Nine To Be Awarded Honorary C's

            BOULDER — Come September, there will be nine additions to the University of Colorado's list of "Honorary C" recipients, a prestigious honor afforded those who have been dedicated to intercollegiate athletics.

            The Honorary C program was the idea of then-athletic director Harry Carlson in 1955, when the inaugural class included 15 honorees. In the 68 years since, 281 have been awarded the distinguished honor, which is Presented to a person or persons for their dedication of service or contributions to University of Colorado Athletics.

            "Presenting the Honorary C Letter is a signature event of the Alumni C Club," said Executive Director Kimbirly Orr. "Working with a dedicated committee of Board and athletics staff volunteers, our nomination process brings forth exceptional candidates annually. It will be an honor to present Colorado's Letter to the 2023 class of deserving recipients."

            Recipients were selected by representatives from both the athletic department staff and the Alumni C-Club Board. Joining the previous 281 awardees are the following nine who will be honored this coming year, seven at the Colorado State football game on Saturday night, Sept. 16; two (Dikeou and Duffy) will be recognized at a basketball game later in the year. The 2023 honorees:

Russ Allen. He has had two separate stints working a combined 20-plus years in the athletic department and on campus. His expertise is in the audio/visual domain which has been utilized for Alumni C Club events, sporting events and concerts at multiple campus venues.

Troy Andre. He is in his 21st year as a member of CU's athletic communications office (formerly sports information), having covered the volleyball, women's basketball and now men's basketball programs on a daily basis, in addition to being the Internet Managing Editor for CUBuffs.com.

Michele Brannigan. Beginning her 16th year in the Herbst Academic Center, she is the Director of Academic Learning, Resources and Support. When hired in 2008, she became CU's first dedicated learning specialist for the student-athletes, where she has worked with a caseload of students who need a higher level of support.

Ryan Chreist. The Assistant Vice Chancellor and Executive Director of the CU Alumni Association, he has worked for the university since 1997, first in admissions and then in IT systems in 2007 before joining the alumni association in 2013. He is also a volunteer firefighter with the Louisville Fire Department.

Wythe Crowe. An All-State performer from Aurora's Gateway High School, he was on the junior varsity team in 1977 but while practicing with the varsity, before he could make his debut, he suffered a broken neck in late October '78 in what became a career-ending injury. He didn't letter, as in those days, a player needed to play a minimum of 100 plays to earn one, but since the early 80s, those were augmented to include other ways a player could letter, including career-ending injuries. Despite as he termed it "his world ending" when he could no longer play for the Buffs, he has been a devoted supporter of the program ever since and graduated with a bachelor's degree in August 1982.

John Dikeou. A long-time contributor to the University of Colorado after graduating from CU in the 1950s. Dikeou is a founding member of CU's football scholarship donor program, providing a full scholarship for 35 years. The late Fred Casotti honored Dikeou by dedicating his book The Golden Buffaloes to him.

Flora Duffy. A CU graduate with a degree in Sociology, she is an Olympic triathlete who competes for Bermuda, winning the country's first gold medal in the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. A native of Paget Parish, Bermuda, she is the winner of four gold medals in ITU World Triathlon Championships and regularly trains in Boulder.

Ann Elliott-Whidden. She is in her 10th season as the head coach for CU's women's lacrosse team, having started the program from scratch in 2013. Her record is 109-60 and has never had a losing year in the nine-year history of the program.

Bart Emery. In his 15th year as a member of the athletic department, he is the technical coordinator for the CU Events Center. He works extensively with volleyball, men's and women's basketball, football and lacrosse in addition with facilities in staffing events and is hands-on for all kinds of projects and also works with guest relations on game days.

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