BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – WKU and WKU Athletics unveiled a statue of legendary Volleyball Head Coach Travis Hudson on Saturday. The life-size bronze statue stands outside of Gate 2 at E.A. Diddle Arena, forever cementing Hudson's legacy as one of the all-time greats on The Hill.
"For more than thirty years, Travis Hudson has demonstrated the true meaning of "coach," WKU President Timothy C. Caboni said. "While Todd will share with you Travis's many successes on the court, know that his enthusiasm, his loyalty and his dedication extend far beyond the court and the Women's Volleyball team. Far beyond Diddle Arena and WKU Athletics. Travis's unwavering passion grounds us in who we are as an institution and reignites in each of us a remarkable energy for what we do at WKU and in higher education. He epitomizes leadership; he defines humility; and he embodies the WKU Spirit. He not only drives his team to do better – he drives all of us to do better. He is a force.
"Travis, thank you for your stewardship of the Women's Volleyball Team and for your steadfast leadership inside Diddle Arena and across our campus during the last three decades. Thank you for your service to WKU Athletics, to our students and to our beloved institution. Thank you for reminding us, time and time again, what really matters and what makes WKU such a special place. And thank you for keeping what it means to be a Hilltopper at the forefront of your work and at the core of every conversation we've had. Kacy and I treasure your friendship, your place in our lives and the countless ways you lift up and strengthen our students, our university and our community.
"It's only fitting that this remarkable statue, created by the talented Russ Faxon, takes its place in the heart of our campus – where faculty, staff, alumni, students and every visitor to our Hill can reflect not only on your record-breaking achievements with WKU Volleyball, but, most importantly, on the lasting imprint you've etched in our lives and throughout our institution."
Hudson is in his 31st season leading WKU Volleyball. He joined WKU's Athletics Hall of Fame on Nov. 16, 2024, and was inducted into the Conference USA Hall of Fame this year. He has amassed 802 career wins, surpassing Ed Diddle for the second-most among any Hilltopper coach in a single sport (Diddle owns 1,030 total head coaching victories among the four sports he coached at WKU).
Hudson has led his Hilltoppers to 34 Conference Championships and 17 NCAA Tournament appearances, including the 2020-21 Sweet 16; he has been named Conference Coach of the Year 12 times and AVCA South Region Coach of the Year seven times; and he has coached 68 first-team all-conference honorees, 13 All-Americans (including four, four-time All-Americans), 12 Conference Players of the Year, seven Freshmen of the Year, seven Defensive Players of the Year, six South Region Players of the Year and six Setters of the Year.
"At the end of the day, when I look at this, I hope that this stands here as a symbol of possibility," Hudson said. "It was important to Cindy and I – when there were talks about, 'Well, where would we put such a thing?' – and it was important to Cindy and I that it got outside the walls of Diddle Arena, because I feel like my story here is way bigger than winning volleyball games. On one level, it's possibility for any young student that is anywhere in this state, in the Commonwealth, outside of the Commonwealth, that doesn't think they can, that they can come here and figure out that you can. I came here as a first generation Hilltopper. No one in my family had ever gotten a college degree, and I was the first person in my family to get a degree in my family. I came here, I got two jobs, I started putting myself through school, and this place changed my life. I want it to be outside on our beautiful campus, because when people park in the structure and come for their day on The Hill, I hope they walk by and they understand that no story is too big to accomplish on this Hill. The possibility for every student who never thought they were given the deal, the hand dealt to them that could make it possible – I hope that my story is proof that it can and I hope that's a big part of the symbol of what this stands for.
"Then second, the possibilities as a coach, and as a program. Again, I told you we started 7-26, and Western Kentucky had never been to an NCAA Tournament, had never won a conference tournament championship, had never dreamt of being in the top 25. I watch so many coaches throughout college athletics that walk into programs and want to walk in and say, 'Well, if we're going to be good, I need this, this, this and this.' I decided that we were going to be good because we possess this, this, this and this, and everything else would follow if we did it a certain way. Those core values that our program are about now, 31 years later, are the same ones that our players that played for me 30 years ago believed in.
" ... I want to make one thing very clear. When everyone looks at this statue, we all understand that it's my likeness, but it's our story. It's everybody standing here. If you're standing here today, you are a piece of this, and there are so many more people throughout the community and throughout this Hilltopper Nation through the years that are part of this story. So, when I look at it, I see you. I promise you, I am more overwhelmed when I look out here than when I look to my left. Everybody standing here, when you walk by it, you should smile every time because you were a part of this."
The life-size bronze statue is mounted on a granite base and was created by sculptor Russ Faxon. This will be Faxon's eighth sculpture on campus and ninth in Bowling Green. His others include E.A. Diddle outside of Diddle Arena; Robert Guthrie at Guthrie Tower; Jody Richards at Jody Richards Hall; Lee Robertson at the Martens Alumni Center; Big Red outside Martens Alumni Center; Big Red on Red Towel at Downing Student Union; The arm waving the Red Towel outside of the Tim and Sarah Ford Fieldhouse; and The Dancing in the Spirit sculpture outside of SKYPAC.
"Last Saturday, we inducted the most recent class into the prestigious WKU Athletics Hall of Fame, and I commented what an incredible achievement it was to go into the Hall of Fame, because a Hall of Fame is not for the very good, it is for the very great," WKU Director of Athletics Todd Stewart said. " And it is for only the very great – that is how unique that distinction is. And Travis Hudson, very deservedly so, was inducted into the WKU Athletics Hall of Fame a year ago. Today, however, we go beyond even the very great distinction. Today, Travis joins the legendary WKU icon Ed Diddle as only the second person in WKU Athletics history to have a statue in his honor. And technically, maybe he's the third if we count the greatest mascot in collegiate athletics history, Big Red! But regardless, Travis Hudson now has a distinction the equivalent of being on the Mt. Rushmore of WKU Athletics, and deservedly so.
" … The victories, championships and NCAA Tournaments speak for themselves, but beyond that, the personal impact he has had on his players and everyone associated with the volleyball program is exemplary. Travis has elevated WKU Volleyball to heights beyond what even the greatest optimist would have imagined while representing our program and University with integrity, character and professionalism every day over the last 31 years."
The statue unveiling comes amid the Travis Hudson Legacy Campaign, which aims to raise $300,000 to support the WKU Volleyball program by celebrating the last 30 years of success under Hudson, while paving the way for the next 30 years of volleyball success on The Hill. For more information on the Travis Hudson Legacy Campaign, click HERE.
WKU Volleyball is now 22-5 overall and 13-1 after this weekend's sweep of Delaware. The Hilltoppers will close the regular season next weekend at Liberty with matches on Friday, Nov. 14 and Saturday, Nov. 15.
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