Mark Hughes
BORN:
OCTOBER 5, 1966, MUSKEGON, MI
Mark
Hughes was a naturally-gifted basketball player, a giant who could shoot and
handle the ball like a guard. But he was always much more than that. Hughes
has been a winner and a leader at every level of his basketball playing and
coaching career.
Hughes first started making headlines at Reeths-Puffer High
School, where the 6-foot-8 center led the Rockets to the 1986 Class B state
semifinals and was named first team all-state. He chose Michigan for
college, where he became a captain and helped the Wolverines to the 1989
national championship. At Michigan, he endured arthroscopic surgery on his
right knee as a freshman, but came back to start 31 of 32 games as a
sophomore. The power forward then led the Wolverines to the Sweet 16 his
junior year and a 24-7 record and national title his senior year.
On the roster of the Detroit Pistons for a 1990-91 season, Hughes’ played
professionally for four seasons in France and Italy in
the early 1990s and then for the Grand Rapids Hoops (and Mackers) in the
Continental Basketball Association during the mid-1990s. Hughes became the team’s player/coach in 1997, then retired from
playing in 1998 to concentrate on coaching the game he loved.
Hughes led Grand Rapids for five seasons, before making the
leap to the National Basketball Association as an assistant coach of the
Orlando Magic (2002-04). After a two-year stint as an assistant at San
Diego State University, where he served under his former University of
Michigan coach, Steve Fisher, Hughes returned to the NBA. He has worked
as an assistant coach with the Orlando Magic and Sacramento Kings, director of pro personnel with the New York Knicks
and most recently, as assistant General Manager of the Los Angeles Clippers.
John Nedeau
BORN:
APRIL 14, 1931, MUSKEGON, MI
DIED: JUNE 15, 2016, NORTH MUSKEGON, MI
John Nedeau’s name is synonymous with sailing, but not many know that he was
an all-state guard on Muskegon Heights’ 1947 state championship football
team. Awarded a football scholarship to Michigan State University, a knee injury
ended Nedeau’s gridiron career prematurely. But long before that, he was
already known as one of the top sailors on Lake Michigan,
Nedeau received his passion for sailing from his father,
Harvey, and the two teamed up aboard the wooden-hulled RoMaHajo to
win the prestigious Chicago-to-Mackinac race and post several top three
finishes. To sailing aficionados, John is best known as the skipper of
Windancer, seven different individual ships which he piloted in
almost every major sailing race on Lake Michigan over 40 years. Nedeau
sailed Windancer to victories in the Chicago-to-Mackinac, Port
Huron-to-Mackinac, Queen’s Cup and many smaller regattas.
While always known for his tactical ability, Nedeau is also
known for his longevity. He sailed in 66 Chicago-to-Mackinac
races, making him more than a double member of the Chicago Yacht Club’s ‘Old
Goats Society,’ an honor bestowed on those sailors who have completed 25
‘Macs.’ During his athletic career, Nedeau also was a city handball champion
and earned three city doubles championships during the 1960s.
Mike Teeter
BORN:
OCTOBER 4, 1967, GRAND HAVEN, MI
Fruitport’s Mike Teeter surprised scouts at his National Football League
tryouts with his strength and ability to bench press 600 pounds. But his
abilities were of little surprise to those in the West Michigan area, as
Teeter was renowned for a relentless work ethic and team-first attitude.
A sprinter at Fruitport High School, Teeter could cover the
40-yard dash in 4.6 seconds. A
dominating force on the football field at Fruitport in the early 1980s,
Teeter playing seemingly every position. Proving that he was more than just a
tough guy in a small town, Teeter became a four-year standout at the
University of Michigan during one of the greatest periods in the Wolverines'
storied history. Under the direction of legendary coach Bo Schembechler,
Teeter helped lead the Wolverines to Big Ten championships in 1986, 1988
and 1989 and two Rose Bowl berths. Perhaps the highest tribute for the 6-3,
260-pounder came after his senior year when Schembechler called Teeter “our
most valuable defensive lineman by far.”
Second team all-Big Ten in his senior year, he started his
pro career with Frankfort of the World League (now known as NFL Europe),
where he was named All-World. He went on to play six years in the NFL for
Indianapolis, Philadelphia, Minnesota, Houston, Carolina and Arizona before
retiring in 1996. Teeter returned to the college game as the defensive line
coach at Indiana for two years under head coach Cam Cameron. In 1998, he
resigned his position to return home.