Cardinal Hall of Honor
John Gray was the first three-year letterman at South Park Junior College, the forerunner of Lamar University.
He started every game at center for three years, beginning with the first game in the school’s athletic history on Sept. 29, 1923. The coach of the 1925 team, Lilburn Dimmitt, said, “Gray could play for 1,000 years and never get a penalty.”
As head football coach at Lamar College from 1932-39, Gray’s teams went 40-30-4. He guided the Cardinals to the Texas Junior College state championship game in 1933, 1934 and 1936. Gray had a great 8-1 season in 1932 and a fine 8-1-1 in 1934. An innovator of ideas, Coach Gray introduced one of the first clinics for area coaches on football rules in 1932.
