UCLA FOOTBALL COACH HEADS LIST OF MUIR HALL INDUCTEES
Pasadena Now
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April 21 2008
CA
Defensive Coordinator DeWayne Walker, who served as head coach in
UCLA’s last football game and was referred to by Rick Neuheisel as
"my top recruit" upon replacing Karl Dorrell as the Bruins head coach,
heads the list of four alumni elected to the 21st annual John Muir
High School Hall of Fame.
Others elected are Composer John Beal, Class of 1964, under the
category of Visual and Performing Arts; Pasadena Police Lt. Phlunte
Riddle (’77), Government Service; and philanthropist/humanitarian
Flora Clausdian Dunaians (’52 and ’54), Community Service.
The 21st annual induction ceremony will be held at 6 p.m. Wednesday,
April 23, 2008, at Rufus Mead Auditorium, 1905 Lincoln Ave., on the
Muir High campus in Pasadena.
Walker, a 1978 Muir graduate, starred in the 1976 and 1977 Turkey
Tussles won by Muir, to end a 10-year losing streak to Pasadena High
School in the cross-town rivalry. The defensive back went on to star
at the University of Minnesota by way of Pasadena City College. His
professional career included one season with the Edmonton Eskimos of
the Canadian Football League, and two seasons in the United States
Football League, with the Oakland Invaders (1984) and Arizona Outlaws
(1985).
But it is Walker’s success on the sidelines, rather than on the
gridiron, that impressed Muir’s Hall of Fame selection committee. He
began his coaching career as a secondary coach (1988-91) and defensive
coordinator (1992) at Mt. San Antonio College before returning
to school and earning his bachelor’s degree from Regents College
in Albany, N.Y. He then gained valuable experience by coaching at
Utah State (1993), Brigham Young (1994), Oklahoma State (1995) and
California (1996-97).
His National Football League coaching experience began as an assistant
to Pete Carroll with the New England Patriots. Walker spent three
seasons at New England: two under Carroll (1998-99); and one under
current Head Coach Bill Belichick (2000).
In 2001, Walker became the first assistant coach hired by Carroll at
USC. In 2002, he became a secondary coach with the New York Giants, for
then-Defensive Coordinator Johnny Lynn (another Muir Hall-of-Famer).
After two seasons with the Giants, Walker joined the Washington
Redskins’ staff as a cornerbacks coach. His greatest coaching success
there was the development of Carlos Rogers and Shawn Springs, who in
2004 became the first player in NFL history to lead his team in sacks
(five) and interceptions (six) in the same season. The Redskins won
their last five games in 2005 to make the playoffs, due largely to
the play of their defensive secondary.
Beal is a long-time television and film composer and the current
general manager of the Hollywood Symphony Orchestra. His credits
include the musical themes for "Happy Days," "Laverne & Shirley,"
"Vega$," and "Eight is Enough."
He has more than 500 theatrical compositions and 2,000 film commercials
to his credit, including movie trailers for 40 of the top-grossing
films of all time. His greatest gift to Muir was having written many
of the cadences for the school’s internationally renowned drum corps,
which are still used more than 40 years after his graduation.
Lt. Riddle, a 23-year veteran, followed the footsteps of her
father-in-law, Ralph Riddle, the first African-American officer of
the Pasadena Police Department. She made history by becoming Pasadena
P.D.’s first African-American woman to be promoted to sergeant. She
has worked an array of assignments throughout her career, as a
patrol officer, undercover drug officer, background investigator and
detective. She currently leads the Traffic Section, responsible for
traffic management throughout the city.
Dunaians, a long-time supporter of the Armenian community, is
co-founder of Developmental Services for Armenia, a non-profit
organization benefitting schools, orphanages and short-term emergency
needs. Her humanitarian service includes organizing emergency food and
medical aid sent to her motherland in the aftermath of devastating
earthquakes. She is a supporter and fundraiser for Olympic Team
Armenia; a nursing school project in Stepanavan, Armenia; and
"Operation Fuel," which provided heating during Armenia’s coldest
winter in years. She was a member of the final graduating class of
John Muir College.
Formed in 1988, the John Muir High School Hall of Fame includes such
notable alumni as Jackie Robinson, John Van De Kamp, Stacey Augmon,
Darrell Evans, Inger Miller and David Lee Roth.
This year’s ceremony coincides with the school’s open house
festivities. Tours of the Hall of Fame, Museum and Alumni Office
will follow the program. Nominations are accepted throughout the
year and are reviewed by a selection panel consisting of two Hall
of Fame inductees, two students from the school’s leadership class,
two teachers and a school administrator. Forms can be downloaded from
the organization’s website,