14TH ANNUAL INDUCTION DINNER

• Born July 7, 1985
• Hometown: Phoenix, Arizona
• Alma Mater: Saint Mary’s College of California (BA, 2008)
• Played four seasons at Saint Mary’s for longtime head coach Randy Bennett
• As a senior captain in 2007-08, Golden ranked second in the nation for assist-to-turnover ratio (3.68)
• Spent two seasons playing professionally in Israel for Maccabi Haifa
• Co-captain of the USA Open Team that won gold at the 2009 Maccabiah Games (coached by Bruce Pearl)
• Started his coaching career in 2013 as an assistant under Kyle Smith at Columbia
• Joined Pearl’s staff at Auburn in 2014 as director of basketball operations and was elevated to assistant coach the following year
• Became the associate head coach at San Francisco in 2016, rejoining Smith in his new role as Dons head coach
• Elevated to head coach at USF in March 2019, following Smith’s departure to Washington State
• Won 22 games in his first season on the job, maintaining the high standard set by Smith
• Married to the former Megan York, a former volleyball standout at Saint Mary’s

Todd Golden (born July 7, 1985) is a former American-Israeli basketball player and current head coach of the San Francisco Dons men’s basketball team.

Playing career
Golden played four years at St. Mary’s where he was part of two NCAA Tournament appearances. During his senior season he ranked second in the nation in assist-to-turnover ratio and graduated as the Gaels’ all-time leader in free-throw percentage (.832). Upon graduation, Golden played for two seasons with Maccabi Haifa in the Israeli Basketball Premier League. Golden also competed in the 2009 Maccabiah Games with the USA Open Team.

Coaching career
After working in the private sector in advertising sales once his playing career was over, Golden entered the college coaching ranks joining Kyle Smith’s staff at Columbia, first as director of basketball operations, then as an assistant coach.  He would then take a director of basketball operations position at Auburn under Bruce Pearl, his coach during the 2009 Maccabiah Games. Golden would rise to assistant coach with the Tigers in his final season before reuniting with Smith at San Francisco. On April 1, 2019, Golden was officially introduced as the 20th men’s basketball coach in Dons history, replacing Smith who departed for Washington State.

Paul Tonelli is not exactly a “native” San Franciscan, but he likes to say he has a birth certificate, 2 diplomas, and a marriage certificate that say otherwise.  Born in 1958 at St. Mary’s Hospital.  It was when the “front door” was on Hayes St.  He would find himself a patient there 5 times for different surgeries before he was 8 years old.

Raised in the Westlake district of Daly City.  A graduate of Our Lady of Mercy.  The two San Francisco diplomas are from St. Ignatius College Prep and San Francisco State University ( BA in Broadcast Communications).  Paul has always felt the Excelsior District was his “home away from home.”  His “nonni” lived on Theresa St. where he spent countless weekends as a kid.  Paul’s dad, Dino, owned and operated Central Drug Store at the corner of Mission and Santa Rosa.  The business dates back to 1910.  Dino started working there in the 40’s, and became owner (along with his brother Bill Tonelli) in the 1960’s.  Paul’s mom, Elsie, and brother, Jerry, continue to run the business today.  They are very proud to continue the 110-year old tradition of serving the Excelsior.  Paul got his start in Bay Area radio in 1987 as an airborne traffic reporter for K-101, KNBR and KSJO.  In 1989 he became the “Tonelli” half of the Lamont & Tonelli morning show.   “Lamont & Tonelli” have been at or near the top of the Bay Area radio ratings for 31 years.  Starting in 1989 in San Jose at 92.3 KSJO, then to San Francisco in 2003 at 107.7 “The Bone” (KSAN-FM).  Their show continues at “The Bone” today.  Paul is a huge sports fan and a life-long 49er (anybody remember the “Christopher Milk section” at Kezar?), Giants, and Warriors fan.  As a kid he sold programs at Kezar stadium during the 49ers final two seasons there.  In 2007 he had a dream come true when landed a job as the P.A. game announcer for the 49ers at Candlestick Park.  This coming season at Levi’s Stadium will be Paul’s 15th season calling “49ers…..FIRST DOWN!!”

In addition to his busy life style and business, Paul is very involved in youth sports at his Alma mater, St. Ignatius College Prep,  as well as acting as M.C. for fundraising events for the Boy’s & Girl’s Clubs of the Bay Area and has been involved in the Columbus Day celebration and parade in North Beach in San Francisco over many years. Additionally, Paul participates in the City Youth Now organization helping underprivileged youngsters in San Francisco.

Paul and his family’s long and distinguished history in the City made him an ideal current member of the San Francisco Historical Society’s Advisory Board along with other notable San Franciscans such as Dr. Renel Brooks-Moon, Willie L. Brown Jr.,Greg Suhr and Joanne Hayes-White.

