Northeastern Athletics

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Hall Of Fame

Northeastern Junior College is proud to boast an astonishing record of five members in the National Junior College Hall of Fame. We at NJC are very proud of the amazing accomplishments and dedication of these fine individuals. Capsules of each Hall of Fame Members include:

Bill Lanham

Bill Lanham began his wrestling coaching career at Northeastern in 1962. He claimed 132 dual victories and numerous tournament top finishes. He brought the first national championships to Northeastern Junior College as they won the prestigious honor in 1964, 1966, and 1967.

Coach Lanham produced many national champions and All-Americans while coaching at NJC. He was selected the NJCAA Coach of the Year for his efforts during the 1966 national championship season.

Lanham was not only recognized for his coaching expertise, but was also very active in national wrestling organizations. He served as the secretary-treasurer, vice-president, and president of the National Junior College Wrestling Association. He also was appointed as a committee member for the United States Wrestling Federation.

Coach Bill Lanham also served as both an assistant and head coach for the football team while at Northeastern Junior College. After retiring from coaching, he also was instrumental in creating one of the most successful American Red Cross First Aid and CPR programs in the region.

Ed Brandt

Coach Ed Brandt started his career here at Northeastern as a football and basketball student athlete from 1950-52. His teaching and coaching career at NJC occurred from 1962-1987. He wore many coaching hats while at NJC including: assistant basketball coach under Roy Edwards, and assistant football coach. He initiated the cross-country and indoor track and field programs from the ground level.

He transformed Jackson Hall into Jackson Field House by improvising many track events in a very limited space. Coach Brandt found a way to recruit top athletes and make national contenders out of them. NJC placed in the top-ten nationally for five consecutive years, finishing as high as 5th in 1965. He coached over 53 All-Americans while at Northeastern. He also had a number of national champions and national place finishers.

During his reign as track coach, he had three athletes become not only national champions, but national record holders as well. Bill Aschelman in the long jump and John Martinez in the mile run were national record holders. Dennis Miller of Brush, CO won the NJCAA Decathlon in 1976 setting a national record as well.

Roy Edwards

Roy Edwards' coaching career spanned five decades at Northeastern Junior College. From 1946 through 1981, Edwards led his teams to an astonishing 545 victories in 35 years of dedicated coaching. At the time of his induction in the Hall of Fame, there were only five coaches with more victories in the NJCAA. Edwards led his teams to four national tournament appearances finishing as high as fourth place.

Edwards attended Northeastern Junior College and participated in football and basketball in 1941. In 1946 he returned to NJC as a dedicated teacher and the sole coach for the football, basketball, and baseball teams.

He was later named athletic director and focused on his real love - basketball. After earning many Region IX Coach of the Year honors, he resigned from the men's basketball position in 1981. He then shifted his efforts to the women's ranks and helped lead them to a national tournament birth in 1983.

Roy Edwards was also active in the men's division of the NJCAA organization as he served as regional director for Region IX for many years. Fittingly, both the Plainswomen and Plainsmen basketball teams play on a home court named after Coach Edwards.

Sheila Worley

On a local, state and national level, Sheila Worley has taught, mentored and shared herself with those all around her. She has given the NJCAA, Region IX and Northeastern Junior College over 31 years of her life. Included with that were 13 years of coaching, in which she compiled 189 volleyball victories and was awarded District Coach of the Year three times. She coached her team to three Region IX volleyball championships each resulting in top ten finishes. Her fourth place finish at the national championships is the best in school history.

Worley was one of the founding members of the women's division within the NJCAA. She was instrumental in developing all women's athletics at NJC. She acted as the NJCAA Region IX Women's Director for over ten years and was the assistant director for eight additional years.

Coach Worley impacted women's athletics at the national level as she was elected secretary/ treasurer of the NJCAA Women's division and served for five years in that capacity. In addition, she represented the NJCAA as a board of director member of the United States Volleyball Association. As a leader in NJCAA athletics, Worley has made an indelible mark on the lives of many athletes, colleagues, and friends. She continues to do so in her current athletic director position.

Lowell Roumph

The latest coach at Northeastern to enter the prestigious rank of being in the NJCAA Hall of Fame is Lowell Roumph who was inducted in 2002. From 1968 to 2002, he laid out an impressive career by coaching 1,115 games at NJC, 688 as head coach. NJC is one of only 16 two-year colleges in the nation to reach the 1000 game mark. The Plainsmen have been victorious in 711 games and Roumph was on the sideline for 70 percent of the wins!

Over his career his teams made five national appearances. He coached 12 All Americans, six Academic All Americans, 28 All Region IX selections and 12 Academic All Reigon IX selections. He has been named Region IX Coach of the Year numerous times. He enjoyed 29 winning seasons and averaged 21 wins per season for all 34 years. With the opening of the new event center on Northeastern's campus-- which Roumph aggressively lobbied for--he was able to recruit some of the nation's best high school players to NJC. Now retired, he and his wife, Judy, are currently very busy raising three grand children.