University of Idaho Athletics

Tom Hennessey was a member of the early 1980s teams that began the Golden Age for Idaho Football. Hennessey was the 1985 Big Sky Defensive Player of the Year and was twice named first-team All-Big Sky. He still owns Idaho’s single-season record for tackles after recording 180 stops during the 1986 campaign, and he finished his career as the second-leading tackler in school history with 390. A linebacker, he remains second on the Vandals’ career interceptions list with 16. To top it all off, he played on two league championship teams and in two NCAA playoff games under head coach Dennis Erickson. His son Tom Jr. also played for Idaho and served as a team captain. Hennessey lives in Mountain Home and runs his business Tom Hennessey Livestock.