​(SUBMITTED PHOTO)
Friends Jimmy King, Eric Davidson and Tate Hall when they were at UIndy. Tate is now a Loyola (Chicago) Rambler. King and Davidson were in the crowd Sunday to witness Hall’s victory.

​“I dreamt of being in an NCAA Tournament, but not making it this far. Sweet 16 ... It’s a surreal feeling right now. Obviously being in Indy is indescribable. I just can’t put it into words. It’s just an awesome feeling being at home and doing this right now.”
– Tate Hall, 6-6 guard, Loyola Chicago Ramblers

Sweet 16 bound

​By Kelly Sawyers, Publisher and Bob White
Community Outreach

When Greenfield-Central High School grad and former University of Indianapolis basketball standout Tate Hall decided to transfer to Loyola University in Chicago after his sophomore year, it was to follow his dream of playing NCAA Division 1 basketball.

In March 2018, Rob Hall got a phone call from his son, “Dad, do you have a minute? I’ve been thinking about this for a few weeks and want to transfer. I want the chance to play in March Madness.”
After the initial shock and waiting until his wife, Noelle (Young) Hall, finished teaching that day, they face-timed son Tate to figure out the next step.

Noelle, a Rushville High School grad, was a 1984 Indiana All Star and played for Indiana University 1984-1988, so she understood her son’s athletic dream.

As a sophomore at UIndy, Tate was named Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) first team All Conference. He started 24 of 28 games, averaged 32.0 minutes per game, and ranked 44th in NCAA Division II with a 56.0 field-goal percentage. He led the Greyhounds with 14.8 points and 5.6 rebounds per game.
 
His former UIndy teammates and close friends, Jimmy King and Eric Davidson, have been his biggest supporters and they got to witness Loyola’s dominant win over Big 10 champion and No. 1 seed Illinois, 71-58, Sunday in one of several big upsets in the NCAA tournament, all played in Indiana for the first time.
Tate made sure two of his tickets were reserved for his buddies.

“It’s humbling for Tate to have such great friends like Jimmy and Eric,” Rob Hall said. “They’ve hung with us, ate with us and we’re friends with their families. Just great people.”... just great friends.” 
He continued, “Tate is on cloud nine, but it’s not over yet. They (Loyola) have a great team. Their victory yesterday (Sunday) was a tribute to their defense. After the win, Tate looked up and pointed at his friends in the stands.”

In Tate’s first year with the Ramblers, he quickly asserted himself in the Missouri Valley Conference, earning third team All-MVC honors and being named to the All-MVC newcomer team, averaging 12.7 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.5 steals.

Still beaming Monday in an exclusive interview with The Southsider Voice, Tate said, “My first game in March Madness was just living the dream in Hinkle Fieldhouse. You just can’t make this stuff up.”
The 6-6 senior guard played 19 minutes, scored three points and had five rebounds and four assists as the Ramblers stunned Illinois
.
He said “I definitely have some superstition in my blood. I’ll have the same people at my upcoming game. They’re my lucky charms.”

The Ramblers face No. 12 seed Oregon State at 2:40 p.m. Saturday.

Former UIndy teammate King stated, “I’m privileged to be his friend. Seeing him play at the historic Hinkle Fieldhouse was magical. I’m not surprised with his success, because he is a hard worker and wasn’t content being all-conference Division II.”
​
And you can be sure that Loyola, Tate Hall and the Ramblers’ famous 101-year-old cheerleader/Sister Jean won’t be content with just reaching the Sweet 16.

​(PHOTO COURTESY OF ROBIN MILLER)
Southport’s Robin Miller, holding plaque, is with the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race all-time greats, from left, front, Bobby Unser, Mario Andretti, A.J. Foyt, and Johnny Rutherford. The occasion was the announcement of the Robin Miller Award at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in May 2019 to honor an “unheralded individual” who has enriched the “500” and IndyCar racing. Also, it was Miller’s 50th “500” and the 50th anniversary of Andretti’s “500” win. They are holding commemorative T-shirts. They are with, back row, from left, Paul Page, Penske Entertainment Corp. president and CEO Mark D. Miles and IndyCar president Jay Frye.

By Al Stilley
Editor

“Thank God, there’s only one Robin Miller.”

