(AGENPARL) – TOLEDO (OHIO) mar 28 giugno 2022

When the University of Toledo Athletic Department decided to commission an artist to paint portraits of its three members of the College Football Hall of Fame, they sought the services of another Rocket Hall of Famer.

Aaron Bivins, the Toledo football team’s all-time leading tackler and 2006 inductee into the school’s Varsity T Hall of Fame, was chosen to paint water-color portraits of Rocket greats Chuck Ealey, Mel Long, Sr. and Gary Pinkel. Ealey and Pinkel are being officially inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in Las Vegas on Dec. 6. Long was inducted into the prestigious group in 1998.

Aaron Bivins, a 2006 inductee into the school’s Varsity T Hall of Fame, poses with two of the three watercolor portraits he was commissioned to paint of the three Rockets in the College Football Hall of Fame.

The Rockets will honor all three inductees at their game vs. UMass on Sept. 10. A special dinner reception in their honor will also be held at the Pinnacle in Maumee on Friday, Sept. 9. Details for purchasing tickets to the dinner will be announced later this summer.

Bivins is a well-known and award-winning artist in the Toledo area, whose work is hanging in local galleries and is in competition in festivals like UToledo’s Art on the Mall. Many years before he made his living with a paintbrush, he created artistry of a different kind on the football field. Bivins played defensive line for the Rockets from 1974-77, earning Mid-American Conference Defensive Player of the Year honors in 1976. He twice was awarded Toledo’s Nicholson Award as the team’s most valuable player, and earned second-team All-MAC accolades in 1976 and 1977. He still holds the Toledo record for career tackles with 508.

“When we decided we wanted to create portraits for our College Football Hall of Fame inductees, we naturally thought of Aaron,” said Toledo Deputy Director of Athletics Dave Nottke. “He is not only an accomplished artist but also one of our all-time great football players. Having one of our own Varsity T Hall of Famers paint these portraits makes them extra-special.”

The Rockets’ all-time leading tackler, Bivins is a well-known and award-winning artist in the Toledo area.

Bivins agreed that there is something appropriate about a former Rocket to bring the three Toledo Hall of Famers to life on the canvas.

“I am just truly honored to be asked to do something like this,” said Bivins. “Being a Varsity T Hall of Famer keeps it all in the family, so to speak. It was almost like it was meant to be. I just hope everybody likes the end result.”

The portraits will be officially presented to Ealey, Long and Pinkel at the reception on Sept. 9 and again at the football game on Sept. 10. Those attending the reception, as well as a limited number of fans attending the football game, will receive commemorative football cards that replicate the paintings.

The post Former Rocket Paints Portraits of UToledo’s College Football Hall of Fame Inductees first appeared on UToledo News.

Fonte/Source: http://news.utoledo.edu/index.php/06_28_2022/former-rocket-paints-portraits-of-utoledos-college-football-hall-of-fame-inductees