SUNY Cortland Athletics

Joseph Adessa earned ten letters at Cortland as an end in football, a guard in basketball, and an outfielder in baseball; named Most Outstanding Athlete as a senior at Cortland becoming the first "Sports King."

Adessa completed his baccalaureate work at Penn State and lettered in football and baseball; played professional baseball with Syracuse in International League. He was professor and coordinator of health science with Buffalo State College; assistant director for the summer recreation program in the Town of Amherst for 24 years; director of the New York State Summer Institute on Alcohol Problems; a member of the Board of Directors, Buffalo Area Council on Alcoholism; director of Summer Workshop on Smoking and Health at Buffalo State; U.S. Navy veteran; life member, International Task Force on Alcohol problems; native of Cortland and star athlete at Cortland High School. Adessa called his Hall of Fame selection a "once in a life time reward."

UPDATE: Adessa passed away on June 21, 1978.