The Midland Independent School District announced the 2021 inductees to its Hall of Legends.
MISD plans to enshrine the following five former student-athletes – the late Cedric Benson, football; Tevis Herd, track; Natalie Hinds, swimming; Bryce Hoppel, track; and Eric Winston, football – in what it considers one of the strongest classes ever, a press release said.
“This is an outstanding class,” Blake Feldt, executive director of Athletics, said in the release. These athletes' accomplishments are something to be proud of, not only for the school district, but for the entire city of Midland.”
NewsWest9 reported that the class will be recognized at the annual intra-district rivalry game between Midland and the newly christened Legacy.
Benson played football for MHS and was a key contributor to the Bulldogs’ trifecta of state championships in the late '90s.
The star running back then attended Texas where he captured the Doak Walker Award.
He was selected by the Chicago Bears with the fourth overall pick in the 2005 NFL Draft, putting together an eight-season pro career that saw him rush for over 6,000 yards and 32 touchdowns.
Benson perished in a motorcycle accident on Aug. 17, 2019.
Herd won a state title for MHS – the school’s lone crown in the mile – in 1960.
MHS graduates Hinds and Hoppel are fresh from their appearances in the Tokyo Olympics, where Hinds helped lead the U.S.A. women’s relay team to a bronze medal and Hoppel qualified for the 800m semifinals.
Hinds took home top female swimmer honors at state in 2011 while Hoppel bagged a state championship in 2016 for the 800m.
Winston, a 12-year NFL veteran, protected Benson as a member of two MHS title teams.
A 2006 third-round selection of the Houston Texans out of Miami, Winston started every game from 2007 to 2011.