Athletics Hall of Fame – 2012
The 1987-88 team was the start of a great tradition of men’s basketball at Coker. It was the first year for head coach Dan Schmotzer and the first time the men’s program reached 20 wins in a season. Coker finished the year with the best record in school history at the time, 21-8.
Their historic season included wins over the Citadel, Wofford and University of South Carolina-Spartanburg, now University of South Carolina-Upstate. The Cobras made their first-ever trip to the NAIA District 6 postseason tournament and finished the season ranked No. 12 in the nation in scoring defense, allowing just under 64 points per game.
Individually, there were several stars were among the members of this team, including Coker Hall of Famers Dennis Woolfolk and Ray Henry.
Woolfolk was named second team all-district during the 1987-88 season and eventually went on to become Coker’s all-time leader in points with 1,975. He is also second in points per game in a career, averaging 18.1, and is fifth all-time in assists with 350. Woolfolk set the single-season record for 3-point field goals during the 87-88 season with 123 and the single-game record for made 3-pointers, with nine against Limestone in December 1988. Woolfolk was a member of Coker’s inaugural Hall of Fame class in 1997.
Henry, a 2002 Hall of Fame inductee, eventually went on to finish fourth on the all-time scoring list at Coker with 1,301 career points. He is fourth in career rebounds with 500 and holds the single-game record for field-goal percentage, hitting 91.7 percent of his shots against Presbyterian College in December 1989.
The 1987-88 Coker men’s basketball team was a group of pioneers. It paved the way for the success of future generations of Cobra basketball players.
1987-88 Men’s Basketball Team Roster
- Dennis Woolfolk
- Stephen Schulte
- Darryl Harrison
- Mark Garner
- Mike Martin
- Kenneth Nance
- Greg Dirst
- Eric Seiy
- Stephen Curl
- Darrell Johnson
- Mike Manning
- Scott James
- Russell Manley
- Ray Henry
- David Ulrich
- Larry Scott
- Dan Schmotzer – Head Coach
- Kurt Wall – Assistant Coach
- Neil French – Manager