Playing football, thinking basketball
STILLWATER — Think Missouri State and you think of basketball, which is not a good thing during football season.
The institution formerly known as Southwest Missouri State is where Jackie Stiles became national player of the year, and it’s where Charlie Spoonhour and Steve Alford coached before advancing in their careers. Oklahoma native Barry Hinson also stormed the sidelines as the Bears’ coach before being fired last spring.
A 1983 OSU grad, Hinson attended last week’s game between the Cowboys and Houston at Boone Pickens Stadium. He and wife Angie will not be at Saturday night’s game, however.
“I’m still a Missouri State guy, but we’d be wearing orange for that game, and we thought that might get somebody upset,” said Hinson, who plans to return to Stillwater for the Oct. 4 contest against Texas A&M.
Born in Marlow, Hinson began his coaching career at Stillwater Junior High. From there, he was an assistant at Stillwater and Edmond Memorial, head coach at Tulsa’s Bishop Kelley, an assistant at Oral Roberts and then served as head coach at ORU and Missouri State.
As soon as Hinson sells his house in Springfield, he plans to move back to Tulsa. This coming basketball season, he hopes to land a job as a television color commentator.
“I’ll do dog races in Anchorage, Alaska. I don’t care,” Hinson said.
Missouri State football is led by former Kansas coach Terry Allen (1997-2001), who is in his fourth year in Springfield. Hinson and Allen spent the past three years together.
“I absolutely love him,” Hinson said. “He’s one of the most positive, energetic guys I know. I really like him.”
The Bears are coming off a shocking 35-27 loss to Division II Washburn (Kan.) on Sept. 4.
“The game hit him in the gut,” Hinson said of Allen. “It was really hard to listen to that game on the radio. Terry is so limited in what he can do. They have no budget to speak of, but if that school can ever make it football-wise, I think he’s the guy to do it. If they give him some revenue and leave him alone, I think they’ll be OK.”
The greater Springfield area is hardly a prep football hotbed.
Glendale went 7-4 last season, but the other four local public high schools — Central, Parkview, Kickapoo and Hillcrest — went a combined 3-37 in 2007.
“We don’t have any quarterbacks up here, but we’ve got guys who can fish like you’ve never seen,” Hinson deadpanned. “We’re raising kids around here for the Pro Bass circuit, not football.”
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