Hardy excited to be inducted into SRU’s Hall of Fame
Former Connellsville High School football and basketball standout Mike Hardy is going to have a big day on Sept. 19. He is part of The Slippery Rock University Athletic Hall of Fame鈥檚 Class of 2015.
鈥淎fter all these years to still be remembered was a great honor,鈥� Hardy stated. 鈥淚 have to tell you it was about my career at 鈥渢he Rock.鈥� Getting that call was really a thrill.鈥�
Hardy鈥檚 road to Slippery Rock began at Connellsville where he starred in football and basketball for the Falcons in the 1970鈥檚.
Hardy played linebacker and tight end for the Falcons for three seasons. During his sophomore campaign the Falcons posted a record of 2-5-2 under head coach Tom Sankovich. In 1973, his junior season, they went 3-7. Connellsville brought Dan Spanish in as head coach in 1974, and in Hardy鈥檚 senior season, the Falcons were 4-6.
It was on the basketball court that Hardy made the biggest impact, as the cornerstone of some very competitive Connellsville teams.
In Hardy鈥檚 sophomore season in 1972-73 the Falcons were 8-13 and 2-8 in the section. They improved to 11-11 and 7-5 in the section in Hardy鈥檚 junior year 1973-74. In Hardy鈥檚 senior campaign in 1974-75, the Falcons posted their best record since 1961-62, going 17-5 and finishing second in the section behind Uniontown with a 10-2 mark. Their only two section losses were at the hands of the Red Raiders.
Hardy put up some big numbers for the Falcons with 1,209 career points. The 6-4 Hardy had two 41 point outbursts in his senior season against Churchill and Southmoreland. He scored in double figures in every game during his senior season and left Connellsville as the All-Time scoring and rebounding leader at that time. In his senior year Hardy had six games where he scored 30 or more points and 11 games when he tallied 20 or more points.
Hardy graduated from Connellsville in 1975 and had some college offers to sift through.
鈥淚 grew up playing all sports,鈥� Hardy explained.鈥� I played baseball when I was younger, football and basketball. I played football and basketball in high school and there was a time when I thought football was going to be the sport. I had the size and Penn State showed me some interest, but I settled on basketball and I ended up at 鈥渢he Rock鈥� and I don鈥檛 regret it one bit because that was such a great career and great opportunity
Hardy played in 87 games at Slippery Rock from 1975-79 and averaged 13.9 points and 9.6 rebounds per game. He is the career leader in shooting percentage at 62.5 percent (470-for-752). Hardy also ranks fifth in career rebounds (833), sixth in blocks (76), eighth in free throws made (273) and ninth in scoring (1,213 points). He is one of just 11 players in program history to surpass the 1,000-point and 500-rebound milestones. His best season came in 1978-79 when he shot a single-season record 66.7 percent from the field. Hardy helped Slippery Rock to the NCAA Tournament in 1977-78.
鈥淥ne of the things I take some pride in is there were much more athletic guys than me, they could jump higher, run faster, but one of the things I always tried to do was outwork people,鈥� Hardy stated. 鈥淚 really, really focused on the fundamentals and kind of tried to get the most out of my athletic ability. I had a little height and I could do some things, but it was more work ethic, consistency, those are the things that I really focused on.鈥�
Hardy not only excelled on the court, but also in the classroom by being named to the Academic All-America team twice. Hardy continued his education after Slippery Rock by earning a master鈥檚 degree in public management from Carnegie Mellon University in 2001.
鈥淵ou want to stay humble, but I look back and I am very proud I have to say,鈥� Hardy explained. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not just what I did on the court, which I鈥檓 proud of. I think I still have some records up there, but more importantly it was the team and we were very successful especially my junior year. It was being an academic All American up their, it was the experience of college life and what I鈥檝e been able to accomplish in my career and these were building blocks to the success I had on the court.鈥�
The 32nd annual induction ceremony will be held Sept. 19 as part of SRU鈥檚 home football weekend vs. Millersville University. The event will be held in the Robert M. Smith Student Center ballroom and begins with a social hour at 1:30 p.m., followed by dinner and the induction ceremonies at 2:30 p.m. The induction class will also be recognized during halftime of the football game (6 p.m. kickoff) at Mihalik-Thompson Stadium.
Tickets for the 2015 SRU Athletic Hall of Fame induction ceremonies are $40 each if purchased before Sept. 10 and $50 each if purchased after Sept. 10. No tickets will be available on the day of the event. Tickets can be ordered online at the link above or through the mail by sending the registration form to Tracy Allison at: Slippery Rock University, Alumni House 鈥� Attn. Tracy Allison, Slippery Rock, PA 16057. Allison can be reached via telephone at 724.738.2182.
鈥淚鈥檝e invited all of my Slippery Rock teammates and I鈥檓 hoping some of them can make it, and this will be a way to kick start some of those relationships again,鈥� Hardy said.
Hardy is the Vice President of Support Services at ZOLL Medical, where he has oversight of customer support, technical support and logistics for the company鈥檚 LifeVest patients. He and his wife, Kathy, have four children and four grandchildren. Hardy and his wife reside in Murrysville, Pennsylvania.
鈥淚 have been back and working in Pittsburgh for the last five and a half years,鈥� Hardy said. 鈥淚鈥檓 blessed to have my parents still living and their in there upper 80鈥檚 now. So of course I鈥檓 back in Connellsville a lot, still have some family and friends like Greg Pastors, he and I still get together. A couple of months ago we got together, Pastors, Danny Ferens, and Tim Maruca we all got together, but Pastors is the one I stay in touch with the most.鈥�
Hardy is looking forward to the Hall of Fame weekend.
鈥淚 look back with pride on my career in Connellsville, at Slippery Rock, and also what I鈥檝e been able to accomplish in the business world鈥� Hardy said. 鈥�
George Von Benko鈥檚 鈥淢emory Lane鈥� column appears in the Monday editions of the 缅北禁地. He also hosts a sports talk show on WMBS-AM radio from 10 a.m. to noon on Saturdays.