Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell Alums Pat Flannery, Tom Mitchell Elected to MAC Hall of Fame
5/4/2016 1:48:00 PM | General
LEWISBURG, Pa. – Pat Flannery '80 and Tom Mitchell '66, two members of the Bucknell Athletics Hall of Fame who had major impacts on the Bison men's basketball and football teams, have been elected to the Middle Atlantic Conference Hall of Fame. Flannery and Mitchell are two of 20 inductees in the MAC Hall of Fame Class of 2016.
Mitchell is widely considered one of the greatest football players in Bucknell history. A member of Bucknell's inaugural Hall of Fame Class in 1979, he was a two-time ECAC College Division Player of the Year and First Team Associated Press Little All-American.
Fifty years after his graduation, Mitchell still holds Bucknell records for receptions in a game (13 vs. Harvard on Oct. 3, 1964) and career (173 from 1963-65), as well as receiving yards in a game (264 vs. Temple on Oct. 9, 1965) and career (2358). He also owns a share of the school mark for touchdown catches in a career with 18.
Mitchell, who later played in two Super Bowl games and won one title with the Baltimore Colts as part of a 12-year pro career, helped lead the Bucknell to the Lambert Cup title as the top team in Eastern college football in 1964 and to a MAC championship in 1965. In one of the most prosperous eras in program history, the Bison went 19-8 in Mitchell's three varsity seasons.
Flannery's ties to the MAC come from his days as head coach at Lebanon Valley College, where he led the Flying Dutchmen to the NCAA Division III national championship in his fifth and final season there in 1993-94. Flannery returned to his alma mater a year later, where he became one of the most successful coaches in Bison basketball history.
Flannery posted 234 wins as Bucknell's head coach, second-most in team history. Most notably, his 2004-05 squad capped off a 24-win, Patriot League championship season with a victory over Kansas in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. That was the first NCAA win in school and league history. A year later, the Bison won a school-record 27 games, earned a national ranking for the first time, and as a No. 9 seed defeated Arkansas in the NCAA Tournament.
Flannery retired from coaching following the 2007-08 season with a final career record of 329-221 (.598), including his days at Lebanon Valley.
Flannery was also a terrific point guard on some very good teams for coach Charlie Woollum. He captained the 1979-80 Bison team that finished 20-7 and ushered in an era of unprecedented success at Bucknell. Flannery remains the only player ever to lead the Bison in assists for four straight years, and he finished his career with a total of 505 assists, which was a school record at the time and still ranks third in Bucknell history. He also tallied 779 career points and boasted a career free-throw percentage of .787. Bucknell posted a 38-16 record over Flannery's final two seasons, and he captained the team each of those years. Flannery also played on the baseball team at Bucknell.
Flannery and Mitchell join legendary Bucknell football coach Bob Odell in the MAC Hall of Fame. Odell was indicted with the MAC's inaugural Hall of Fame Class as part of the conference's 100-year anniversary celebration in 2012.
