Mike Kaufman (2007) - Marshall Athletics Hall of Fame

Mike Kaufman

Induction:
2007
Class:
1975

After graduating from Charleston’s Stonewall Jackson High School in 1963, Mike Kaufman joined the United States Air Force and ended up serving for four years, including a stint in Viet Nam. He left the service in 1969 and returned to Kanawha County, but never lost the itch to compete on the sports fields. So, in 1972, he decided to try to play football at Marshall. Before long, though, he found himself on the Marshall baseball team, and starting at age 27 played the next three years for Coach Jack Cook, his first season batting .338 for the first Marshall team to earn an NCAA Tournament bid. As a junior he batted .400, and by the time his career was complete the infielder had set new school records for career triples (6) and stolen bases (25). Called by his teammates the “The Old Man,” Kaufman was the only member of the Thundering Herd who still used a wooden bat. He was inducted into the Marshall Athletic Hall of Fame in 2007.