ABILENE – Jerry Dyes ('64) – one of the greatest athletes in the history of ACU's legendary track and field program – died Jan. 15, 2024, at age 82, in Boerne, Texas.
Funeral arrangements are pending.
Dyes was inducted into the ACU Sports Hall of Fame in October 2008 after a coaching career that covered more than 40 years on the prep and intercollegiate levels, including four years as the head men's track and field coach (1988-92) at ACU.
He burst onto the collegiate track and field scene as an Abilene Christian freshman in 1961 when he had the nation's second-best mark in the javelin throw and fourth-best javelin throw as a freshman. That same year, he finished sixth in the javelin at the national Amateur Athletics Association (AAU) championship meet.
As a sophomore in 1962, he won javelin championships at the Kansas Relays and Penn Relays and was second at the NCAA Division I championship meet. He was also third in the javelin at the national AAU championship meet. As a junior in 1963, he won the javelin at the Texas and Drake relays, and as a senior in 1964, he won the decathlon at the Kansas Relays. He was the high-point performer at the first Southland Conference championship meet in 1964, and he was later fifth in the javelin at the AAU national championship meet.
"Jerry Dyes is one of the greatest athletes to wear the purple and white," said former ACU head track and field coach Wes Kittley, now the Director of Track and Field and Cross Country at Texas Tech. "He was an absolutely incredible athlete."
After a prep and collegiate career that saw him go from Corpus Christi to Louisiana Tech between 1965 and 1988, Dyes returned to his alma mater as the head men's track and field coach from 1988-92. He led the Wildcats to a runner-up finish at the 1992 NCAA Division II outdoor championship meet.
He returned to the prep ranks from 1992-2003 before joining The University of Texas at San Antonio staff in 2003, where he was an assistant under head coach James Blackwood ('64), his teammate at Abilene Christian. He later coached at Schreiner University before retiring.
While coaching at ACU, Dyes returned to competition on the Master's circuit and was undefeated in the javelin for almost 15 years. He competed internationally, defeating former Olympic champions, including Janis Lusis, to win the World Senior Championship.
His coaching career began at Corpus Christi Ray High School, where his 1965 cross country and track and field squads captured state titles. He was inducted into the Ray Athletics Hall of Fame in October 2004.
Dyes jumped to the college ranks as the head track and field coach and an instructor of physical education at Northwestern State University from 1970-82. He tutored 14 All-Americans and led the Demons to a national runner-up finish at the 1976 NAIA championships and an 11th-place finish at the 1981 NCAA Division I championships. His 1981 4x100-meter relay team, which included future NFL stars Joe Delaney and Mark Duper, won the NCAA Division I title and set a then-Louisiana collegiate record time of 39.03 seconds.
Dyes moved up the road to Louisiana Tech University for a six-year stint as head coach and assistant professor of education from 1982-88. He coached eight All-Americans, including 1985 NCAA Division I shot put champion John Campbell, leading the Bulldogs to a sweep of the American South Conference indoor and outdoor championships in 1988.
