Inductees

For some former athletes, sports has a way of keeping them around, to feed their passion but also to make a major difference in the lives of young people.

An excellent case in point is Horner Askins.

A former high school football standout in Arkansas, he found his way to southwest Missouri as a teacher and coach in 1965 – and his impact has been felt ever since. His big break came six years later with the opening of Kickapoo High School in Springfield, where he was the athletic department’s first track & field coach who later launched the cross country program, too.

“I didn’t realize what a great move it was when I got there,” Askins said. “I still think, ‘Wow, I got to start two programs.’ It was quite a run. I really enjoyed it.”

Certainly, the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame proudly inducted Askins with the Class of 2025.

In order, he coached basketball at Marionville High School, three sports at Pleasant View Middle School in Springfield, enjoyed success at Kickapoo, served as a starter in track & field meets and has long been a key part of the Springfield Quarterback & Tip-Off Clubs. Oh, and he also has served on the board for the Springfield Area Sports Hall of Fame.

Terry Thomas was a state runner-up in the hurdles, and high jumper Brent Hough went to the University of Missouri for track & field and played basketball for Norm Stewart (MSHOF Legend 2000).

Additionally, Horner’s 1980 team won a district title.

But he certainly climbed the ladder to get there, and had the sports mindset needed to lead teams.

After all, before graduating in 1960 from Clarksville High School in Arkansas, he was a three-sport athlete – football, track & field and baseball. He later played football and ran at the University of the Ozarks when it was called College of the Ozarks.

In 1965, he got his start as a head basketball coach at Marionville High School, compiling a 45-26 record in three seasons.

At the time, he got to know eventual Hillcrest football coach Jim Vaughn, who encouraged Askins to apply for a coaching position in Springfield. That led to accepting the jobs at Pleasant Valley Middle School.

Askins recruited 22 of the school’s 28 eighth-graders for football, and his basketball team won a conference title. He was set to go to Hillcrest High School in 1971, before the school district encouraged him to head to Kickapoo.

“Of course, I said yes,” Askins said. “I was young and wanted to get into high school (coaching).”

He started as an offensive line coach on the football staff, and eventually resigned to start the cross country program in 1979. He coached Parkview’s cross country team along with Kickapoo in that initial year.

Overall, he got 50 athletes to join the cross country team that first season. In that sport, teams can only run seven on varsity, and so Askins would run the rest of he team in junior varsity.

Kickapoo won the Ozark Conference in his final season as coach. That was notable considering West Plains always had state championship-caliber teams.

He credits assistants Dave Tobey in cross country and Kevin Byrne in track & field for making runners competitive. Both eventually became Kickapoo head coaches, with the boys cross country program earned 12 top 10 finishes between 1984 and 1998.

Askins stayed around the sport, serving as a starter in track & field meets, including in two college regionals.

In 2004, he was asked to take over as president of the Springfield Quarterback and Tip-Off Clubs. That came after having joined the clubs – both meet weekly during the school year – years before.

The News-Leader sports editor, Marty Eddleman (MSHOF 1989), ran it for years and was the one who invited Askins.

“When I joined in 1995, I thought I wouldn’t like it,” Askins said. “But Marty would sit by me and talk about the history of the club, which dates back to 1948. Lo and behold, it just kept going.”

Additionally, Askins has served for years on the Board of Directors for the Springfield Area Sports Hall of Fame, including as its president in 2012.

“That kept me in the Springfield sports scene,” Askins said.

Even better, he long had the support of his wife, Judy, and their daughters, Twyla and Tina.

“I do feel fortunate,” Askins said. “I feel really happy with my career. And I’m still in shock about this (induction into) the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame.”