UK Athletics x Black History Month
The University of Kentucky Department of Athletics celebrated Black History Month by honoring 13 UK alumni across various sports.
Selia Helm was a member of the UK Women’s Basketball team from 2001-2004. She is the fourth-quickest player to record 1,000 points in program history. She is 8th in program scoring average (13.8), 9th in FGs made (590), and 9th in FT% (.789). Helm currently works as Education Curriculum Director in Brentwood, Tennessee. She is also an active member of Delta Sigma Theta.
Reggie Warford played basketball for UK from 1973-1976 and was the first Black UK Basketball player to graduate from UK. Warford played 50 games as a Wildcat and was a member UK’s 1976 NIT champion team and the 1975 NCAA runner-up team. Warford went on to coach college basketball and was Harlem Globetrotters Head Coach in 2003. He also received the USWBA Most Courageous Award in 1984.
Shane Boyd played both football and baseball for UK from 2001-2005. At UK, he had 2,484 passing yards, 13 passing TDs, 845 rushing yards and 13 TDs on the ground. He went on to play professionally started the Shane Boyd Foundation.
Cally Nixon was a member of the gymnastics team at UK from 2019-2022. She competed in the NCAA National Championships in 2019 and 2022. Nixon was also a WGCA Scholastic All-American.
Michael Hopkinson played tennis for UK from 1991-1994 and served as team captain for two years. Hopkinson qualified was an All-American in doubles in 1993 and was also a member of the SEC Championship team in 1992. After college, he played tennis professionally.
Barry Rice played for the UK Men’s Soccer team and was the third player in program history to be an All-American. He was co-captain for three years and was named the conference defensive Player of the Year in 2007 and 2008. Rice also ranks 7th on the UK Game-winning goals list. After college, Rice coached at UK, and he now works in strategic planning and financial advising in the Greater Cleveland area.
Brittany Smith Rash was on the UK Dance Team from 2008-2012. She now works at UK Healthcare as an ambulatory care clinical pharmacist.
Aerial Griffin was a member of the Cheerleading Team during her time at UK. She was a part of three UCA National Champion teams. She is now studying to become a dentist.
Jordan Marion was on UK’s first varsity STUNT team. She now works at UK as an immersive student athletic trainer while also pursuing her master’s degree in athletic training.
Zoe Swift played soccer for UK from 2013-2016. She played 79 matches in her career and is one of seven players in program history to record a hat trick. After college, she played professionally for West Ham United and the Puerto Rico Sol.
Kaz Brown is a three-time All-SEC performer for UK’s Volleyball team. She played from 2014-2017 and helped lead the team to win the SEC Championship in 2017. Brown was greatly involved in community service and went to Panama in 2017 for a UK Athletics service trip. She currently plays professional volleyball.
Rod McCravy made a lasting impact on the UK Track Team and University as a whole. Though he died at the age of 19 in 1987 during his sophomore year, Rod had already become the track team’s leader. His personal charisma and genuine care for others earned him the respect and admiration of all his teammates and his powerful legacy is honored each year when the Kentucky Track and Field program hosts the McCravy Memorial Meet and remembers him as a dedicated, enthusiastic athlete, a conscientious student, a cherished friend, and most important, an outstanding human being.
Krystal Smith played softball at UK from 2011-2014 and was a key member of the 2014 team that made it to the Women’s College World Series.
