STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Mississippi State's Department of Athletics announced Thursday its 2004 inductees to the MSU Sports Hall of Fame. This year's class includes William Robert "Bill" Nettles, David V. Williams and Floyd J. Johnson, Jr. The induction will take place during ceremonies at the MSU-Florida football game Oct. 23 at Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field.

Nettles lettered in basketball and track during his time on the MSU campus. He was the 1942 Southeastern Conference Champion in the shot put and placed second in the 1943 SEC broad jump, earning all-SEC honors in 1943. He also played basketball under the direction of Stanfield Hitt, while at State.

Nettles has continued his track and field career by winning the USA Track and Field national championship in the shot put for ages 80-85 in 1998, 2003 and 2004. He has participated and won events in the Mississippi Senior Olympics.

Williams was a three-year letterman for the Basketball Bulldogs from 1966-1968. He led the team in scoring and rebounding in 1966 with 19.7 points per game and pulled down 10.2 rebounds a game. He ranks 15th on the school's 1,000 point club with 1,219 career points and seventh on State's career rebounding chart. He was rewarded all-SEC status in 1966 and 1967.

He is one of only three players in Bulldog history to average a double-double throughout his collegiate career. Williams was selected in the 1968 National Basketball Association draft by the Cincinnati Royals, as well by the ABA New Orleans Bucs. He has recently formed his own consulting firm, Williams' Management Services.

Johnson was a four-year letterman on the diamond for the Maroon and White. He compiled a 12-0 pitching record over his four seasons at MSU and was a member of two SEC Championship teams in 1948 and 1949. In a 1948 SEC play-off series with Auburn, he relieved in the first game of the double header and started and won the second game of the day.

A 30-plus year member of the U. S. Marine Corp. Johnson is a past president of the MSU Alumni "M" Club. The former Diamond Dog is currently involved in a variety of civic organizations in the Starkville community. He is currently the Executive Director of the Starkville Housing Authority and serves as a Deacon and Elder at First Presbyterian Church in Starkville.

With the addition of these three inductees, the MSU Sports Hall of Fame now has 153 members. The Hall of Fame was established in 1970.