Kemp One of Three with UNO Ties To Earn Hall Honor
Dec 18, 2013 | General
OMAHA, Neb. – Associate athletic director Mike Kemp is will be one of three people connected to Omaha Athletics to be inducted into the Omaha Sports Hall of Fame in April of 2014.
Joining Kemp will be two-time All-American Chris Bober who played for the UNO football team from 1995-1999 and Dean Thompson Jr., the all-time leading scorer in UNO basketball history, who played for the Mavericks from 1980-1984.
Kemp began his career at UNO as the first head coach of the hockey team in 1997. During a 12-year tenure, he guided the Mavericks from a fledgling independent to an established program with one of the best followings in college hockey. UNO has ranked among the nation's college hockey elite in attendance from the start. In 2004-05, Kemp was named the Central Collegiate Hockey Association Coach of the Year, and he was named a finalist for the Spencer Penrose Trophy as national coach of the year three times while guiding UNO. He led the Mavericks to their first-ever appearance in the NCAA tournament in 2006. He was inducted into the Omaha Hockey Hall of Fame in 2010.
Chris Bober
Bober came to UNO after a standout high school career at Omaha South. He was a two-time All-American (1998, 1999) at UNO and was also selected as the Offensive Lineman of the Year in Division II as a senior. Bober played five years in the NFL with the New York Giants and Kansas City Chiefs, retiring in 2006. He was inducted into the UNO Athletics Hall of Fame that same year.
Dean Thompson
Thompson was an accomplished high school player at Westside High School. He was named First-team Super-State and led the Warriors to a class A State Championship in 1980. At UNO, he became the Mavericks' all-time leading scorer, amassing 1,816 points while playing in 117 consecutive games and leading the team to 81 victories during his career. Nicknamed “The Dream” for his smooth, fluid style, UNO earned three trips to the NCAA Division II tournament. Thompson was named All-North Central Conference in each of those seasons and a second-team All-American. In 1984, he was the Omaha Sportscasters' Association Sportsman of the Year. He was inducted into the UNO Athletics Hall of Fame in 1990.
The three UNO inductees are part of a class of 10 who will enter the hall in 2014. The ceremony and banquet will be held on Thursday, April 24 beginning at 6 p.m. at the Scott Conference Center on the UNO campus. For ticket information, please visit www.omahasportshalloffame.com.
