STOCKTON, Calif. – Two former Pacific Tigers, Walt Harris and Tom Jones, will be among those honored when the Class of 2023 is inducted into the Stockton Athletics Hall of Fame on November 15 at the Stockton Memorial Civic Auditorium. The two join a long list of former Tigers honored by the Stockton organization.
 
Harris came to Pacific in 1966 to play for the Tigers after two seasons at the College of San Mateo. He played two seasons on the defense for Pacific under former Tiger Doug Scovil '51. He helped the program to eight wins over the two years including a sweep of rival San Jose State and set the foundation for future success as the program finished 6-4 and 7-3 in 1968 and 1969. His defensive line coach in 1966 was Buddy Ryan.
 
Harris's coaching career included two stops at Pacific. He got his start at the college level after coaching at his alma mater, El Camino High, as a defensive back coach for the 1971-73 seasons. The team finished 15-5-1 in the final two years, the first two seasons under head coach Chester Caddas.
 
Harris went on to coach at California, Air Force, Michigan State, Illinois and Tennessee before accepting the head coaching position at Pacific in 1989. Harris is recognized by his opposing coaches as one of the best minds in football, scheming as the mastermind behind the Tigers' "Air Pacific" run-and-shoot offense.
 
One of the star players that Harris coached was Ryan Benjamin, who, became the first player in NCAA history ever to rush for more than 1,500 yards and catch passes for more than 500 yards in 1991. Benjamin's 1991 & 1992 all-purpose averages still rank third and ninth in FBS history. Benjamin is the only player in FBS history with two seasons among the Top 10 in all-purpose yards per game (249.6 yards per game in 1991 and 236.1 yards per game in 1992).
 
The 1991 Pacific team was ranked second nationally in total offense (511.3 yards per game) and third nationally in passing offense (342.9 yards per game). That team finished 5-7, 4-3 in conference play including wins over UNLV, Long Beach State and New Mexico State.
 
Harris left Pacific to become the quarterback coach for the New York Jets and then Ohio State. He was the head coach at Pittsburgh (1997-04) and Stanford (2005-06) before finishing his coaching career on the staff at Akron and California (Penn.).
 
Harris and his wife, Barbara, have two sons, Scott and Brett, and a daughter, Summer.  
 
Jones has spent a lifetime promoting sports in the Stockton community. A graduate of San Ramon High School in Danville, Calif., Jones enrolled at Pacific in 1965 where he was a member of the freshman basketball team, coached by Denis Willens. In the following three seasons, he played for the Pacific Tigers coached by Dick Edwards.
 
In 1968, Jones was voted Most Valuable Player, Second Team All Northern California as well as Second Team All West Coach Athletic Conference. In his junior season, he earned Honorable Mention on the All-Northern California Team. The following year, he received the Mr. Team Award.
 
Following graduation from Pacific, he served as an assistant coach for the freshmen basketball team. He later coached the Pacific men's tennis team. Jones taught high school social studies for the next 20 years at Turlock, Stagg and Edison high schools where he coached basketball and tennis. Jones chose to teach at the elementary level for the following 14 years where he established athletics leagues for fifth and sixth grade students at Wilson and Victory elementary schools. Those leagues offered co-ed opportunities for participation in volleyball, flag football, basketball, baseball and track and field.
 
In retirement, Jones has written two books, Top Cats, A Golden Era for College Basketball, which saves a piece of history of the sport at his alma mater and Cat Tales, Stories of College Life with accounts of hijinks as well as a high achievement among students on the Pacific campus. Jones is working currently on a third book about the history of football at the College/University of the Pacific.

Jones and his wife, Pam, have one daughter, Mollie.

When you think of a hometown her for the Stockton area, Joseph Abdullah is a name that comes to the front of mind. From 1990-91, he was the man for St. Mary's football as its star running back. He added All-League and All-Area recognitions. From there, Abdullah stayed in the 209 as the running back for the University of the Pacific for the next few years and is known for scoring the Tigers' final touchdown before the sport was dropped in 1995. In his junior and senior seasons at Pacific, he proved had NFL talent, rushing for a total of 2,409 yards. He played professionally for two years with the Indianapolis Colts and Denver Broncos.