Track & Field | 3/30/2015 4:50:00 PM
Demolition of Elmer Gray beginsABILENE – With the demolition of old Elmer Gray Stadium underway, we asked former sports information director and ACU track and field guru Garner Roberts to take a look back at some of the best moments in the history of the fabled stadium.
Top 10 Events
Elmer J. Gray Stadium (1955-2015)
Abilene Christian University
#1 U.S. Olympic Trials (women)
July 15-16, 1960Fourteen previous Olympians were among the 136 entries in nine events competing for spots on the 1960 U.S. women's track and field team for the Olympic Games in Rome. It was here in Abilene on the campus of Abilene Christian College where Wilma Rudolph, 20-year-old speedster from Saint Bethlehem, Tenn., qualified for her second Olympic team and became the first U.S. woman to win three gold medals in track and field in the same Olympic Games. She won golds in Rome in the 100, 200 and 400-meter relay, which elevated women's track and field in the U.S. and vaulted Rudolph into a prominent position in civil rights and women's rights. The 20th of 22 siblings, she overcame polio, infantile paralysis and scarlet fever as a young girl to become a star for coach Ed Temple (also the 1960 Olympic coach) of the Tigerbelles of Tennessee State and a 16-year-old Olympic relay runner in 1956.
In Abilene, after competing in the preliminaries Friday before 2,500 fans (11.7 in 100 quarterfinals and 24.2 in 200 semifinals), she won the 100 in 11.5 to tie the American record on Saturday at 8 p.m. and came back one hour later to win the 200 in 23.9 to set a trials record (after running in the 100 semifinals at 7:30 p.m.). Earlene Brown was a double winner in the throws with 50-10.5 in the shot and 176-10 in the discus, and Willye White of the Mayor Daley Youth Foundation set an American record on her first (and only) attempt in the long jump of 20-4.5. Abilene sportswriter Fred Sanner wrote, "Miss Rudolph was easily the most impressive runner of the night."
Among the entries was Olga Connolly, former Czech thrower who was the 1956 Olympic champion in the discus and later married American Olympian Harold Connolly. Also, the coach of the San Fernando Women's Athletic Club in Abilene was Stella Walsh Olson, who competed for Poland in the 800 in the Olympic Games in 1932 in Los Angeles and 1936 in Berlin.
While in Abilene Connolly attended her first rodeo and expressed an interest to reporters in barrel racing. "But I was unusually wise in not trying it since I can't ride a horse," she said. She lamented the fact that women's track and field was not as popular in the U.S. as in Europe. "The situation is improving here, but it will never reach a peak until men's and women's track are combined." She was impressed with the meet in Abilene. "This is the finest meet I have seen," she told reporters. "Everything is perfect, the stadium, the track, and the quarters are nice. And the food is just what athletes should eat. Coach (Oliver) Jackson (meet director) did a tremendous job setting this up." Sprinter Patricia Ellison, later the coach of the Texas Track Club, was the only Abilenian to compete, but she failed to advance to the finals in the 100 and 200.
The meet marks the only time the U.S. Olympic trials have been held in the state of Texas since their beginning for men in 1920 (women began in 1928, they were combined for the first time in 1976 in Eugene, Ore.).
#2 Collegiate Quadrangular Meet
(Abilene Christian, Texas, Michigan, Ohio State)
Saturday, March 26, 1960Four Olympians were featured in this early-season outdoor competition before a standing-room-only crowd of more than 6,000 fans. The Wolverines of the University of Michigan, fresh off their victory in the Big 10 indoor championships, came to 65-degree Abilene from 9-degree Ann Arbor to upset the favored Longhorns from University of Texas, defending Southwest Conference champion who had already won the 1960 Border Olympics and San Angelo Relays. Michigan scored 61 points to 51.5 for ACC, 39 for Texas and 22.5 for the Buckeyes of Ohio State, competing without its two fine high jumpers who were at the U.S. Olympic trials with OSU's NCAA championship basketball team. The four coaches are future Hall of Fame selections by the coaches association – Oliver Jackson of ACC, Clyde Littlefield of Texas, Larry Snyder of Ohio State and Don Canham of Michigan.
