ROCK SPRINGS – It is the debate every year when it comes to high school sports. Who is the best male and female athletes in the state for the 2013-2014 school year?
One local athlete is among the finalists for the 2014 Milward Simpson Award. Rock Springs Tiger and future Wyoming Cowboy Ricky Faure has been named as one of the five finalists for the award. This prestigious award is presented annually to the outstanding male and female high school senior in Wyoming, in honor of a man who gave a great deal to the youth of our state.After careful consideration of all nominated athletes, the Simpson Selection Committee selects ten finalists, five boys and five girls, and then from those finalists, they select one overall male and one female winner.
The legacy of Milward Simpson lives on through this award, named for one of Wyoming’s greatest athletes. Simpson served as the team captain for the University of Wyoming football, basketball, and baseball teams and earned varsity letters in each sport from 1917-1921. As a halfback in football, he became the first Wyoming native to earn All-America honors. He turned down a professional baseball contract to attend Harvard Law School. Simpson was inducted into the UW Hall of Fame in 1996.
As an administrator and politician, Simpson’s life was devoted to the service of the people of Wyoming. As the President of the University of Wyoming Board of Trustees, he was instrumental in the hiring of UW President Duke Humphrey and Athletic Director Glenn “Red” Jacoby, both of whom are in the University Athletics Hall of Fame. Simpson served as the Governor of Wyoming from 1954-58, and later as a United States Senator, 1962-67.
Born in Jackson, Wyoming in 1897, Simpson came from one of the true pioneer Wyoming families. His grandparents moved to the state in 1865 following the Civil War.
This year’s awards will be given out on June 21st, and is for graduating seniors only.
The Finalists
Boys: Ricky Faure – Rock Springs: Cross-Country, Indoor Track and Field, Outdoor Track and Field
Cody Kelley – Gillette: Football, Basketball
Hayden Cragoe – Powell: Football, Basketball, Outdoor Track and Field (His father Rob won the first Milward Simpson award back in 1976.)
Garrett Lynch – Powell: Football, Indoor Track and Field, Outdoor Track and Field
Sterling Baker – Dubois: Football, Wrestling, Outdoor Track and Field
Girls: Rachel Erickson – Cheyenne East: Basketball, Soccer
Jerayah Davis – Kelly Walsh: Volleyball, Basketball, Indoor Track and Field, Outdoor Track and Field
Kaylee Johnson – Natrona: Basketball
Avery Madden – Torrington: Volleyball, Basketball, Outdoor Track and Field
Kacie O’Connor – Sundance: Golf, Basketball, Track and Field
