BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Samford Athletics Department inducted the 2025 class of the Samford Athletics Hall of Fame Saturday evening.
 
The 2025 class includes the 1991 football team, James Bradberry (football), Ashley Cope (track and field), Joey Davenport (MBB) and Bill Lankford (MBB). In addition to the Hall of Fame Class, Rickie and MaryAnn Moon were given the John C. Pittman Lifetime Achievement award.
 
Terry Bowden, who was the head coach of the 1991 football team, said it was special to him to get to share this honor with his team. He also talked about what his team accomplished in making it to the semifinals of the NCAA Division I-FCS (then I-AA) Playoffs.
 
"Very seldom do you get to come into a hall of fame with your entire team," Bowden said. "But when I look at the history of Samford football, after they dropped it and brought it back, I think of this '91 team, because you've got to remember, when they were freshmen, there was nobody else on scholarship. So, they came in with nobody but them and they played four years and the fourth year, the '91 team, without one redshirt senior, without one fifth-year player, they go out there and almost win it all."
 
The night began with a reception at the Hall of Fame on the third floor of the Pete Hanna Center. The dinner and induction ceremony followed in the new Seibert Hall/Campus Recreation, Wellness and Athletics Complex.
 
Joey Davenport, who had a tremendous basketball career at Samford from 1992 to 1996 said being inducted into the Hall of Fame has a special meaning for him.
 
"It means so much to me," Davenport said. "Because of my time here and what Samford means, not only from athletics, but what it meant to my family, what it meant spiritually to me, getting a degree from Samford, being invested in the program since the days I played. I coached here. I knew Bucky McMillan since he was in fourth grade, I've known Lennie Acuff since 1992 when I came here as a player, so I've seen this full circle, so I am very honored to be inducted."
 
Cope said she did not expect to receive the honor of induction into the Samford Athletics Hall of Fame.
 
"I was actually pretty shocked," Cope said. "I know I was at Samford (as a student-athlete) and then I worked here for eight years, but I feel like there are other athletes that have been better, even on the national level, but it was really, really exciting."
 
Bradberry, who has gone on to a long career in the NFL, said he still never thought he would be inducted into the Hall of Fame.
 
"It was surreal," Bradberry said. "I never really thought about it during my tenure here, about being in the Hall of Fame. It's pretty cool to be a part of it now."
 
A short bio on each of the 2025 induction class members, along with their induction video is below.
 
1991 FOOTBALL TEAM
INDUCTEE CLASS OF 2025
The 1991 Samford football team set the standard for Bulldog football squads. The team set the school record for regular-season wins with 10 and for overall season wins with 12. The Bulldogs finished the regular season with a 10-1 mark and entered the NCAA Division I-AA (now FCS) Playoffs for the first time in school history. Playing each round on the road, Samford earned wins at New Hampshire (29-13) and James Madison (24-21) before falling to eventual national champion Youngstown State in the national semifinals. The run to the semifinals is, to date, the deepest playoff run at the Division I level in program history. The Bulldogs finished the season ranked in the top 10 of the national I-AA rankings for the first time in program history.


 
JAMES BRADBERRY
INDUCTEE CLASS OF 2025
James Bradberry was one of the top defensive players in the history of Samford football. He came to Samford in 2012 as a redshirt freshman after spending one season at Arkansas State. He was named first team All-SoCon and All-American as a senior in 2015. He was also named second team All-SoCon as a junior in 2014, and he finished his Samford career with eight interceptions. Following his Samford career, he was selected in the second round of the 2016 NFL Draft by the Carolina Panthers, making him the second-highest drafted player in program history. He played four seasons with the Panthers and later played with the New York Giants and Philadelphia Eagles. He was named to the Pro Bowl in 2020 with the Giants and was named second team All-Pro in 2022 with the Eagles. He helped lead the Eagles to Super Bowl LVII.


 
ASHLEY COPE
INDUCTEE CLASS OF 2025
Ashley Cope was one of the most outstanding athletes in the history of the women's track and field program when she competed for the Bulldogs from 2011 to 2014. She won the SoCon title in the heptathlon (2013 and 2014), pentathlon (2014), 100-meter hurdles (2013) and pole vault (2013). She also was named the 2013 SoCon Women's Outdoor Most Outstanding Athlete. She holds the school record for the pentathlon 60-meter hurdles, and she is second in school history in the pentathlon overall with 3,653 points in 2014. In the heptathlon, she holds the school record in the 800 meters, and she ranks second in school history in the heptathlon overall, amassing 5,000 points in the 2014 season. After her playing career, Cope spent eight seasons as an assistant coach at Samford.


 
JOEY DAVENPORT
INDUCTEE CLASS OF 2025
Joey Davenport played basketball at Samford from 1992 to 1996. He Is the fourth all-time leading scorer in program history with 1,651 points. Davenport scored over 400 points in three consecutive seasons, and he averaged 16 points per game for his career. He helped lead his team to the Trans America Athletic Conference (TAAC) West Division Championship as a senior. He is Samford's all-time leader in career free throws made (557) and is second in career free throws attempted (679), while shooting 82 percent from the line. He led the team in scoring during the 1993-94 season, scoring 447 points and averaging 19.4 points per game. During the 1994-95 season, he led the squad in assists, dishing out 86 for the season.


 
BILL LANKFORD
INDUCTEE CLASS OF 2025
Bill Lankford was a basketball standout at Samford (then Howard College) from 1954-57. He shares the school record for scoring average in a season, averaging 23.4 points per game during the 1956-57 season. The 631 total points he scored during that season rank third in school history for a single season. For his career, he ranks fifth in program history with an impressive 1,621 career points. Following his Samford career, Lankford became a highly successful high school and junior college basketball coach. His 1980 Jefferson State Community College team finished second in the National Junior College Championship Tournament in Hutchison, Kansas. He finished his coaching career with 718 wins and 402 losses. He was inducted into the Alabama Community College Conference Hall of Fame in 1990.


 
 
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