Tribe of Vikings Hall of Fame
At most schools, offensive linemen often toil in anonymity. Not so at Augustana, where the big the guys up front have been some of the most decorated members in the history of the Viking gridiron program. Mackenzie “Mack” Hay is no exception. A winner of numerous honors for his work on the field and in the classroom, Hay joins the Tribe of Vikings Hall of Fame Class of 2014.
The 6’ 3”, 260-pound Hay was a four-year letter winner and a starter for three and a half seasons at Augustana from 1997-2000. During both his junior and senior seasons—when he played alongside fellow 2014 Tribe inductee J.D. Shelton—Hay was a first team All-CCIW selection and first team D3Football.com All-American. In addition, he earned All-America recognition from Hewlett Packard, D3 News, USA Football, Columbus Multimedia, Football Gazette and the AFCA during his career. He excelled in the classroom as well, earning first team Academic All-America honors from Verizon as a senior, in addition to an NCAA postgraduate scholarship and National Football Foundation Scholar Athlete honors. In 2011, Hay was a second team selection to the D3football.com All-Decade team, honoring players who competed from 2000-09.
During Mack’s four years, the Viking ground attack produced 12,518 yards—an average of 321.0 yards per game and 4.9 a carry—and 131 rushing touchdowns. Augustana won 30 of 39 games and two CCIW championships during his career.
Hay, a product of Polo High School in Polo, Illinois, earned a starting guard spot for Coach Tom Schmulbach’s Vikings midway through his freshman season and helped Augustana finish 7-2 and win its 17th CCIW championship. Hay helped clear the way for a sophomore-dominated backfield that rushed for averages of 330.0 yards per game and 5.0 per carry. As a sophomore, Hay slid over to center and was part of another 7-2 campaign that produced over 300 rushing yards per game.
It was back to guard for Mack as a junior. The individual honors began rolling in for Hay as Augustana finished 9-2, won another conference championship and reached the second round of the NCAA Division III playoffs. He was a first team All-CCIW pick and was also named a first team All-American by D3football.com and Hewlett-Packard. In addition, he was named to All-America teams by D3 News, USA Football, Columbus Multimedia and was named an All-Lutheran All-American as well. The Vikings averaged 337.7 rushing yards per game and 5.2 per carry and with Hay and Sheldon out front, quarterback Joe Schmulbach earned CCIW Offensive Player of the Year honors.
Hay wrapped up his career during the 2000 season as Augustana went 7-3 under first-year Head Coach Jim Barnes. The Viking offense again churned out over 3,000 rushing yards and averaged 34.0 points per game. Mack repeated as a first team All-CCIW and first team D3football.com All-America selection. He also garnered All-America recognition from the Associated Press, AFCA, Hewlett-Packard, USA Football, Football Gazette and Lutheran Brotherhood. He was named a National Football Foundation Scholar Athlete, a Verizon first team Academic All-American and received a prestigious NCAA postgraduate scholarship. He closed his playing career with an appearance in the 2000 Aztec Bowl in Merida, Mexico.
Following his graduation from Augustana in 2001 with pre-medicine and biology degrees, Hay earned his M.D. from the University from Illinois. He served a general surgery internship at Washington Hospital Center in Washington, DC and also worked as a health information specialist at the Centers for Disease Control in Rockville, Maryland. His family medicine residency and emergency medicine fellowship took place at the University of Tennessee and he’s now an emergency room physician at Tennova Hospital in Knoxville, Tennessee.
Mack—who currently resides in Knoxville with his wife, Shea and twins, Reef Alexander and Ellis Louise—singled out Coaches Tom Schmulbach and Don Davis, as well as his parents and Shea for special thanks.
“My time at Augustana was such a unique and priceless four years that it is hard to sum up. I don’t feel like any other place could have offered such a fertile ground for growth as a student, as an athlete and as person,” said Hay. “My years at Augie were great preparation for my continuing education, career, marriage and fatherhood and my time on the field played no small role in that.” He added, “I am honored to be inducted to the Hall of Fame and I am especially proud to be inducted with this particularly talented class.”