The Wildcats won both relays (40.7 and 3:13.5) anchored by Earl Young, and Jackson's team also got wins from Frank Taylor in the 440 (49.0), Calvin Cooley in the 220 hurdles (22.5) and Thomas O'Neal in the two-mile (9:38.0). Longhorn Olympian Eddie Southern (47.1) defeated world 440 record holder Glenn Davis (47.4) in a special 440 with ACC's Bobby Morrow (48.3) third, and Jimmy Weaver (10.4) upset ACC's Bill Woodhouse (second) and Southern (third) in a special 100 meters. Michigan's fine sprinter Tom Robinson won both dashes (9.6 and 20.9) in the scored collegiate meet, and Olympian Bill Neider threw 63-7.5 to challenge his world record of 63-10 in the shot put set one week earlier in Palo Alto, Calif. Texas failed to win a running event in a meet for the first time in more than 10 years.
The
Abilene Reporter-News wrote, "The crowd was probably the biggest in the history for a track and field meet here. The stands on both sides were filled, and several hundred more were filed around the outside fences and looking from atop buses and automobiles at the grand collection of athletes."
The Michigan coach told reporters, "This was the greatest first performance outdoors for us. I have no complaints. It was a terrific meet."
#3 College Triangular Meet
(Abilene Christian, Texas, Rice)
Saturday, April 8, 1967The three combatants in this triangular meet were considered the top collegiate teams in Texas in 1967. The favored Rice Owls of coach Emmett Brunson were led by once-beaten quartermiler Conley Brown, but the Wildcats upset the Southwest Conference powers with 63 points to 56 for the Longhorns of coach Jack Patterson and 51 for Rice. In what turned out to be the race of the night, ACC's diminutive senior from Coleman, Riley Dunn, in his first open 440 of the season, edged Brown in the quartermile with both timed in 46.5. Brown was undefeated in 1967 and had lost only once in 1966. Rice won both relays (40.6 and 3:07.6 thanks to Brown's 46.6 anchor) over the Wildcats (41.2 and 3:07.7). ACC's mile relay – second best in Wildcat history – included a 45.9 third lap by Dunn with Ken Knapp replacing injured star Ronnie Crawford on the anchor. Patterson lamented the fact that his Texas team ran its fastest mile relay since 1959 in 3:09.5 but didn't score a point (5-3-0 relay scoring in triangular meets).
Bruce Johnson led a 1-2-3-4 sweep in the three-mile for coach Bill McClure in 14:25.0 good for 11 points (5-3-2-1 scoring in individual events) to allow the Wildcats to overtake the leaders (Texas was on top 56-49 before that race) in the team scoring just before the concluding mile relay. Other ACC winners were Craig Fox in the 440 hurdles (53.4) and Albert Van Troba in the mile (4:12.7). Dunn's 46.5 bettered his personal best of 46.9 that he ran for fourth at the NCAA meet in 1966. It was ACC's fifth straight win of the season.
In its preview of the meet, the
Austin American Statesman said, "The meet promises to be a treat for the avid fans of this West Texas track and field hotbed." Dunn told reporters, "Coach McClure told me to stay with Brown, and I was at his elbow as we came off the turn. I didn't know who won till they read Brown's name as winning second." Brown added, "I guess he just beat me at the tape. He ran a good race."
Texas vaulter Mark King turned in the stadium's first 16-foot vault to win in 16-0.25.
#4 College Triangular Meet
(Abilene Christian, Texas Tech, North Texas)
Saturday, April 19, 1958In a record-breaking day of track and field, stadium records were set or tied in 13 of the 14 events as the Wildcats scored 86 points to 39 for North Texas and 17 for Texas Tech before 5,000 fans on High School Day in the newly expanded stadium (to seat 6,000). Bill Woodhouse upset teammate Bobby Morrow in the 100 with both timed in wind-aided 9.3, and Woodhouse also won the 220 in a windy and very fast 20.0. ACC won both relays in 40.2 (to equal the world record) by Waymond Griggs, Woodhouse, James Segrest and Morrow and 3:11.5 (with Morrow overcoming a three-yard deficit to win with a lap of 46.6 after 49.0 by Jack Shropshire, 48.0 by Jarrell Edwards and 46.8 by James Segrest).
