Jerry Bejbl is getting some company.

A fullback-linebacker and two-year letterman for Slippery Rock University in 1961-62, Bejbl's uniform No. 31 was the only one retired in the 107-year history of SRU football.

That will change Saturday when the late Jim McElhaney has his No. 82 retired in a 5:45 p.m. pre-game ceremony at N. Kerr Thompson Stadium.

A former All-American wide receiver and a longtime wide receivers coach at The Rock, McElhaney died in July 2003.

"This is a tremendous honor for Mac, a deserved honor. It's a very personal thing to have your number retired. The only thing I'm sad about is Jim won't be here to accept it," said Bejbl, who was McElhaney's teammate.

McElhaney lettered three years at The Rock (1961-63) and the team played in the state championship game in each of those years. The squad posted a record of 21-7-1 during those years and defeated East Stroudsburg for the PSAC title in 1962.

The Rock finished 5-1-2 in 1960, McElhaney's freshman season.

"Jim was the difference in those championship years," Bejbl said. "He was a key ingredient who changed the way our offense played.

"He was such a big receiver with great hands. That was rare in those days."

McElhaney was part of one of SRU football's most successful four-year period as a player. He was part of another successful four-year stretch a coach.

McElhaney was wide receivers coach at SRU during its streak of four successive PSAC West titles and three straight NCAA Division II playoff appearances from 1997-2001. He was a receivers coach at SRU for 14 years.

His wife, Bonnie McElhaney, initiated the idea of retiring McElhaney's number.

"I asked (SRU president Robert Smith) about it and he checked to see if Jim met the criteria," Mrs. McElhaney said. "They had a committee and it was strictly up to them.

"What he did at Slippery Rock as a student, what he gave back to the university, the demeanor and professionalism with which he handled the young men he coached, all of that played a determining factor.

"This is the ultimate honor any person can receive at that university. It's at the very top," she added.

SRU football coach George Mihalik is preparing for an emotional day.

"When you have the opportunity to coach at your alma mater, there's an even greater passion for what you're doing," Mihalik said. "Mac and I were able to experience that together.

"While he played a big part in our X's and O's, Jim McElhaney played a bigger part in our success as a person. He was an exceptional man.

"Once this idea was proposed, everybody got on board with it. Remembering Coach Mac and honoring him this way, followed by a big football game with Indiana - that will be an emotional day," Mihalik added.

Scott Whipple was SRU's H-Back and leading receiver in 1998 and 1999.

"Coach Mac was a mild-mannered guy and a great teacher," Whipple said. "He taught me how to read defenses and proper technique in every facet of the game.

"He could pick up tendencies of opponents on film like no coach I ever knew. Other people could view the same films and not see the things he saw."

Randy McKavish quarterbacked SRU from 1997-2000 and said Coach McElhaney helped him from the press box during games.

"He'd call down and tell me what receivers would open up with every formation," McKavish said. "He was good at getting tips to me."

Jim Mill was a guard on The Rock's 1963 team and a transfer from the University of Pittsburgh.

"Jim McElhaney was as good a receiver as I saw," Mill said. "He was sure-handed, very aggressive and went after the ball.

"He was our go-to guy. Defenses knew we were throwing to Mac and they still couldn't stop it."

Current East Stroudsburg University football coach Denny Douds was a guard-nose tackle and captain of SRU's football team in 1962.

Douds remains one of "Charlie's Boys," a group of players from that team who still get together semiannually. The group is named after then-SRU head coach Charles Godlasky.

"We had such a close-knit team," Douds said. "After all these years, as many as 45 to 60 of us still get together.

"Mac was a core member of Charlie's Boys. You won't find a person who didn't like him. He never upset anybody.

"He was a great teammate and a great team player. And he was one of the first true split ends in the PSAC," Douds added.

About 25 members of Charlie's Boys will be on hand for Saturday's ceremony.

Two receivers McElhaney coached at SRU - Greg Hopkins and D.J. Flick - are currently playing pro football. Hopkins is a receiver for Los Angeles of the Arena Football League and Flick is a receiver for Hamilton of the Canadian Football League.

Both wear uniform No. 82 for their respective teams.

"I welled up when I found that out," Bonnie McElhaney said. "What a special tribute to their coach."

When his playing career ended, McElhaney held school records in pass receptions, single-season and career receiving yards and career all-purpose yards.

Hopkins wound up breaking most of those records.

"I went to a small high school (West Greene), so Mac was the first position coach I ever had," Hopkins said. "I couldn't have had a better one.

"He never got too heated up about anything and never had to say much to get his point across. He always emphasized that you should try to be the best at your position.

"Mac was the best receiver before I ever got there. He gave me something to shoot for and helped me get there," Hopkins said.

Among the all-time leading receivers in Arena Football League history, Hopkins said he owes much of his career to McElhaney.

"He taught me what I know," Hopkins said. "Whenever I broke one of his records, he was the first one there to congratulate me. That's just the kind of guy he was."