A team captain for the Ripon Redmen in both football and baseball, Jeff Hughes '79 was an All-Conference selection in both sports. Forty-two years after his graduation, Hughes still holds Ripon football's school record for career interceptions with 26 during his career. The only player in school history with at least nine interceptions in more than one season, Hughes was inducted into Ripon's Athletics Hall of Fame in 1994.

"Jeff was an outstanding person, captain and player for our team, and was without a doubt the BEST defensive back we coached during his time at Ripon College," former Ripon Head Football Coach Bob Giesey said. "He stood 5-10 and 165 pounds, with excellent speed, jumping ability and knowledge of the game."

A four-year starter and three-year team captain and Defensive Most Valuable Player, Hughes intercepted two passes as a freshman. He followed that up with a sophomore campaign that saw him record nine interceptions in nine games. After a five-interception season as a junior, Hughes ended his career in style with a career-high 10 interceptions, making him one of just three players in program history to record double-digit interceptions in one season.

"Jeff was a player who would make interceptions that would seem impossible to intercept. Once the ball was in the air, he would be there in key situations to make the interceptions," Giesey said. "He was an outstanding tackler and defensive secondary signal caller, but most importantly, Jeff was an outstanding student and was loved by his teammates."

With Hughes playing the role of the 'no fly zone,' on the backend of Ripon's defense, the Redmen won two Midwest Conference championships, becoming back-to-back champs in his final two seasons. During his four years on the gridiron, Hughes led Ripon to an incredible 26-9 overall record, including an 18-3 record in conference games. During his final two years on the team, Ripon recorded a cumulative record of 14-3, including an 8-1 conference record. He earned All-Conference honors in each of his final three seasons with the Redmen.

Hughes was also an All-Conference performer on the baseball diamond as a sophomore in 1977.

"Out of all the colleges I worked for during my college coaching career, Ripon was the most fun and productive. The reason I say this is due to the hundreds of young men like Jeff that chose Ripon as their college for both academics and athletics," Giesey said. "In addition to that, these players were extremely close as 'brothers' in their fraternities, which is still carried on to this day."

A Politics & Government major at Ripon, Hughes was part of the Phi Delta Theta fraternity. He currently resides in the Scottsdale, Ariz. area and serves as EVP and Chief Administrative Officer for Republic Services, Inc., where he has worked for the past 13 years.


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

CLICK HERE to view and read all of Ripon's archived '100 For 100' profiles, which will have each profile added to it once it is posted online.