BREAKING Washington Sports Hall of Fame Selects Joe Kearney, Huskies AD in 1969-76

Joe Kearney hired Don James, changing the course of Seattle sports history. The former University of Washington athletic director will be honored for that feat and a career that spanned 1969-76 with his induction to the State of Washington Sports Hall of Fame.

Joe Kearney, former University of Washington athletic director,  will be inducted into the State of Washington Sports Hall of Fame this year, having left an endearing legacy at the school.

He's the one who hired Don James as Husky football coach in 1975.

A Shelton native and Seattle Pacific College graduate, Kearney influenced the course of local sporting history when selected James to replace Jim Owens.

"Coach James wasn't known in the Seattle area at all when he was hired to take over at Washington," said Kent Loomer, director of "The Dawgfather: The Legacy of Don James," an impending documentary.  "So much so that the leaderboard outside of Husky Stadium read, 'Welcome Don Jones.' "

By the time the Huskies scored a 1978 Rose Bowl victory over Michigan, James was a household name.

"Joe Kearney made the single greatest coaching hire at the University of Washington," said Dan Raley, publisher of Husky Maven/Sports Illustrated.  "He took a chance on an unknown coach named Don James and created a Husky empire."

Kearney served as the Huskies' top athletic administrator in 1969-76, leaving for a similar post at Michigan State.

As the Spartans’ athletic director, he hired Northwest native Jud Heathcote as basketball coach, which led to a 1979 NCAA championship for the school with Earvin "Magic" Johnson as Michigan State's star player. 

Kearney also served as athletic director for Arizona State in 1980, and finished his career as commissioner of the Western Athletic Conference in 1980-94.  He was 83 when he passed away on May 5, 2010, in Tucson, Arizona.

Brad Walker, a standout UW pole vaulter, will join Kearney in the state hall of fame. Walker, after graduating from University High School in Spokane, won his event at the world indoor championship in 2006 and the world outdoor championship a year later.

In 2008, the four-time All-American set the since-broken U.S. outdoor record with a vault of 19 feet 9¾ inches. Walker won two NCAA indoor titles for the UW and was a member of two Olympic teams.

Kearney, Walker and the latest inductees bring the State of Washington Sports Hall of Fame recipients to 228 men and women. Longtime Tacoma-based sports broadcaster Clay Huntington formed the organization in 1960. A panel of sportswriters, broadcasters and others across the state makes the selections. 

Dates for induction ceremonies are pending. Information about all Hall of Fame members is available at washingtonsportshof.org .