But when the San Jose Sports Authority hosts the San Jose Sports Hall of Fame induction ceremonies for its 10th anniversary class on Nov. 4 at the HP Pavilion, there will also be a sense of sadness.

Among the honorees at the event will be Pat Tillman, who died in combat earlier this year while serving with the U.S. Army Rangers in Afghanistan. Tillman, the former Leland High School football star and member of the NFL's Arizona Cardinals, will be one of the four South Bay athletes honored with induction into the Hall of Fame.

Along with Tillman, Hall of Fame inductees will include former Stanford and San Francisco 49ers quarterback John Brodie, Olympic gold medalist Amy Chow, and former Cupertino High School and Los Angeles Lakers basketball star Kurt Rambis.

Additional honorees at the dinner will be five Athletes of the Year. Among the award winners are Amateur Athletes of the Year Tara Kirk, a former Stanford swimmer and silver medalist at the Athens Olympics, and Jason Windsor, a former pitcher at Leigh High School who was the Most Outstanding Pitcher at the College World Series for NCAA champion Cal State Fullerton; High School Athletes of the Year Allie Miller of Los Altos, the state high jump champion, and Zac Monsees of Leland, an all-Central Coast Section water polo player and swimmer who qualified for the U.S. Olympic Trials; and Special Olympian of the Year Stacey Stevenson of San Jose, a multi-sport athlete who has won gold medals in swimming and track and field.

The induction of Tillman, Brodie, Chow and Rambis brings to 49 the number of members of the San Jose Sports Hall of Fame. Each honored athlete is recognized with a brass plaque on display at the HP Pavilion.

The Hall of Famers

Tillman's story is now legend. A football sensation at Leland and Arizona State University, Tillman was a member of the Arizona Cardinals when he gave up a lucrative professional career to join the Army Rangers. He was killed in the line of duty last April and will earn posthumous recognition in the Hall of Fame.

Brodie was an All-American quarterback at Stanford in 1956, leading the nation in passing. He went on to star for the 49ers, leading the NFL in completion percentage three times. He was named the NFL Player of the Year in 1970 after leading the 49ers to the NFC championship game. Also an accomplished golfer, he enjoyed a successful career on the PGA Senior Tour.

Chow, who trained with West Valley Gymnastics in Campbell, is a two-time Olympian joined the San Jose Hall of Fame. She won an individual silver medal on the uneven bars and team gold at the 1996 Atlanta Games, and four years later she qualified again to compete for the United States at the 2000 Sydney Games.

Rambis led the Cupertino basketball team to two CCS championships and was the CCS Player of the Year. He went on to star at Santa Clara University, winning the West Coast Conference Player of the Year award for the Broncos, and later won four NBA championship rings as a member of the Lakers. He served three seasons as an assistant coach for the Lakers and served as their interim head coach in 1998-99.

Award winners

Windsor, the Male Amateur Athlete of the Year, helped Cal State Fullerton clinch the NCAA baseball championship with a complete game performance for the Titans in a 3-2 win over Texas in the finals. Windsor, who starred on the mound at Leigh High School and West Valley College, was named the Most Outstanding Pitcher in the College World Series. He's now in the Oakland A's organization.

Almaden's Monsees is the Male High School Athlete of the Year after winning all-CCS honors in water polo and two CCS titles in swimming. It marked the third straight year that he was a double winner at the CCS swimming championships.

Rose Garden resident Stacey Stevenson will be honored as the Special Olympian of the Year. Stacey, afflicted with Down Syndrome, has been involved in Special Olympics for 30 years and has competed in aquatics, long distance running, basketball, bowling, softball and tennis. She has won golf medals for her performances in swimming and track and field.

Ken Venturi, former golf pro and star at San Jose State University, was also to be among this year's inductees, but scheduling conflicts made it impossible for him to attend the event. Venturi, a television golf analyst, will wait a year for his induction into the Hall of Fame.

The 10th annual San Jose Sports Hall of Fame induction ceremonies will begin with a VIP reception and silent auction at 5:30 p.m., followed by the dinner ceremony at 7 p.m. Dinner tickets, priced at $150, can be reserved by calling 408.288.2932. A portion of the proceeds from the event will benefit Special Olympics Silicon Valley Region.