Lowell Cohn is not your ordinary newspaper writer – he has a PhD. in English Literature and has been an instructor at the world-famous Stanford Creative Writing Program, and he has won numerous national awards for his work. So, when Lowell says nice things about the book, we proudly blush — and encourage you to read his kind words. He liked it so much, he not only wrote his Sunday column on the subject, he also posted an interview with Michael in his blog, The Cohn Zone.

“Lowell Cohn, retired columnist for the Santa Rosa Press Democrat, covered sports for almost 40 years and never ran out of things to say.” — Grant Cohn (his son, also sports writer)

Book description: Gloves Off
After forty years inside the press box delivering unique perspectives on the biggest stars, events, and storylines in sports, former San Francisco Chronicle and Press Democrat columnist Lowell Cohn has seen it all. From wild locker room conflicts to bizarre player interviews to heartfelt conversations with the heroes of the athletic world, Cohn has spent decades bringing to life the narratives of sports through his masterfully crafted newspaper columns. Now you can go directly into the locker room with Cohn. This unparalleled collection of anecdotes and interactions reveals Cohn’s insider perspective and unvarnished opinions on some of the sports world’s most well-known personalities, including Bill Walsh, Barry Bonds, Michael Jordan, Sugar Ray Robinson, Steve Young, and many more. Freed from the prohibitions of traditional reporting, Cohn’s tell-all book takes in you into the rarified world of sports that you can’t see from the confines of your newspaper.

Larry Scott (born November 21, 1964) is an American sports administrator and former professional tennis player who was the commissioner of the collegiate Pac-12 Conference until 2021. He has also served as chairman and CEO of the Women’s Tennis Association and as president and COO of ATP Properties, a division of the Association of Tennis Professionals.

New York, NY, June 11, 2013 … The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) has presented Larry Scott, Commissioner of the Pac-12 Conference, with the ADL Americanism Award in honor of his lifetime commitment to promoting fair play in sports. As Chairman and CEO of the Women’s Tennis Association, Mr. Scott waged a long and successful campaign for women’s equality, culminating in Wimbledon’s decision in 2007 to become the final Grand Slam tournament to award equal prize money to women.

Two years later, Mr. Scott took a firm stand when the Israeli tennis player Shahar Pe’er was denied entry by the United Arab Emirates, preventing her from competing in the Dubai Tennis Championships. The Dubai tournament was fined a record $300,000, Mr. Scott and the WTA refused to back down, and Ms. Pe’er and her fellow Israeli players were guaranteed the right to compete the following year.

“Larry Scott has devoted his life to the principle that academic excellence, athletic achievement and human rights can be simultaneously pursued,” said Abraham H. Foxman, ADL National Director. “He has put his reputation on the line to further fairness and good sportsmanship and decency, the values on which sports is based.”

Throughout his career as a student-athlete, professional athlete and sports executive, Larry Scott has been a game changer: a bold, innovative leader with a vision for transformative change — from expansion and revitalization of the Pac-12 to equal prize money at Wimbledon. Commissioner Scott’s firm belief that sport has the power to be a force for positive change has been the hallmark of his career.

Recognition and Service

Scott has often earned recognition for his visionary leadership. He has been a finalist for the Sports Executive of the Year Award given by Sports Business Journal and was awarded the Vision Award by Cynopsis Sports. Scott was also given the Americanism Award by the Anti-Defamation League in tribute to his mission of fostering positive change through sports. He currently serves on the ADL Board as the Vice Chair.

Scott also serves on several other boards inside and outside of intercollegiate athletics, including those of the National Football Foundation, College Football Playoff LLC Management Committee, the Rose Bowl Management Committee and the Women’s Sports Foundation.

JoAnn Mason Parker (born November 4, 1967) is an American professional pool player. She is both a U.S. Open 9-Ball Champion and a World Masters Pocket Billiards Champion. She has been dubbed as the “Battling Beauty” by Billiards Digest.

After graduating high school, JoAnn trained with her father eventually received a sponsorship from a local block company. She later joined the Women’s Professional Billiards Tour and remained one of the top four players for the majority of nine years she spent touring. At twenty years old, JoAnn participated in the World Masters 9-Ball Championship and won. Two years later, in 1990, she won the U.S. Open 9-Ball Championship, becoming the youngest winner in the competition’s history. After such achievements, she was more groups were willing to sponsor her; during her career as a touring professional, Cuetec Cues, Olhausen Pool Tables, and Sure Shot Billiard Gloves sponsored her. JoAnn also spent a year acting as a spokesperson for Orville Redenbacher’s popcorn, traveling alongside Orville Redenbacher across the United States. 

In 1994, JoAnn was invited by the Chinese government to play against World Snooker Champion, Allison Fisher. These matches had been televised and viewed by an estimated over 200 million people. 

Most of her time playing and competing abroad were in China, Japan, Taiwan, the Caribbean, and Italy although these were not the only areas in which she traveled. 

She is currently retired from a traveling tour professional. JoAnn, however, still continues to play by acting as an entertainer and showing her skills and tricks to audiences.