’s track & field and cross country programs the following year. During his tenure as head coach, Liberty won the 1981 NCCAA men’s track & field national title, five Mason-Dixon men’s cross country championships, and eight men’s cross country regional titles. Matthes, who coached Liberty at four different levels of competition (NCCAA, NAIA, and NCAA Division II and Division I), helped 25 student-athletes earn All-America honors. The native of Mansfield, Ohio, received numerous coaching awards in his 15 years at the helm, including 1981 National Christian College Coach of the Year for men’s track & field and 1985 NCAA Division II South Region Coach of the Year for men’s cross country. In 1991, Liberty’s outdoor track facility — the Matthes-Hopkins Track Complex — was named after him and Ron Hopkins, who took over the women’s programs shortly after Matthes launched them.
