Saturday, October 2, 1999
Leahey to vote on Heisman
By Paul Arnett
Star-BulletinKHNL's Jim Leahey was selected yesterday to be the first member of the Hawaii broadcast media to vote on the Heisman Trophy.
"One of our members in the western region retired, so the first person I thought of was Jim Leahey," said Chuck Benedict, the Heisman's far west sectional representative. "We like to keep things balanced in every state between the print media and the broadcast media.
Leahey was startled when he heard the news. He said he was flattered to be selected and honored to be the first broadcast voter in Hawaii.
"I'm very surprised," Leahey said. "Obviously, it's an honor to be a member of the Downtown Athletic Club and to vote on such a prestigious award. Of course, I'm flattered to even be considered."
Leahey has been a fixture in UH sports since he joined KHNL-TV (Channel 8) in 1984 to become the voice of the Rainbows.
He began his professional career as a teacher at Campbell High School from 1970 to 1978. He was the sports director at KGMB-TV (Channel 9) from 1978 until joining KHNL six years later.
(Editor's note: Paul Arnett is Hawaii's
lone print media Heisman voter.)
