Cal Athletics Hall of Fame: Jorge Gutierrez, Alexis Gray-Lawson Lead 2024 Class

Six other honorees include coaches Scott Frandsen and Nancy McDaniel

Jorge Gutierrez and Alexis Gray-Lawson, two of Cal’s most accomplished basketball players of this century, lead the eight-person Cal Athletics Hall of  Fame class of 2024.

Gutierrez, a ferocious defensive player from Mexico, helped lead the Bears to the 2010 Pac-12 championship — their first in a half-century — and was voted conference player of the year as a senior in 2012.

Gray-Lawson, also a guard, earned All-America honors in 2010, was three times selected to the all-conference team and became just the third Cal player chosen in the WNBA draft.

Also chosen to the 2024 class were Scott Frandsen, Cal’s current men’s rowing head coach and a former three-time Olympian for Canada; football player Tarik Glenn, who went to win a Super Bowl with the Indianapolis Colts; Pia Halbig, a two-time All-America women’s golfer; Caitlin Leverenz Smith, a national swimmer of the year for the Bears and future Olympian; four-time national champion rugby player Mike MacDonald; and Nancy McDaniel, who founded the women’s golf program and coached the Bears for 29 seasons before retiring this spring. 

Cal Athletics has changed its process for honoring its Hall of Fame members and will begin celebrating their selections every two years. As a result, this 2024 class and the 2025 selections will be recognized at the 2025 Hall of Fame Gala, which will be paired with a home football game that fall.

The Cal Athletics Hall of Fame now includes 347 individuals and seven rowing teams. The Hall is located on the west side of Memorial Stadium and is open to ticket holders after each home football game.

Here are thumbnail profiles of the eight new inductees, provided by Cal Athletics: 

* SCOTT FRANDSEN – Men's Rowing (1999-2002): Frandsen was part of Cal's varsity eight that won three straight IRA national championships and three consecutive Pac-10 championships. An All-Pac-12 selection, Frandsen went on to compete in three Olympic Games for Canada – winning the silver medal in the coxless pair in 2008 in Beijing. He is a seven-time medalist in World Cup regattas and the current head coach at Cal, where he has led the Bears to the past two IRA national titles.

* TARIK GLENN – Football (1993-96): Glenn played on both sides of the line at Cal and was a first-team All-Pac-10 offensive lineman as a senior before getting drafted with the 19th overall pick in the 1997 NFL Draft by the Indianapolis Colts. He went on to enjoy a successful 10-year professional career, earning three Pro Bowl berths and helping the Colts win their first Super Bowl in Indianapolis at the end of the 2006 season. Glenn was inducted into the Colts Ring of Honor in 2022 and for a decade has worked at Cal's Athletic Study Center, where he now serves as assistant director.

* ALEXIS GRAY-LAWSON – Women's Basketball (2005-10): Gray-Lawson was a three-time All-Pac-10 selection and named an All-American in 2010, the same year she was the winner of the Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award, given to the top player in the nation 5-foot-8 or shorter. Gray-Lawson has played in more games than any Cal women's basketball player in history – 143 – and started every one of them. She ranks fourth on the Bears' all-time scoring list with 1,982 points and her 47 points at Oregon State in 2010 is the second-most in a game ever in program history.

* JORGE GUTIERREZ – Men's Basketball (2008-12): Gutierrez was the 2012 Pac-12 Player of the Year and helped lead the Golden Bears to the conference regular season championship in 2010. A two-time all-conference selection, the 2012 Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year and All-American as a senior, Gutierrez was also a three-time member of the Pac-10/12 All-Academic Team. He ranks among Cal's all-time leaders in steals (5th, 148) and games played (t-7th, 129). Gutierrez went on to play an extensive professional career that included time spent in the NBA with the Brooklyn Nets, Milwaukee Bucks and Charlotte Hornets.

* PIA HALBIG – Women's Golf (2007-11): One of the most decorated women golfers ever at Cal, Halbig owns the lowest career scoring average in program history (73.89). She is a two-time All-American who also owns the lowest 54-hole tournament score in program history (13-under), which she recorded in 2010. Halbig led Cal to four straight NCAA Regional berths, including the NCAA finals in 2011. A Dinah Shore Trophy winner, the Pac-10 Scholar-Athlete of the Year and a two-time WGCA All-American Scholar, Halbig also owns the highest individual ranking ever by a Cal golfer (No. 6 in 2010).

* CAITLIN LEVERENZ SMITH – Women's Swimming & Diving (2009-13): Leverenz Smith holds the Cal record in both the 200-yard breaststroke (2:04.76) and 400 individual medley (3:57.89) and was named the 2012 CSCAA National Swimmer of the Year. She is a six-time NCAA champion (four relays, two individual titles) who was also the 2012 Pac-12 Swimmer of the Year and the 2013 Pac-12 Scholar-Athlete of the Year. Leverenz Smith went on to win the bronze medal in the 200 individual medley at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.

* MIKE MacDONALD – Rugby (1999-2004): MacDonald was a five-time All-American who led Cal to four national championships. In addition to his successful playing career as a Golden Bear, MacDonald went on to become one of the most decorated American rugby players in history. He represented the U.S. in three Rugby World Cups, and by the time he retired in 2014 he was the record-holder for international appearances on the U.S. National Team (67). MacDonald also spent six years playing professionally in England and was inducted into the U.S. Rugby Hall of Fame in 2021. He served as a Cal assistant coach for nine years, helping the Bears to seven national championships, including five-consecutive sevens titles.

* NANCY McDANIEL – Women's Golf (1995-Present): McDaniel founded Cal's women's golf program in 1995 and has been the only head coach the team has ever known. In 29 years at the helm, she has led the Bears to 10 NCAA Championship appearances, including three straight top-5 finishes from 2004-06. McDaniel has also guided Cal to 23 NCAA regionals – including a stretch of 20 years in a row – and a pair of Pac-10/12 championships. She is a two-time Pac-10 Coach of the Year honoree and has won numerous other coaching awards throughout her career, including the 2018 WGCA Division I Kim Moore Spirit Award. The Bears have won 34 tournaments during her tenure. McDaniel is retiring following the end of the 2023-24 season.