Four-time Indianapolis 500 winner A.J. Foyt made that comment in May 2019 when the Indianapolis Motor Speedway announced the Robin Miller Award in a media center ceremony attended by Foyt, Mario Andretti, Bobby Unser, and Johnny Rutherford. The award is in recognition of an “unheralded individual” who has enriched IndyCar racing.

Miller, a Southport High School alumnus, reveled in the surprise announcement by IndyCar and the Speedway during his 50th anniversary of covering the “500.”
Also in 2019, Miller was inducted into the Indiana Sportswriters and Broadcasters Hall of Fame at the Valle Vista Conference Center in Greenwood.

The irascible motorsports writer from the Southside was a little bit taken aback by his latest honor as one of 10 inductees into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America (MHFA) Class of 2021.
He is the media inductee and is among some fast company that includes the late NASCAR ace Davey Allison, three-time NHRA Top Fuel champion Larry Dixon Jr., Indy and NASCAR trailblazer Janet Guthrie, 2006 MotoGP world champion Nicky Hayden, and the late USAC and NASCAR engine and car builder Ray Nichels of Griffith, among others.

Miller has been writing for RACER magazine and RACER.com since SPEED folded and also is on NBCSN IndyCar telecasts.

He also is a self-described “flunky,” who dropped out of Ball State University and worked with the legendary Jim Hurtubise at the 1968 Indianapolis 500 on the last roadster to be in the race. In his younger years, he has raced sports cars on road courses and midget cars on dirt tracks and the Indianapolis Speedrome.
Miller was hired to answer phones for deadline sports calls and later, thanks to sportswriter Ray Marquette of Southport, became a sports writer where he began covering USAC and IndyCar racing. His early forte in covering the “500” was his ability to write stories about the little teams that came to Indy on a shoestring budget in hopes of being in the race.

He worked there for many years, writing his most controversial stories during the famous CART-Tony George split. A few years later, he was fired by The Star for allegedly violating company policies. He was hired by ESPN and worked on the Wind Tunnel show with legendary motorsports announcer Dave Despain.
Miller accepted his latest honor reluctantly because there are many others whom he considers as far more deserving.

“It’s flattering, but you also feel a little guilty about it,” Miller penned recently in his RACER magazine column. “But what do you say? I flunked out of college, I’m a borderline village idiot, but I got lucky. The Indianapolis Star gave me such a huge platform for over 30 years, and that was the most-read racing paper in the country.”

His tenure with The Star ended in 2001, and he had a frigid relationship with the IMS hierarchy and some city political leaders for many years. His stature on the national stage soared higher as he continued to back CART during the IndyCar racing split and was on several motorsports TV and radio programs.
His run-ins with Foyt and Indy 500 greats are legendary. In 1981, Foyt punched Miller after being accused of cheating. Not too long ago, Miller sat with Foyt for a lengthy TV interview at A.J. Foyt’s Wine Vault in Speedway.

Regarding his MHFA induction, Miller rattled off numerous names that are worthy: renowned motorsports writers Pete Lyons, Joe Scalzo, Gordon Kirby, Al Pearce and Ed Hinton; Despain and original Thursday Night Thunder producer Terry Lingner; dirt racing legend Jan Opperman; modified kings Bentley Warren, Richie Evans, and Brett Hearn; Gary Bettenhausen and Sammy Swindell who are on the 2022 ballot; Willy T. Ribbs; competitive IndyCar racers Sarah Fisher and Danica Patrick; and the late motorsports publicist Bill Marvel.
In recent years, Miller has been battling cancer; but he can still be found occasionally at Charlie Brown’s and the Workingman’s Friend on the westside.

While acknowledging his NHFA honor, Miller summed up his career.
“When you’re a kid and you grow up in Indianapolis, and you’re sneaking into the pits, and you’re stooging for Jim Hurtubise at 18 years old, and you watch Foyt and Parnelli (Jones) and Mario and Hurtubise as they start off in sprints and midgets and make their way up, then you go from being a fan getting their autograph, to writing about them, and then later in life becoming friends with them to where you can call them up anytime … It’s not a cliché; you cannot ask for a better life. If you’re into motor racing, how can you top that?”

“I’ve been friends with Robin since childhood. I was there when he started racing midgets in our early 20s. We have had many good laughs through the years and met many awesome people. It’s a well deserving honor for him.”
– Larry Schmalfeldt, Longtime friend