Mizzou Athletics inducts six new members to Hall of Fame

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

On Friday night, Mizzou Athletics welcomed a loaded class of six new members into its Hall of Fame.

The Tiger legends were officially enshrined into the Hall in a ceremony on Friday night and will conclude their weekend by being honored on the field during Mizzou football's game against Louisiana at Memorial Stadium.

You can find a full list of the 2025 inductees below.

• Mike Alden – Director of Athletics (1998–2015)
• Bob Brendel – Administration (1980-2000)
• Sophie Cunningham – Women's Basketball (2015–19)
• Alyssa Munlyn – Volleyball (2015–18)
• Brock Olivo – Football (1994–97)
• Kareem Rush – Men's Basketball (1999–2002)

Alden was inducted into the Hall of Fame, after record-breaking run as MU's athletic director. He oversaw a period of unprecedented growth which saw the athletic departments annual operating budget jump from $13.5 million to nearly $90 million.

Over the course of his 17 years at the helm in Columbia, Alden got quite a bit done, including spearheading the Tigers' move to the Southeastern Conference prior to the 2012-13 academic year and also hiring College Football Hall of Famer Gary Pinkel as the football team's head coach. He also oversaw significant facility upgrades, including renovations to Memorial Stadium, an expansion to the Mizzou Athletic Training Complex, as well as construction of Mizzou Arena, Taylor Stadium, the Mizzou Tennis Complex, the Walsworth Family Golf Center and the Tiger Performance Complex.

Alden was named the NACDA Athletic Director of the Year in 2008 and was also inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in 2015.

You can watch the full press conference with Alden, at the Hall of Fame induction, in the video player below.

Brendel made it into the Hall, after spending years as a sports information director (SID).

The St. Louis native's first assignments were men's basketball and baseball, while he was later named the point man for football and gymnastics. In his time working with those programs, he saw those teams find quite a bit of success. During his basketball days, the Tigers went to seven conference championships, won five conference tournament crowns, advanced to the NCAA Tournament 14 times and worked with Stewart for 650 games. He also worked with 17 All-Americans and won more than 50 publication awards.

Mizzou said that Brendel also computerized MU's SID office, expanded school records, created the Intercollegiate Athletics Hall of Fame, supervised the development of the athletic departments webiste and much more.

You can watch the full press conference with Brendel, at the Hall of Fame induction, in the video player below.

Columbia native Sophie Cunningham was also featured on the list of six new additions to Mizzou's Hall of Fame.

After shining during her high school career at Rock Bridge, she took her talents across town to help elevate her hometown program, joining her older sister Lindsey on the Tiger team. Cunningham went on to become the program's all-time leading scorer with 2,187 points. She also set the school career record for free throws made (537) and ranks second in three-point field goals made (590) and fourth in career points per game (17.0). The Columbia native also led Mizzou to the NCAA Tournament in all four of her seasons as a Tiger, advancing to the second round in 2016, '17 and '19.

Out of college, Cunningham was drafted by the Phoenix Mercury in the WNBA in 2019. She played six seasons in the Southwest, before being traded to the Indiana Fever ahead of the 2025 season.

She's also worked to pass basketball down to the next generation, as she and her sister started the 'Sophie Cunningham Classic,' with the help of legendary Mizzou head coach Norm Stewart.

You can watch the full press conference with Cunningham, at the Hall of Fame induction, in the video player below.

One of the most dominant athletes in Mizzou volleyball history will now also find her name in the Hall of Fame.

From 2015-18, she became the Tigers' first four-time AVCA All-American. She ended her time in Columbia as the program's all-time leader in blocks (634), block assists (516) and blocks per set (1.27). She also set the school record with a .388 hitting percentage from her middle blocker position. Her 2017 season was really one for the history books, as she set Mizzou season records with 189 blocks, 159 block assists and 1.44 blocks per set.

The Georgia native also spent four seasons on the Tiger coaching staff from 2019-22.

You can watch the full press conference with Munlyn, at the Hall of Fame induction, in the video player below.

There's quite a few record-breakers in the 2025 Hall of Fame class, including former running back Brock Olivo, who played from 1994-97.

He led Mizzou in rushing three times and graduated as the Mizzou career leader in rushing yards (3,026), rushing touchdowns (27) and all-purpose yards (3,475). He was the Big Eight Conference Freshman of the Year in 1994, and an all-conference selection as a junior and a senior. He also has his jersey, No. 27, retired by the program.

The Washington, Missouri native played four years for the Detroit Lions, before moving on to coaching. At the college level, he's made stops at Coastal Carolina and Washington University, and most recently with Eli Drinkwitz at Mizzou. He's also coached in the NFL for the Chiefs, Broncos and Bears.

You can watch the full press conference with Olivo, at the Hall of Fame induction, in the video player below.

Last, but certainly not least, former Mizzou hooper Kareem Rush was inducted on Friday night, as well.

The Kansas City native starred in Columbia for three seasons, from 1999-2202. In that time, he totaled 1,584 points, 456 rebounds, 174 assists and 102 steals. He's one of just three players in school history with 1,500 points, 200 made three-pointers, 400 rebounds, 100 assists and 100 steals. Rush also helped lead the Tigers to the NCAA Tournament three times, including runs to the Elite Eight in 2002 and to the round of 32 in 2001.

After his collegiate career wrapped up, he was picked 20th overall by the Toronto Raptors in 2002. He played seven seasons in the NBA, totaling 2,213 points, 572 rebounds, 353 assists and 150 steals.

You can watch the full press conference with Rush, at the Hall of Fame induction, in the video player below.