Cletus Griffin (1983) - Hall of Fame - University of Akron Athletics

Cletus Griffin

Induction:
1983
Class:
1974

1969-73
Track/Cross Country
Distance Runner
‘74
Fatigue is the enemy of the long-distance runner, therefore training and will power are key to victory. From the beginning, it was evident that Cletus Griffin had those necessary ingredients to be a success because he disciplined himself to run between 14 and 35 miles a day. A four-year letterman in cross country and track during the 1970-73 school years, Griffin began breaking records his first season—running a 9:34 two mile run and 14:56 three-mile run. He established himself as the number one man in cross country and helped UA finish 40th in the NCAA College Division Championships. As a sophomore and junior he set marks in both the four- and five-mile course runs and improved UA’s finish to 21st in ’71 and 18th in ’72. All three seasons Griffin was voted Most Valuable Performer. In track his sophomore seasons, he broke the school’s three-mile, six-mile and 3,000-meter steeplechase standards and qualified in all three for the NCAA Championships. That early success was cause for his coach, Al Campbell, to predict he would be an All-American in both sports. At one time, Griffin held every long-distance record on campus, from one-mile run to 10,000-meter run, Cletus held the UA standards in the three-mile (13:55.2 in ’73), six-mile (29:03. 1 in ’73) and 10,000-meter (30:10.4 in ’72). The latter time came in the NCAA Championships and earned him sixth place and All-American honors. At the 1973 NCAA College Division Championships in cross country, Griffin finished 16th, to earn All-American honors, and pace UA to an eighth-place finish fulfilling Campbells’ earlier prediction. Currently a junior high physical education teacher In Virginia Beach, Virginia, Griffin was voted UA’s Athlete of the Year in 1973, along with Len Paul.