Brice Durbin to be inducted into sports hall of fame
Brice B. Durbin is Class of 2005 member
Burns native Brice B. Durbin will be inducted into the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame during ceremonies slated for April 16 in Wichita.
Durbin will be one 15 athletes, coaches, and contributors comprising the class of 2005 which will be added to the hall's inductees.
Events include the induction ceremony and autograph session set for 1:30 p.m. in the Emerald Ballroom at the Wichita Airport Hilton. The second event is a 7:30 p.m. formal banquet, during which class members will receive their induction plaques. Afterward, "Tex" Winter will give the keynote speech.
The public is invited to attend both events by paid admission. Tickets must be purchased in advance. Prices for the induction ceremony/autograph session are $15 for adults, $5 for students, and children under 10 are free with an adult. Ticket holders also may participate in the autograph session. Only one autograph per inductee is allowed.
Eleven of this year's inductees will be honored during the April event. Four of the class members will be honored posthumously.
Besides Durbin, other members of the class of 2005 inductees include:
— Antoine Carr — college basketball All-American at Wichita State, longtime successful NBA career with numerous teams.
— Ken Cochran — won more than 400 games as basketball coach at Salina's Kansas Wesleyan and Marymount, NAIA Hall of Famer.
— Harold Ensley — nationally renowned host of outdoor television show, "The Sportsmen's Friend," for 48 years.
— Mike Evans — Kansas State University's all-time scoring leader in basketball. Two-time Big 8 player of the year.
— Paul "Busch" Gross (deceased) — Coached Fort Hays State University into national basketball prominence in NAIA.
— Bill Guthridge — played on Kansas State University Final Four basketball team of 1958. Assistant to Dean Smith at North Carolina for 30 years. Won 80 games with two Final Four appearances in three seasons as head coach at North Carolina.
— Ray Hahn (deceased) — Kansas State University football All-American, coached football and tennis at Bethany College.
— Bob Hentzen (deceased) — Kansas Sportswriter of the Year 15 times in his 38 years at the Topeka Capital-Journal.
— Ted Kessinger — Bethany College football coach who won 217 games and gained national rankings in 20 of his 28 years.
— Cleo Littleton — Wichita State University basketball All-American and school's all-time career scoring leader.
— Jack Parr — Kansas State University All-American basketball player and one of the first to have his KSU jersey retired.
— John Ravenscroft (deceased) — Newton High School basketball coach whose teams won 10 conference and four state titles in his 13 seasons.
— Bill Russell — Pittsburg native played in more than 2,100 games for the Los Angeles Dodgers, registering a career fielding percentage of 9.61.
— Steven Tasker — Seven times all-pro football player with the Buffalo Bills. Played in four Super Bowls. State track champ at Leoti High School. Standout junior college player at Dodge City.
Burns graduate
One of the nation's icons in prep high school athletic administration and the father of girls' sports in Kansas, Durbin said he owes the Burns school system credit for many of his innovations.
"I would like to be remembered as a person who grew up in the small town of Burns, with a high school enrollment of less than 100 that provided in addition to academic studies, an opportunity for its students to participate in school activities such as athletics, music, speech and drama, and service clubs.
"The values I learned from participating in all of these activities were the driving force behind my aggressively promoting what was later termed, 'The Other Half of Education,' when I was executive director of the Kansas State High School Activities Association and National Federation of State High School Associations."
Durbin, 77, of Topeka is the executive director emeritus of the National Federation, the final stop in a career that began in classrooms in Marysville, Arkansas City, and Hutchinson. He also served as an assistant basketball coach to Ralph Miller at Wichita State University, officiated football in the Missouri Valley Conference, and was assistant executive secretary for the Kansas high school governing body.
But in Kansas, founding girls' sports, high school football playoffs, and overtime procedures are Durbin's favorite memories.
"By aggressively promoting the values of student activities, many schools resisted cutting back their activities programs due to financial restraints," he said.
Nationally, Durbin has done a little bit of everything, including chairing the staff and player selection committees for the 1980-84 U.S. Olympic and Pan American teams. The 1984 Olympic Team, coached by Bob Knight and featuring Michael Jordan, won the gold medal.
Durbin also served on the National Association of Basketball Coaches, the National Basketball Rules Committee, the U.S. Olympic Committee Board of Directors, the National Basketball Hall of Fame Board, the U.S. Track and Field Federation and the U.S. Golf Federation.
At the national level he's most proud of his work with the National Federation.
"We developed and organized national organizations for high school athletic directors, athletic coaches, and sports officials
"The National High School Sports Hall of Fame was started and the TARGET program was organized as a national chemical health awareness program."
All of that came from a boy who grew up in a small Kansas town, anxious to be a part of everything at school.
"I have always said that all students don't have to participate in activities," Durbin said. "But every student should be encouraged and provided the opportunity to do so."