Other ACC winners were Ken Fannon in the 120 hurdles, Calvin Cooley in the 220 hurdles, Bill Todd in the long jump, Edwards in the 880, Jimmy Reeves in the mile, R.E. Gibson in the shot put and Thurman Neill in the discus.
#5 Collegiate Dual Meet
(Abilene Christian, North Texas)
May 13, 1955In the first meet on Abilene Christian's new curbed, nine-lane cinder track, the Wildcats defeated coach Winton E. (Pop) Noah's North Texas Eagles, 68.5 to 58.5, in a dual between two of the top collegiate teams in the Southwest. There were 3,000 fans in the new 3,600-seat stadium ("one of the best in the Southwest") to watch Wildcat newcomer, freshman sprinter Bobby Morrow, win the 100 (9.5) and 220 (20.7) and anchor the 440 relay to victory (41.0 for ACC record) with Waymond Griggs, Don Conder and James Segrest. They were the 33rd and 34th straight sprint victories for the future Olympic Games champion. Former ACC coach J. Eddie Weems and former ACC track and field stars Elmer J. Gray and Vitamin T Smith were among the spectators.
Von Morgan was high-point individual with runner-up finishes in the high jump, long jump and javelin throw. Mack Clark set an ACC record with 23.0 in the 220 hurdles. Other ACC winners for coach Oliver Jackson were Paul Goad in the shot (43-0), Tommy Morris in the javelin (189-3), Larry Faulkner in the vault (12-10) and Paul Johnson in the mile (4:23.2). Other former Wildcats attending were Leon Lepard, Ray Rushing, Durrell Sanders, John Simmons, Elmer Womack, Bill Carter, Frank Coalson, Les Vanover and Howard Green, the first Wildcat to compete internationally.
#6 Collegiate Quadrangular Meet
(Abilene Christian, Southwest Texas State, East Texas State, Howard Payne)
Tuesday, May 5, 1959ACC sprinter Bill Woodhouse tied the world record in the 100-yard dash at 9.3 seconds with a legal aiding wind of two miles per hour. He led coach Oliver Jackson's team to a convincing win in a quadrangular meet with 79 points to 35 for runner-up East Texas State (now Texas A&M-Commerce), 33 for Howard Payne and 23.5 for Southwest Texas State (now Texas State). Woodhouse also won the 220 in 20.7 and sparked the 440 relay to 40.3, the fastest time in the nation to date that season. ACC won 8 of 10 track events and 3 of 6 field events. Calvin Cooley won both hurdles (14.1 and 23.6), Thomas O'Neal won the mile (4:18.5) and two-mile (9:54.4), and Rayford McIlhaney won the shot (52-6.5) and discus (131-4). Also, Bud Clanton was the 440 winner (47.4), and Leroy Culver took the vault (13-0).
Woodhouse became the eighth man to run 9.3, and the first seven included his teammate Bobby Morrow and also Mel Patton and Dave Sime. Fred Sanner, the sports editor of the Abilene Reporter News, wrote, "Wee Willie Woodhouse, running with a two-mile wind to his back, moved off the blocks with jet propulsion, sped down the straightaway like greased lightning and hit the tape in 9.3."
#7 NCAA Division II championships
Thursday, May 26-Saturday, May 28, 2005In a remarkable feat in track and field, the Wildcat men's team wrapped up a sweep of the NCAA Division II indoor and outdoor titles for the fourth straight year at the 43rd annual championships. For eight consecutive times the NCAA trophy was presented to the Wildcats (both indoors and outdoors in 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005). ACU won with 109 points to 84 for runner-up Adams State. It was the 11th of coach Jon Murray's 11 national titles at ACU.
His winners were Nicodemus Naimadu in the 5,000 and steeplechase, Marvin Bien-Aime in the 200, Marvin Essor in the 400 and the 4x400 relay team.
