Bob Kurland

Bob Kurland first took the floor for the Oklahoma A&M basketball team in 1942, his 6-foot, 10-inch frame quickly became the focal point of numerous jokesters.

After all, in those days any athlete around the 6-foot-3 range was just about considered a monster. As it turned out, Kurland got the last laugh. He started a trend which probably will carry on as long as basketball is played.

Nowadays, with the occasional exception of some one like the Atlanta Hawks' Spud Webb (5-foot-7), anybody under 6-3 might as well plan on doing something other than playing major college or professional basketball. The days of the "big man" are here to stay.

A lot of the credit goes to Bob Kurland, who under the direction of coach Henry P. Iba, used his height advantage to set several school scoring records, collect All-American honors in 1944, '45 and '46, and help the Aggies compile a 99-22 record and win two national championships.

Some of the records Kurland still hold include:

He remains the only three-time Oklahoma State All American in basketball.
His 1,669 points from 1942-46 is a record for four years.
His 1,616 points from 1943-46 is a record for three seasons.
In four years, Kurland put up a record 561 free throw attempts, making 319 for a 56 percent average.
In 1946 against St. Louis, Kurland put up a record 38 field goal attempts and made a record 25. All told, he scored a record 58 points as the Aggies downed the Billikens, 86-33.

Kurland had a chance to join the NBA, then in its toddler stages, but he opted to play with the Phillips 66ers of the Amateur Athletic Union. During the 1946-47 season, the 66ers finished 52-2. They ended the 1947-48 campaign with an incredible 62-3 mark and were considered one of the top, and possibly the best, amateur teams of the era.

He never regretted his decision, Kurland has said, "At the time I got out of school, the pro teams were paying salaries out of paper bags. Contracts didn't mean anything, you traveled in buses and TV had not come in."

Now retired and living in Bartlesville, OK., Kurland not only passed up the $18,000 salaries the NBA was offering for the 66ers, he also earned a spot on the U.S. Olympic teams in 1948 and 1952—and helped both squads earn gold medals.

After his playing days were over, he went on to become president of numerous Phillips subsidiaries. "The Phillips program opened doors and opportunities so that if I didn't become president of Phillips, it wasn't the corporation's fault; it was because I didn't work hard enough", said Kurland. "It provided a career over almost 40 years that was rewarding—my family was taken care of and I was very proud to be associated with Phillips."

Bob Kurland is a class act, and the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame is proud to include him in our class of 1987.