Five tabbed for Idaho Hall of Fame

COEUR d'ALENE - Dr. James A. "Doc" Lynn., Jr., Keith Gilbertson, Ryan Phillips, Mike Cox and the late Gary "Big Daddy" Rasmussen will be inducted into the Idaho Hall of Fame during the 52nd annual North Idaho Sports Banquet on Saturday, April 12 at the Best Western Coeur d'Alene Inn beginning at 6:30 p.m.

Lynn attended Wallace High, where he played football, basketball and ran track for the Miners. In 2000, "Doc" was approached by Carl Killsgaard to take over as executive director of the Idaho Athletic Hall of Fame and North Idaho Sports Banquet. A native of Wallace, Lynn devoted most of his time to the youth of his city, coaching Little League for eight years, Babe Ruth baseball for eight years and being president of the baseball league for eight years.

Rasmussen coached various levels of football, track and basketball - and even served as a drill team instructor during his lengthy 32-year career as an educator within the Clark Fork and Coeur d'Alene school districts. In the 1980s, under Rasmussen, the Coeur d'Alene track teams won seven regional championships and twice finished as runner-up at the state track meet.

As the longtime fundraising chairman for the Viking Booster Club, Rasmussen, who died in 2012, was passionate and worked tirelessly to bring the community together to enrich the experiences and advance the opportunities of Viking student-athletes and coaches.

Gilbertson, who started his 39-year coaching career as a graduate assistant at Idaho State from 1972-74, was the head football coach at Idaho from 1986-88 - leading the Vandals to a 28-9 record and Big Sky Conference championships in three seasons - and California from 1992-95. He also spent 30 years as an assistant during his time, and nine years total as a head coach.

Phillips terrorized quarterbacks for four seasons at the University of Idaho from 199-96, and was a three-time first team all-conference defensive end and was the 1995 Big Sky Defensive Player of the Year. He was drafted by the New York Giants in the third round of the 1997 NFL Draft and compiled 195 tackles in 71 games over five seasons with the Giants and the Indianapolis Colts.

Cox, a 26-year coaching veteran who has been influential in preparing many players for the NFL, is entering his third season as the Kansas State linebacker coach under head coach Bill Snyder. A 1989 graduate of Idaho, Cox came to Kansas State in 2012 from Washington. Prior to joining the Huskies, Cox worked two seasons (2007-08) for the St. Louis Rams, coaching the secondary and linebackers. He is a former Coeur d'Alene High standout.

Tickets to the banquet will be available starting March 15 at the Best Western Coeur d'Alene Inn.