SFU President Rev. Malachi Van Tassel and Bob Moore, former president, general manager and CEO of the NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs.
Neil Rudel
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LORETTO – The St. Francis University Athletics Hall of Fame held a unique ceremony Saturday night to induct athletes into the Hall of Fame.
With the next class not scheduled to fill until 2027, SFU officials decided to hold an invitation-only recognition dinner to honour Bob Moore’s significant contributions to the school’s sporting history.
It was a truly wonderful night.
About 60 current and former St. Francis administrators, Moore’s family, close friends and work colleagues gathered in the Stokes-Twyman Room at DeGaulle Arena to celebrate one of the school’s greatest ambassadors.
Moore, a 1969 graduate of SFU, is the third contributor to be honored by the HOF, joining early sports information director and founder of the school’s Golden Age basketball program and longtime play-by-play announcer Joe Besneski and the late influential President Vincent Negervon.
“We always have an induction ceremony for our class, so tonight was different, but in a good way,” said Pat Farabaugh, chairman of the SFU Hall of Fame committee. “It was fitting to put the spotlight entirely on Bob. Through his Golden Era initiative, Bob has brought so many members of the St. Francis family together again, and tonight we come together to celebrate him.”
Moore’s legacy extended beyond St. Francis.
After serving as SID at Drexel University, he became the PR director for the USFL championship teams Philadelphia Stars and Baltimore Stars before embarking on a distinguished NFL career that spanned three decades as the Kansas City Chiefs’ chief PR officer and later the club’s historian.
He proudly wears one of the three Super Bowl rings he has won.
A video tribute Saturday night featured appearances by Dick Vermeil, Chiefs owner Clark Hunt, Kansas City Royals standout George Brett, former Chiefs chairman Carl Peterson and Philadelphia Stars stars Chuck Fusina and Scott Fitzke.
Peterson began working with Moore with the Philadelphia Stars and, although he was initially skeptical of Moore’s football background (he joked, “There was no football at Drexel”), he quickly embraced him.
Peterson, who appeared on video, flew to the scene from Kansas City on Saturday night.
“I felt like I had to be here and I wanted to be here,” he said. “Bob and his wife, Maggie, are the two most important people in all the success we’ve had.”
After glowing comments from Peterson and former St. Francis player Art Hunter, Moore humbly took the microphone and said, “I’m very moved.”
The Altoona native, who grew up “watching (St. Francis) games at the Jaffa Mosque and smelling the popcorn,” spoke of his passion for the school, sports, its history and building relationships.
He was proud to have past players from his golden era in attendance, including Clarence Hopson, Bill Stevens, Rick Hockenos, Allen Spencer, Don Appleman and Gene DeBernardis, as well as former roommate and SFU coach Dave Magarity and former Atlantic 10 commissioner Ron Bertovich.
“When I was at St. Francis in the 1960s, it was a great time to go to college because of Norm Van Lier and the players,” said Moore, 76. “The school was big enough that I got to know the players and become friends with them.”
Moore thanked his late parents, noting that his mother, Dorothy, worked for dentist and basketball coach Skip Hughes, who enrolled him as a student at St. Francis before his application was even complete.
SFU President Father Malachi Van Tassel praised Moore’s “lifelong commitment to St. Francis and deep passion for sports at our university,” highlighting the school’s motto: “Be That Person.”
Bob Moore apparently did.
Rudel can be contacted at nrudel@altoonamirror.com
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