Pryor Scrapbook Clippings, 1983-1997

Recognition in sports is typically reserved for athletes who accumulate hefty statistics or the coaches who consistently lead their teams to championships. But jus·t as deserving for laurels are those individuals who , quietly, but fervently lend support to the program. Three such boosters will be hon– ored in the category of Meritorious Service when Harding University recognizes 15 charter inductees in its IntercollegiateAthleticHall ofFame. Clifton L. Ganus, Joseph E. Pryor and the late M.E. Berryhill were key supporters of the Bison athletic prog– ram from their college days as out– standingathletes to their work as uni– versityadministrators. The induction cereinonies will take place March 3 at 6:30 p.m. in the American Heritage Cafeteria, with Jim Bill Mclnteer as guest speaker. Tickets are $12each andmust bepur– chased by February 28. For more information. persons may contact Dr. Jimmy Carr's office at 268-6161. extension 442. Perhaps the greetest contribution Ganus, Pryor and Beflo/hill mede to the Harding athletic program was their influence in .persuading then– President George S. Benson and the school's faculty to i:esume intercolle– giate play in 1957. It had been almost two decades since a Bison team had officially representecf Harding on an athletic field. As a student, faculty member and chief executive officer, Ganus not only supported Harding sports but wa_s, fiercely competitive athlete. Often he could be found on the soft– ball Or football intramural fields dur- g his 22 years as president, and was aq outstanding intramural athlete whil an underclassman. F Bison loyalists can challenge Ga 's support and encouragement for e school's athletic program. g his administration, the •s athletic facilities were great– oved. They include the con– .on of the 82,000-square foot 1 ic complex, which bears his , and the Jeny Moore Memorial ll Field, regarded as one ofthe ----inAmnsas. Many know Pryor beit for his bowtie and academic influenceon the school during his 40-plus years of service, but the enduring physical science professor was perhaps the most influential persoa in the AIC in his role for three decades as Hard– ing's faculty athletic representative to the conference. He retired from the position in December after complet– ing his third term as p~sident of the league. Pryor's iAterest in Bison athietics didn't come by.accident. He was an outstanding basketball and track per– former during Harding's early inter– collegiate era, earning five letters. He was also named as one of the school's five best basketball players during its first decade ofcompetition. When Harding resumed varsity participation in 1958, Pryor was named the school's Faculty Athletic Representative and guided the league as president in 1967, 1977 and 1987. .He was instrumental in helping initi– ate the CO(lference's academic guide– lines. Eighteen men and two women from Harding have received the AIC Schola~Athlete Award during his tenure. He still serves as official scor– er for intercollegiate basketball games and .clock operator for Bison '.football g~mes. Berryhill will long be remembered as the driving force behind the inter– collegiate and intramural athletics programs at Harding. When he returned to his alma mater in 1937,. he launched an intensive effort to expand the intramural program, which grew to include the participa– tion of more than 90 percent of the students. In 1951, he was responsible for developing Searcy's Little League program, the first of its kind in Arkansas. In 1938, Harding's final year of competition during its early era, Ber– ryhill directed the Bison baseball team to the AIC championship. He was named athletic director and b3:se– ball coach in 1958 whe.n competition resumed. Ill health forced him to res– ign his administrative duties in I9~ but he continued to coach, leading the bowling team totheAIC title in 1965. He died in 1972