Cardinal Hall of Honor
Mike Favazza performed on the one-mile relay teams that, through 1981, maintained the top five clockings in Lamar University’s great track history. He was also a member of the crack 1968 sprint medley relay quartet.
Running the second leg of the one-mile relay outfit, Favazza helped the Cardinals to reel off five efforts from 3:07.0 to 3:08.0. As a freshman, Favazza and his teammates sped to an all-time record mark of 3:07.0 in a postseason national meet. He was on Lamar’s 1968 championship team at the Sugar Bowl Meet, and the 1968 Border Olympics champions that stunned heavily favored Texas with a world-leading 3:07.5 early-season romp.
In 1968, the Cardinals’ mile-relay team lost only twice in seven meets. They finished third at the Texas Relays and second at the Drake Relays despite a blistering 3:07.3. Favazza also ran the second leg on the school’s record-shattering sprint medley relay team that was clocked in 3:19.7 at the Texas Relays.
He was the 1967 Southland Conference champion in the 100-yard dash with a time of 9.7 seconds. Favazza, four teammates and coach Ty Terrell died in a plane crash April 28, 1968, at the Beaumont Municipal Airport.
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