Devised in the summer of 2013, the RMU Ring of Honor was created to honor the very best of the program in its NCAA Division I history. In order to be eligible for the RMU Ring of Honor, a former male or female student-athlete who played basketball with the Colonials must meet at least four of the following five criteria …Â
- RMU Athletic Hall of Fame Member
- RMU career statistical leader in any category a minimum of five years
- Named conference player of the year at least once
- Earned all-conference first team honors at least once
- Member of conference regular season or tournament championship team that advanced to a national postseason tournamentÂ
The first member to join the RMU Ring of Honor was Chipper Harris, who played guard for the Colonials from 1980 to 1984. A 1995 inductee into the RMU Athletic Hall of Fame and a native of New Kensington, Pa., Harris served as the program’s all-time leading scorer from the conclusion of his career in 1984 until 1994 with 1,940 points. He currently ranks second all-time in school history behind former guard Myron Walker (1990-94).
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Harris averaged 16.4 points per game over his four-year career, shooting 51.4 percent (821-for-1,598) from the field and 78.9 percent (300-for-380) at the free-throw line. RMU’s all-time leader in career steals with 450, he also compiled career totals of 405 rebounds, 436 assists and 21 blocks. Harris helped guide the Colonials to their first two NCAA Tournament trips in 1982 and 1983 as RMU claimed the first two ECAC Metro Conference Tournament championships. In 1984, he was named the ECAC Metro Conference Player of the Year, sharing the honor with Robert Jackson of St. Francis Brooklyn and Carey Scurry of LIU.
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In a surprise ceremony Saturday, Feb. 15, 2014, Harris had a banner of his jersey unveiled in the rafters of the Charles L. Sewall Center.
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Following in the footsteps of Harris, former guard and the program’s all-time leader scorer, Myron Walker (1990-94), had his jersey raised to the rafters of the Sewall Center Saturday, Jan. 21, 2017. In four years at RMU, Walker scored 1,965 points, which has stood as the career scoring record for over 25 years. He also owns both RMU single-season (20.2 in 1993-94) and career (18.7 ppg) records for scoring average.
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A four-year letterwinner, Walker, a native of Aliquippa, Pa., appeared in 105 games during his four years in an RMU uniform. In addition to being the program’s all-time leading scorer, Walker concluded his career with 603 rebounds, 164 assists, 26 blocks and 104 steals. He ranks second all-time at RMU for career field goals (741), third in free throws (386) and ninth in rebounds. He was inducted into the RMU Athletic Hall of Fame in 1999 on the strength of helping guide the Colonials to the 1992 NEC Tournament championship and subsequent bid to the NCAA Tournament.
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The UPMC Events Center, which opened in 2019, features the jersey numbers of both Harris and Walker in the west concourse of the arena.
