Inaugural UTD Hall of Honors Class Named

First Foursome Inducted In October Ceremonies.

Hall of Honors Photo
UTD ATHLETIC HALL OF HONORS CLASS OF 2007
Chris Bodie Ortega, Mary Walters, Cara Smedley Murez,
Fred Jacoby

RICHARDSON, TX – The University of Texas at Dallas Department of Intercollegiate Athletics inducted its inaugural class into the university’s Athletic Hall of Honors Monday, October 16, at a 6 pm dinner.

Fred Jacoby, the first commissioner of the American Southwest Conference; Mary Walters, UTD’s original Athletics Director; and former soccer stars Chistopher Bodie Ortega and Cara Smedley Murez will be honored for their contributions to establishing UTD’s athletic program.

The Class of 2007 represents the first group of inductees for the UTD Athletic Hall of Honors, which was established last spring to recognize outstanding administrators, coaches and student-athletes who made significant contributions to UTD’s athletic heritage. A 12-person committee of administrators and coaches established criteria for the Hall of Honors earlier this year and made the selection of the four original members. Plans call for the committee to annually induct a new class each fall.

Following is a brief biographical profile of each member of the Class of 2007:

FRED JACOBY
American Southwest Conference Commissioner 1996-2006
Fred Jacoby became the first commissioner for the American Southwest Conference in 1996, directing expansion from an eight-member league to 16 institutions, including the University of Texas at Dallas in 1998. He was also instrumental in shepherding the membership of member institutions from the NAIA to NCAA Division III and developed the conference’s Constitution, By-Laws and Operating Codes. During his tenure, the ASC became one of the most competitive Division III conferences in the nation, both on the field and in the classroom.

When Jacoby retired in 2006, he ended a coaching and athletic administrative career that spanned over 50 years, including 40 years as a conference commissioner. He began his career as a high school and college coach, then helped establish the Wisconsin State University Conference and Ohio Athletic Conference in 1966 before being named Commissioner of the Mid-Atlantic Conference in 1971. In 1982, he became Commissioner of the nationally-known Southwest Conference, which included most major universities in the State of Texas, and held that position until 1993, when he joined the Lone Star Conference and began his association with the ASC.

Jacoby is one of the few individuals to serve as commissioner for conferences at all three NCAA divisions. During his career, he has received numerous awards, served on and chaired a variety of high-level NCAA and national organization committees, and still votes in the national college football Harris Poll.

MARY WALTERS
UTD Athletics Director 1998-2003
Mary Walters was instrumental in the initiative to expand the UTD athletic program from an NAIA program with a handful of sports and part-time coaches in the mid-1990s to its current size and full membership in the NCAA and the American Southwest Conference.

Walters began working at UTD in 1981 and directed the university’s recreational sports and intramural program for more than 16 years. When she began her UTD career, the University had a small intercollegiate athletics program, but it was disbanded for more than a decade. In 1993, she helped develop the school’s current soccer facilities and helped re-establish an intercollegiate soccer program with membership in the NAIA. A year later, Walters helped in the design of the $10.5 million Activity Center.

With the new facilities and the new addition of a growing population of undergraduate students at UTD, Walters proposed that the University consider expanding its athletic program. Under her guidance, the decision was made to seek membership in the NCAA and the American Southwest Conference in 1998. Fulltime coaches were hired and the program was expanded to include men’s and women’s basketball as well as golf and cross country. By 2002, tennis, baseball and softball had been added and UTD had completed its four-year “provisional” membership with the NCAA.

She currently is the Director of Student Activities for the UTD Department of Student Life.

CARA SMEDLEY MUREZ
Women’s Soccer 1998-2001
Cara Smedley Murez was one of the original quality student-athletes who helped lead the way in turning the UTD women’s soccer program into one of the most successful in the American Southwest Conference. During her four-year career at UTD, she was named team Most Valuable Player and First-Team All-Conference four times, twice earning designation as the ASC Defensive Player of the Year. Last winter, she was one of the two original student-athletes to be selected for the American Southwest Conference Hall of Honor.

A graduate of Flower Mound Marcus High School, Smedley joined a UTD team that became the cornerstone for the program’s success. During her final three seasons, the Comets were a combined 40-13-5 and began a string of consecutive winning seasons that continues to this day. She played in all but one game during her four-year career and was honored as the UTD Female Athlete of the Year in 2002, when she also was named one of two original recipients of the prestigious UTD Alumni Ring Awards.

A cum laude graduate in 2002 with a degree in Management Information Systems, Smedley joined SBC Communications and was promoted several times over the next three years. In 2005, she began her current position as a Project Manager with Skywire Software.

CHRISTOPHER BODIE ORTEGA
Men’s Soccer 1996-1999
Christopher Bodie Ortega was an outstanding member of the UTD soccer team when the sport was re-established in the mid-1990s. After an award-winning career at South Garland High School, Ortega excelled as an underclassman in the young program, being named the team’s Offensive Player of the Year as a freshman and sophomore in 1996 and 1997. He then was selected to serve on the committee to help hire UTD’s first fulltime soccer coach.

Once UTD joined the American Southwest Conference in 1998, Ortega was twice named a member of the All-Division and All-Conference teams. As a senior in 1999, he was named team Most Valuable Player and the ASC West Division Player of the Year. That season, he scored 15 goals and had 11 assists, setting a UTD scoring record that is still No. 2 on the alltime list. UTD finished that season 16-3-1.

Ortega earned a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration in 2000 and began a career with AT&T, where he is now a Data Center Manager.