USU Athletics Hall of Fame class of 2025: Daniels, Parenti Otte, Orgill-Nielson, Rose
The Utah State Athletics Hall of Fame celebrated the induction of seven new members across six different sports as part of their 2025 class on Sept. 12 at the Russell/Wanlass Performance Hall. The new members join the now 129 athletes who have been inducted since the Hall’s creation in 1993.
The 2025 class included the celebration of the careers of Shawn Daniels, Jessica Parenti Otte, Amanda Orgill-Nielson and Taryn Rose.
During the induction, videos were shared highlighting moments of each player’s career, as well as an opportunity to share their story of their time with the Aggies. Following the video, each inductee was gifted a ring and the opportunity to share some thoughts with the crowd.
Shawn Daniels
Daniels played basketball for Utah State during the 2000 and 2001 seasons. Though he only played two years with the Aggies, he started all 68 games across that span. A transfer from Bakersfield College in California, Daniels became one of the most prolific big men in Utah State basketball history.
Daniels helped the Aggies win two Big West tournament championships, as well as make two NCAA tournament appearances. Among those two tournament appearances, Daniels helped the Aggies snap their 31-year tournament losing streak when they took down the No. 5-seeded Ohio State Buckeyes.
A phenomenal two-way player, Daniels led the team in scoring both years, averaging 11.9 points per game and 7.3 rebounds over his career. Daniels also averaged 1.8 blocks per game, finishing with a total of 117 career blocks, ranking No. 5 all-time in school history.
“The people here in Logan welcomed me in, all the fans here, the staff guys supporting us here at Utah State. It was a great time — the time of my life,” Daniels said. “I’ll never forget it — stuff that I can tell my grandkids about, and now I can talk to them and tell them about how great it was playing here at Utah State.”
Jessica Parenti Otte
Parenti Otte was part of a dominant group of gymnastics teams at Utah State from 2003–07. Parenti Otte was a three-time all-conference honoree and the 2007 Western Athletic Conference Gymnast of the Year winner. She shares the school record for vault with a 9.950 in the event, as well as setting a then-school record of 9.815 on the beam.
Parenti Otte won the 2006 WAC title for vault, as well as the 2007 title for vault, bars and the all-around. She also placed No. 14 in the all-around at the 2007 NCAA regionals.
In her induction, Parenti Otte highlighted her recruiting story, citing how just after losing scholarship offers to multiple schools, she met the brother of coach Ryan Corn on the flight to a recruiting visit in Denver. The brother passed the information along to Corn, who shortly after offered her a spot on the team.
“To be among those women who all have that type of feeling of ‘We all want each other to do well’ helped us push each other. We had a type of team where it meant more to win or lose together than to win an individual title,” Parenti Otte said. “So, to be honest, if it wasn’t fitting to be a shared Hall of Fame experience, then I’m thankful and honored to be a representative of that group of girls.”
Amanda Orgill-Nelson
Orgill-Nelson played volleyball for the Aggies from 2004–07. Orgill-Nelson is in an exclusive club, being one of only 11 players in school history to be named an All-American. As a junior, Orgill-Nelson won second-team All-WAC honors, as well as setting top 10 records in school history for kills, attempts and aces in a season.
In her senior year, Orgill-Nelson excelled even more, winning first-team All-WAC honors, as well as finishing in the top 10 in the nation for kills per set. During the year, she finished No. 2 in school history with 532 kills, No. 3 with 1,406 attempts and No. 12 with 38 service aces over the course of the season.
Orgill-Nelson helped lead the Aggies to one of the biggest victories in school history, winning 3-0 over No. 10-ranked Hawaii. With the victory, the Aggies snapped a 108-game home winning streak for Hawaii.
“At the time, I wasn’t sure where I was going to go, but when I turned around the mountain, I thought, ‘This is it,'” Orgill-Nelson said “I’m just so grateful and honored to be a part of this. Thank you to my friends and family who have supported me and to Utah State for giving me the opportunity to play the sport I love.”
Taryn Rose
Rose was a member of the soccer team from 2011–2014. Starting every match of her four-year career, Rose was a defensive anchor who helped the Aggies win back-to-back conference titles. Rose won all-conference honoree four times during her career and helped Utah State make two NCAA tournament appearances.
During her induction, Rose shared a story about her struggles after an injury she suffered during her junior season of high school but highlighted how the challenge strengthened her going forward through the rest of her career.
“There are many athletes and coaches who impacted me throughout my four years,” Rose said. “Many of them have been huge impacts on my life, my career here at Utah State and continued on throughout after my journey here at Utah State.”
Many family members, teammates and coaches were present for the induction, cheering on the new members of the Hall of Fame. Alongside these four athletes, three others were also inducted to the Hall of Fame. More information about them can be found here.