The Wildcats' streak was broken at the 2006 indoor national meet by St. Augustine's – a team that also won eight straight trophies in 1989, 1990, 1991 and 1992 in a streak broken at the 1993 indoor meet by – you guessed it – Abilene Christian.
#8 Southland Conference championship meet
Saturdsay, May 9, 1964In his first season as head coach, Bill McClure led the Wildcats to their first of seven straight SLC outdoor titles with 116 points to 104 for runner-up Lamar in the inaugural SLC meet in Abilene. The Wildcats won 10 events, with the versatile Jerry Dyes – later an ACU head coach – taking high-point honors after victories in the long jump, triple jump and javelin throw. Double winners were Olympian Billy Pemelton in the vault and 330 hurdles and Roger Orrell in the shot put and discus throw. Also, Bobby Hargrave won the mile, Lynn Saunders took the 440 and Gale Harrison captured the 220.
#9 Collegiate Dual Meet
(Abilene Christian, Colorado)
Wednesday, March 27, 1963The Wildcats easily defeated the Buffaloes, 87 to 58, thanks to Nocona sprinter Dennis Richardson, who captured the 100 (9.3) and 220 (20.9) and ran on both winning relay teams (41.2 and 3:14.1). He had reported to the stadium after only about two hours of sleep while awaiting the 8:20 a.m. birth of his daughter at Hendrick Medical Center. Richardson's 9.3 (with a legal 3.66 wind) tied the ACC record held by Olympian Bobby Morrow and Bill Woodhouse. The Wildcats of coach Oliver Jackson, in his final season, won 12 of 17 events – including three by Jerry Dyes (long jump at 23-9, triple jump at 48-9.5 and javelin throw at 233-7). Roger Orrell set a stadium record in the shot put at 55-2. Other winners were Lynn Saunders in the 440 (47.9), Olympian Billy Pemelton in the vault (15-3.75), Gary Burger in the 880 (1:53.0) and John Lawler in the two-mile (9:31.5).
Abilene sportswriter Fred Sanner said Richardson's races "would have been a good afternoon's workout under normal conditions. But when you consider that he had only two hours sleep Tuesday night and that his wife presented him with 6-pound, 4-ounce Shelley Gaye Richardson at 8:20 Wednesday morning, his performances take on new stature."
#10 Collegiate Dual Meet
(Abilene Christian, Angelo State)
Tuesday, March 29, 1983Wildcat vaulter Brad Pursley equaled the American record in the pole vault with 18 feet, 10.25 inches, in a dual meet with Angelo State won easily by the Wildcats, 94 to 60. In only his second outdoor meet of the season, the Merkel High School graduate set ACU and stadium records. He opened at 17-3 and also topped 18-0.5 and 18-5.5 before the record vault (and then came three misses at the world-record height of 19-1). Other winners that day for coach Don W. Hood's team were Matt Minson in the 800, Doug Jones in the 5,000, Tim Bright in the 110 hurdles, Charlie Phillips in the 400 and Arthur Williams in the 200. Double winners were David Simmons in the shot put and discus throw and Greg Johnson in the long jump and triple jump. The Wildcats also won the 400 relay.
Honorable Mention
• Southland Conference Championship meet
Saturday, May 9, 1970Abilene Christian wins its seventh straight SLC outdoor track and field title with 102 points to 74.5 for runner-up Lamar. (In the seventh year of SLC track and field, ACC had claimed all seven titles.) The Wildcats of coach Bill McClure won the mile relay in 3:10.6 with Roger Colglazier on the anchor and seven other events. John Lopez was a double winner in the 880 and mile, and Max Harding captured the third of his four SLC javelin victories. Other winners were Wayne Walton in the discus, Gene Riley in the vault, Kenny Link in the three-mile and Colglazier in the 440.
