Rutgers Athletics Hall of Fame welcomes 2023 class
The Rutgers Athletics Hall of Fame has welcomed its newest class of honorees. The 2023 class consists of Kate Batiuk, Jeff Frazier, Robert Galbraith, George Peter Savidge, Rita Kay Thomas and the entirety of the 1976 football team.
Batiuk was a Rutgers women's lacrosse team member and graduated in 2007, which makes her the most recent graduate of the Hall of Fame class. Batiuk was a four-time all-conference selection and an All-American in 2007. In her senior season, the player helped lead the Knights to a 12-5 record and led the team in both goals and points.
Frazier made his mark on the baseball diamond. As a freshman, he set a Rutgers record at the time with 13 home runs in a season. In 2003 and 2004, Frazier earned First Team All-Big East honors, and in 2004, he earned Second Team All-American honors.
Frazier remains etched in Knights history as he ranks in the top five for career home runs and career runs batted in for Rutgers. Following his career with the Knights, he went on to be drafted by the Detroit Tigers.
Galbraith was Rutgers' first-ever national champion. In his time with the men's swimming and diving team, Galbraith competed in the first-ever Men's Swimming NCAA Championship in 1924 and was the "fancy diving" champion. The Knights continue to honor Galbraith as their annual Diver of the Year award is named after him.
Savidge is the only member of the new class to have played two sports during his time at Rutgers. Savidge distinguished himself as a member of the men's lacrosse team and the football team. As a defenseman in lacrosse, he earned All-American honors in all three of the years he played. In his final season in 1966, he was a team captain and helped lead the team to a 9-5 record.
Savidge played center for the football team and was the lone team captain. During his time playing football, he was able to face off against his twin brother, who was a team captain for the Princeton football team.
Thomas is a former member of the Knights athletics administration. When she was hired in 1974, Thomas was the assistant athletic director for women's sports and head coach of the women's tennis team. With her help, Rutgers grew from seven women's sports teams to 15 competing at the Division I level. Thomas was the first director of women's athletics for the Knights and was a trailblazer in women's sports during her 27 years on the Banks.
The final induction to the 2023 Rutgers Athletics Hall of Fame class is the 1976 football team. Coached by Frank Burns and led by team captains Nate Toran and Dan Pfabe, the team finished with an undefeated record of 11-0. The Knights outscored their opponents by a total of 287-81 points across the entire season. Rutgers finished ranked No. 17 in the Associated Press' final rankings.
The inductees will be honored on September 29 at the 2023 Rutgers Hall of Fame induction ceremony at the East Brunswick Hilton and will also be recognized the following day at SHI Stadium on Busch campus when the football team takes on Wagner.
