by By Ted Lewis, Staff writer , Times-Picayune

But when the Louisiana Sports Writers Association got its first chance to elect Faulk to the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame, they got it right -- voting in the three-time All-Pro running back by acclamation along with former Saints All-Pro tackle Willie Roaf, beating what is sure to be a first-year election for the pair into Canton when they become eligible.

"It is what is," Faulk said of the earlier snubs. "Things turned out all right for me, and it sounds like I'm in pretty good company."

Indeed.

Also selected for induction on June 27 in Natchitoches were ex-LSU and NFL standout Michael Brooks, Golf great Hal Sutton, world champion motorcycle racer Freddie Spencer, former Louisiana Tech women's basketball coach Sonja Hogg, LSU trainer Marty Broussard and Carrice Russell Baker, the state's winningest girls basketball coach.

They were selected from a record 132 nominees from 21 different sports categories.

Their election brings to 269 the number of persons elected to the hall, which is celebrating both its 50th anniversary and the start of construction of the Hall of Fame complex in downtown Natchitoches.

"This is very special to me," said Faulk, whose number has been retired by the St. Louis Rams, for whom he earned NFL Most Valuable Player honors in 2000, and at San Diego State, where he was a two-time consensus All-American. "Louisiana is where it all started for me, in the parks and on the NORD playgrounds.

"But when you're a kid you never envision yourself being honored like this."

Faulk, who chose San Diego State because most major colleges were recruiting him as defensive back, had instant success with the Aztecs as a freshman in 1991, setting an NCAA record with 386 rushing yards and seven touchdowns in just his second collegiate game.

He was second in the Heisman voting the following year and fourth in 1993, before declaring for the draft where the Indianapolis Colts made him the second player selected.

In 1999, Faulk was traded to the Rams, where he found his greatest success -- being selected the league's Offensive Player of the Year that year, when St. Louis won the Super Bowl, as well as 2000 and 2001.

Faulk's final season was in 2005, and he is now an analyst for the NFL Network.

Roaf, considered the greatest player in Saints history, was the team's first-round draft pick in 1993 after a stellar career at Louisiana Tech.

He played nine seasons with the Saints, during which he was All-Pro twice (1994 and 1995) and a seven-time Pro Bowler. Roaf would make four more Pro Bowl appearances when closed out his career with Kansas City.

Brooks, who is from Ruston, was an All-America linebacker at LSU as a junior in 1985. Although hampered by injuries as a senior, he was a third-round draft pick of the Denver Broncos, where he played for six seasons before playing three more with the New York Giants.

Sutton, from Shreveport, won 14 PGA Tour events, including the 1993 PGA and TPC in 1998 and 2000. He played on four Ryder Cup teams and was the captain of the 2004 team.

Hogg pioneered the Lady Techster program at Louisiana Tech. Under her guidance, the Lady Techsters reached six consecutive Final Fours, winning the AIAW title in 1981 with a perfect 34-0 record and the first NCAA Women's title in 1992 with a 34-1 mark.

Picked for enshrinement later this year in the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame, Hogg later coached at Baylor.

Spencer, who is from Shreveport, was known as "Fast Freddie," in motorcycle racing circles. He won three world championships, and was the only rider to win both the 250cc and 500cc Grand Prix World Championships in the same season.

Although he was a good enough athlete to be the high point scorer in the 1944 SEC Track Championship, Broussard is better known for treating them during his five decades at LSU. He was known as an innovator in the areas of testing for muscular strength and energy drinks. Broussard died in 2003.

During her 39-year coaching career, Baker won more than 1,000 games with eight state championships, four each at Winnsboro and Jena, and two other runner-up finishes.

In addition to the Hall of Fame inductees, the Dave Dixon Leadership Award winner will be honored at the June event along with recipients of the state's Distinguished Service Award in Sports Journalism.

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Ted Lewis can be contacted at tlewis@timespicayune.com or 504.232.5071.

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