• NAIA Collegiate championships
May 18-20, 1978 / May 17-19, 1980 / May 22-24, 1980Elmer J. Gray Stadium was host for three NAIA championship meets, but the Wildcats were denied the top trophy each of the three years – by Texas Southern in 1978 and 1979 and Mississippi Valley State in 1980. The Wildcats of coach Don W. Hood were third in 1978 and runner-up in 1979 and 1980. Olympian Billy Olson, who was undefeated in the NAIA vault with four indoor and four outdoor titles, won his specialty each of these three years, and Carl Williams was the long jump winner in 1978 and 1979. ACU's other winners in 1980 were Martin Guerrero in the discus and Steve Parker in the 110-meter hurdles.
• Collegiate All-Comers Meet / UIL State Qualifiers Meet
May 5, 1979On his first throw in a high school state qualifiers meet, Michael Carter, senior at Thomas Jefferson High School in Dallas and future NFL defensive lineman, raised his own national record for the 12-pound implement to 77 feet, 0 inches. That day the 6-1, 250-pound Carter also set a stadium record in the 16-pound international implement with a toss of 66-4. Earlier he had thrown 74-8.25 at his district meet in Dallas, 74-7.5 at the Texas Relays and 73-2 at regional. (Later he reached 81-3.5 on June 16 at the Golden West invitational in Sacramento, but the mark was not recognized as a national high school record because Carter had already graduated.)
Abilene sportswriter Bill Hart wrote, "It seemed his first throw was never going to come down." Carter reportedly told his coach James Neely, "Coach, what did I do? I wasn't trying to do that." He told reporters, "I just wanted to get an easy throw in. I was relaxed and not forcing anything, and I got more leg into it. When it went past 75 feet, I wondered what had happened."
Carter played football and won three NCAA shot put titles at SMU, won a silver medal in the Olympic Games in 1984 in Los Angeles, and played defensive lineman for the San Francisco 49ers with three Super Bowl titles. His daughter Michelle was also a U.S. Olympian and NCAA champion in the shot put for University of Texas.
• Collegiate Quadrangular Meet
(Abilene Christian, Rice, New Mexico, Drake)
Saturday, April 9, 1966Wildcat middle distance ace Charles Christmas set a Texas collegiate record of 4:03.2 in the mile in a quadrangular meet won decisively by the Lobos of University of New Mexico. Christmas also won the 880 about 35 minutes later with 1:50.1 in the co-called Meet of Champions (all four teams were conference champions). UNM won 12 of 17 events, including both relays, to amass 105 points to 40 for runner-up the Wildcats of coach Bill McClure, 34 for Rice and 5 for Drake. UNM won the mile relay in 3:09.7 (with a 45.1 anchor by Kenny Head) to 3:10.0 for the Wildcats. Craig Fox also won the 440 hurdles for ACC.
Sports editor James McAfee of the Abilene Reporter News wrote, "Christmas' performance was truly amazing and headlined a fine array of individual performances which delighted the 3,500 fans on hand." His time was also a stadium record and ACC record. McAfee added, "The Tennessee running horse, apparently showing no signs of leg trouble which had plagued him earlier in the season, started fast and was in the lead after the first lap with a 58.3 split." He finished with laps of 1:01.7, 1:02.6 and 1:00.6 for a victory over Mike Thornton of UNM (4:04.6) and ACC teammate Albert Van Troba (4:05.8).
• Texas Coca-Cola Pole Vault Classic
June 5, 1981Two high school vaulters eclipsed the national record, and Earl Bell edged Billy Olson in a special night of pole vault competition at Elmer J. Gray Stadium directed by Wildcat coach Don W. Hood. Joe Dial of Marlow, Okla., the national high school record holder at 17-9.5, faced Dale Jenkins of Abilene Christian High School and Greg Duplantis of Lafayette, La. All three made 17-6.25, then Jenkins (on his first attempt) and Duplantis (on his third attempt) cleared 17-10.5 in the first meet ever with three high school vaulters over 17 feet, 6 inches.
All three were later collegiate stars – Dial at Oklahoma State, Duplantis at LSU, and Jenkins at Abilene Christian. Bell (on his first attempt) and Olson (on his second attempt) each cleared 18-0.5 as rain began to fall near the end of the competition. Two other events were conducted. ACU's Martin Guerrero won the discus at 201-7, and Dale Dixon of Breckenridge, despite winning only two of the 10 events, won the high school decathlon with 6,039 events.
