Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College will recognize the Athletic Hall of Fame, Bulldog Hall of Honor and Spirit of Gulf Coast inductees at a dinner and awards ceremony in their honor at 7 p.m. on October 16 at the Golden Nugget in Biloxi. The honorees will also be recognized at the pep rally and during pregame activities at 1:30 p.m. on Homecoming Day, October 18.

The 2014 Athletic Hall of Fame, Bulldog Hall of Honor and Spirit of Gulf Coast honorees are the following:

David W. Jalanivich Jr.

Football

David Jalanivich attended the Perkinston and Jackson County campuses from 1967 to 1968. He played split-end on the 1967 football team, which won the state championship and defeated Pearl River Junior College for only the second time in 19 years. In 1967, he set the records for most passes caught in a season (37), most touchdown pass receptions in a game (3), most yards gained for pass receiving in a season (793), most touchdown passes caught (9) and most points scored in a game (30). New records have been set in all categories except the last one, which though equaled three times, still stands. He was selected for the 1967 All-Star South Team and was named an All-State Honorable Mention. He signed with Southeastern Louisiana College in 1968, where he received his bachelor’s degree in mathematics and a master’s degree in computer science. Coach George Sekul named Jalanivich the “Split-End of the Decade” when he created his mythical Offensive Team of the Decade in 1973. Jalanivich retired from International Paper Company after 29 years as the site manager for five mainframe computers. He is currently a part-time employee at The Preserve Golf Course.

Alan K. Jones

Football

Alan Jones attended Perkinston Campus from 1964 to 1966. His freshman year, he was freshman class officer, Student Council member, Freshman Favorite, team captain, quarterback and was named All-State Honorable Mention. During his sophomore year, he was elected Mr. Perkinston Junior College and Student Council president. He was team captain, starting quarterback, punter and was again named All-State Honorable Mention. From 1966 to 1969, he played football at Delta State College, receiving his bachelor’s degree. He received his master’s in education in 1971 from Mississippi State University. From 1970 to 1979, he was coach and assistant athletic director at MSU, and from 1980 to 1989, he was coach and assistant athletic director at Texas A&M. He is currently the vice president and senior financial advisor for Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Inc. in Biloxi.

Charles W. Kennedy

Men’s Basketball

Charles Kennedy of Wiggins attended the Perkinston Campus from 1965 to 1967. During his freshman year, he was the team’s second-highest rebounder and scorer (374 points). That same year, the Bulldogs defeated the Pearl River Wildcats 67-58 for the South Division title and also defeated them 59-54 for the state championship. That year was the first time the Bulldogs were invited to the Region VII National Junior College Athletic Association Tournament.

Unfortunately, Kennedy was ruled ineligible to play in the tournament because he had signed a professional baseball contract with the New York Yankees the year before. The Bulldogs made it to the Region VII NJCAA quarterfinals before they lost. Kennedy was named All-State during the 1965-1966 season. In 1966-1967, Kennedy scored 20 points or more in five separate games and was the highest scorer and rebounder for that season. He was again named All-State. After leaving MGCJC, Kennedy played two years for Bellhaven College and was the team’s leading scorer and rebounder both years. He was the football and baseball coach and the administrator for Adams County Christian School in Natchez from 1972 to 2000. He was principal of Trinity Academy for one year and, after retirement, was a part-time teacher at Wilkinson County Christian Academy in Woodville, where he is currently serving as principal.

Randall H. Patterson

Baseball

Representative Randall H. Patterson, District 115, of Biloxi, attended the Jefferson Davis Campus in fall 1966 and fall 1967 and the Perkinston Campus in spring 1967 and spring 1968. While at the Perkinston Campus, he played baseball for Coach Ken Farris and the team won the state championship both years he played. Patterson was awarded a scholarship to Bellhaven College and pursued his bachelor’s degree in health, physical education and recreation, but transferred to The University of Southern Mississippi in 1971 to receive his bachelor’s degree. He completed a double master’s degree in P.E. and school administration in 1979 at William Carey University. He worked with his father, A.H. “Lank” Patterson, at their mechanical contracting company until 2004 when he was elected to the Mississippi House of Representatives.

James R. “Richie” Williams

Golf

Richie Williams is a 2010 graduate of the Perkinston Campus. He holds the eighth all-time-lowest scoring average in MGCCC history and the third all-time-lowest scoring average in a two-year career at the college. He held third place in all-time birdies at the college and was ranked 36^th in the nation in 2009-2010. He won five individual titles – the most in MGCCC history. He had the fifth all-time best individual score for a season, 726-181 for the 2009-2010 season, and tied for low-round score in the college history (66). He holds the record for the lowest 36-hole total in the college’s history (138 during his 2009-2010 season). In 2009, he won the Hubert Tucker Award for the best scoring average for the season, with a 72.80 per round average. He was named Mississippi Association of Community Colleges First Team All-State in 2009 and was named All-Region 23 that same year. Williams graduated in 2012 from the University of Southern Illinois with a degree in business management.

Leonard A. “Len” Blackwell II

Bulldog Hall of Honor

Len Blackwell is the author of “The Perk Paperboy,” a book about his high school years at Perkinston Agricultural High School. He graduated from PAHS in 1959 and from Perkinston Junior College in 1961. At PJC, he was in the college’s band and choir, and was a member of Student Council, Debate Club, Youth Congress, Christian Council and Baptist Student Union. In 1959-1960, he was voted Most Intellectual Boy and Best All-Around Freshman. In his sophomore year, 1960-1961, he was voted class president, Most Intellectual Boy and Most Likely to Succeed. The college’s debate team, of which he was a member, won the state championship that year, and he was also elected national Phi Theta Kappa president. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree from The University of Mississippi in 1963 and his Juris Doctorate from there in 1966.

Don Massengale Jr.

Spirit of Gulf Coast

Don Massengale, of Pascagoula, attended Perkinston Junior College 1953-1955 and the Jackson County Campus 1973-1974. He is a member of the Bulldog Club and was a 2009 Athletic Hall of Fame recipient for football. He played fullback on the 1953 team and center on the 1954 team. His 1953 team tied Copiah-Lincoln Community College in the Laurel Lions Bowl. This tie resulted in the only trophy Coach Harold “War Daddy” White (Massengale’s mentor) won for the college in football. Massengale worked at Ingalls Shipbuilding from 1955 to 1994 in the Engineering Division and the Industrial Relations Division. He retired in 1994 as director of Industrial Relations Services. He was a member of the Mississippi National Guard, retiring in 1974 as major. A member of the MGCCC Board of Trustees from 1989 to 2014, he served as chairman of that body from January 2000 to December 2001. In recognition of his service to MGCCC, Massengale received the Sam Owen Award in 2004.

Tickets for the Alumni and Athletic Hall of Fame Dinner and Awards Ceremony are $40 and can be purchased online at mgccc.edu by clicking on the Homecoming banner at the top of the website. For more information about the event, contact the MGCCC Alumni Association at (601) 528-8900.