Three Hall of Fame athletes, two in football and one in baseball, highlight the list of the top five athletes from the state of Idaho.
Five most dominant high school athletes in Idaho history Harmon Killebrew, Payette, 1954Killebrew was a two-sport star, making all-state as a quarterback for the football team and blasting home runs as a member of the baseball team. He reportedly was batting over .800 for an American Legion team when he was scouted by Ossie Bleuge. He signed with the Washington Senators out of high school and played over 20 years in a the Major Leagues. He was a 13-time All-Star, led the league in home runs six times and finished with 573 home runs in his career. He was voted into the Hall of Fame in 1984.
Larry Wilson, Rigby, 1956Wilson played football, basketball and running track at Rigby. He went to the University of Utah and was a starter at running back and safety for the Utes. He was selected in the seventh round of the 1960 draft and played 13 seasons in the NFL. He made the Pro Bowl eight times and was All-Pro six times. He was inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame in 1978. He finished his career with 52 interceptions.
Jake Plummer, Capital (Boise), 1993Plummer earned All-State honors as a quarterback and punter while at Capital and threw for over 6,000 yards in his final two seasons. He went to Arizona State and was third in the Heisman Trophy voting his senior year and was second team All-American and the Pac 10 Offensive Player of the Year. A second-round pick by the Arizona Cardinals, Plummer played six years with the club and four more with the Denver Broncos. He made one Pro Bowl in his career and threw for 29,253 yards in his career.
Vern Law, Meridian, 1948Law excelled in football, leading the team to a state championship, and was a star on the basketball team. He also played American Legion baseball (Meridian didn't have a team) and was the team's top pitcher. He signed with the Pittsburgh Pirates organization straight out of high school. He spent 16 years in the Major Leagues and was the best pitcher in baseball in 1960. That year he made the All-Star Game twice (MLB had two all-star games at that time), won two games in the World Series to help the Pirates beat the New York Yankees and finished the season 20-9 to win the Cy Young Award.
Jerry Kramer, Sandpoint, 1954Kramer played football and won a scholarship to University of Idaho. He played both sides of the line and won a spot in the East-West Shrine Game and the College All-Star Game. He went to the Green Bay Packers in the fourth round of the 1958 draft and eventually played on five NFL champion teams, played in three Pro Bowls and earned All-Pro five times. He was inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame in 2018.
Also considered: Wayne Walker, Boise, football; John Friesz, Couer d'Alene, football; Merril Hoge, Pocatello, football; Tristen Hoge, Highland, football; Larry Jackson, Boise, baseball; Andrea Lloyd, Moscow, girls basketball; Doug Reisenberg, Moscow, football.