• U.S. Air Force ChampionshipsThe U.S. Air Force conducted its track and field meet at ACC to select its 22-member team for the all-service track and field championships June 10-11 in Quantico, Va. Larry Mildren, recreation director at Dyess AFB in Abilene, brought the meet to Abilene. Among the athletes qualifying for the USAF team were former University of Texas Olympian Eddie Southern and 1956 Olympic distance runner Max Truex of USC, who won the three-mile here in 14:17.5. Southern paced Air Defense Command to the team title with a win in the 440 hurdles (52.1) and a 47.4 anchor on the ADC's winning mile relay team (3:15.5 for a USAF record). Air Defense Command scored 75 points to 61 for runner-up Air Training Command, which won the 440 relay in 42.2. Comedian Joe E. Brown was honorary referee.
• Lone Star Conference Championship Meet
Saturday, May 3, 2003In the 20th year of Lone Star Conference track and field for women, the Wildcat women's team won its 20th straight LSC outdoor title with a narrow five-point win over Angelo State, 193 to 188, for coach Jon Murray. Yuliya Stashkiv was a double winner in the 1,500 and 3,000 for the Wildcats. Other ACU winners were Val Gorter in the vault, Angie Waters in the 800, Justine Nahimana in the 10,000 and Sofi Hildenborg in the 200.
• Sports Illustrated visits Abilene Christian
May 18, 1961Sports Illustrated comes to the ACC campus to prepare the cover photograph and article on the Wildcats' Olympic quartermiler Earl Young. Photographer Arthur Shay, now a resident of the Chicago area, and writer Roy Terrell spent the day with Young and ACC sports publicist Charles H. (Charlie) Marler. Among the hundreds of photos Shay took that day were dozens of pictures of Young running behind a pickup with Shay and his cameras in the back. "Art gave me an official workout chasing that pickup truck around the track while he shot pictures from the truck," Young remembers. After the extensive day of shooting, the magazine chose for the cover a simple picture of Young coming out of the starting blocks for the cover of the June 19 issue. "There were some great shots," Young added, "and much better than the one they chose (for the cover)."
Young said he occasionally (especially in Olympic years) gets copies in the mail of the magazine of June 19, 1961, from fans around the world to autograph and return (with postage-paid envelopes). Several years ago he called Sports Illustrated to ask about copies of the issue with an offer to pay. They still had about 10 copies, which they sent to him. "It is our pleasure to send them at our cost because you are on the cover," the woman in the magazine office told Young.
Wildcat track and field head coaches
Elmer J. Gray Stadium era
(programs combined in 1993)
Men1948-63 Oliver Jackson
1964-71 Bill McClure
1972-73 Burl McCoy
1974-77 Don Smith
1978-88 Don W. Hood
1989-92 Jerry Dyes
1993-99 Wes Kittley
2000 Jon Murray (interim)
2001 Freddie Williams
2002-05 Jon Murray
2006-09 Don D. Hood
2010-2012 Roosevelt Lofton
2013
Jerrod Cook (interim)
2014-
Keith BarnierWomen1976-79 Addie Felts
1980-83 Burl McCoy
1984-99 Wes Kittley
2000 Jon Murray (interim)
2001 Freddie Williams
2002-05 Jon Murray
2006-09 Don D. Hood
2010-2012 Roosevelt Lofton
2013
Jerrod Cook (interim)
2014-
Keith BarnierElm
er J. Gray Stadium
ACU track and field
Major championships
Southland Conference outdoor championships1964 (first annual) men
1966 (third annual) men
1970 (seventh annual) men
Lone Star Conference outdoor championships1978 (45th annual) men
1985 men and women
1988 men and women
1990 men and women
1993 men and women
1994 men and women
1999 men and women
2003 men and women
2008 men and women
NAIA national championships1978 (27th annual) men
1979 men
1980 men
NCAA Division II national championships1993 (31st annual) men and women
2005 men and women
U.S. Olympic trials1960 (seventh) women
U.S. Air Force championships1960
