Cardinal Hall of Honor
Gene L. “Gabby” Bates was among the prominent group that sparked Lamar University’s last two junior college teams and provided the nucleus for the building of the senior college program.
The “Pride of the Rio Grande Valley” was the title given Bates when he was recruited from Edinburg High School in 1948. Bates started at center his freshman year and never relinquished his starting job during a five-year career at LU. He helped Lamar Junior College to 9-4 and 10-2 records in 1948 and 1949, respectively, and earned all-conference honors in 1949 when the team was ranked No. 1 in the country before losing the season finale to Tyler Junior College. Bates also lettered on LU’s golf team.
His coaching career began as head coach at LaFeria High School in Texas, where he coached football, girls basketball, track and baseball from 1953-55. From 1956-58, he was assistant football coach and head track coach at Raymondville High School in Texas.
From 1960-74, he was assistant football coach, head track coach and head trainer at Jacksonville High School in Texas. From 1975-91, while continuing to teach at Jacksonville, he served as a volunteer assistant coach for centers and kickers at Kilgore J.C., helping the team to win a national championship in 1978 along with participating in six Shriner Bowl games.
As a coach at Jacksonville, his teams made it to the semifinals or quarterfinals on the average of every other year.
As a civic leader, Bates served as president of the Gum Creek Water Supply Corp. and was a first-aid instructor for the American Red Cross.
In July 1976, he served as the offensive line coach for the Texas All-Stars in the Shriner Benefit Game in California.
