Welcome Message

The structure of this web site is to honor those individuals that have devoted their lives to serving Arizona's youth with leadership, excellence, and success.  The men and women inducted into the Arizona High School Athletic Coaches Hall of Fame are the epitome of their profession and are being honored by their peers.  As of this writing 220 great coaches/educators have been inducted into this place of honor.  The Hall of Fame inductions began in 1984 with 32 charter members.  Usually a group of 5 new worthy coaches are added annually after a preceding member and/or the Executive Board induction committee nominates and then selects the candidates on the basis of their tenure, merit, and other exemplary characteristics.  We hope you enjoy moving through this history of excellence in Arizona High School Athletics.  You are navigating through a membership of coaches that have all been a coach for 20 years in the same sport, more than one sport, had unparalleled success, and/or have served their respective coaches' associations in various volunteer capacities.  Enjoy this trip down memory lane. There is a handsome public display of all 220 coaches in the Gila River Arena in Glendale just inside Gate 7. 

Hall of Fame

Russ Winer coached high school wrestling for 26 years at Arcadia, Chandler, and Dobson High Schools.  His teams won 135 and only lost 58 in dual matches for a winning percentage of 69.9%.  Winer's Dobson Mustangs were the 1993 Class 5A State Wrestling Champions.  Coach was inducted into the...Read more

Bob Kelly coached baseball at Yuma and Kofa High Schools for 36 years.  He was the head coach at Yuma for 21 years.  Kelly also coached football, basketball, and boys/girls golf. His overall baseball record was 299-159.  Coach Kelly was the ACA All Star Coach for the South Team in 1967.  Bob was...Read more

Coach Alvin "Chub" Overson won six northern Arizona conference championships and for two years running was undefeated.  His 1949 Redskins team won the conference, regional, Gallup Invitational, and was eliminated in the semi-finals by Tempe.  His overall basketball record was 134-66.  Coach...Read more

Reed Peterson coached high school athletics at Mesa High School for 36 years (1949-85).  Peterson was a head coach in five different sports and only had two losing seasons during that entire span.  His football teams were 98-58-2 with two divisional titles and five league crowns.  His JV...Read more

Huston T.  Morrison had a coaching career of 37 years--27 in Arizona.  He coached 20 years of football, 16 years of cross-country, and 37 years of track and field.  His cross-country dual meet boy's teams won 139, lost 57, and tied 1.  He had two boy's divisional championships and three girl's...Read more

Bev coached volleyball for 20 years, 15 as head coach at Maryvale and Carl Hayden High Schools, and 5 years as an assistant.  Coach Bostrom's girls won 114 matches and won over 51% of their games.  Bostrom was the Phoenix Coaches Association Volleyball Coach of the Year in 1975 and 1979.  She...Read more

After beginning his career in Safford, AZ, Dale Torrence was the head track and cross country coach at West High School in the Phoenix Union District from 1954-75.  Coach Torrence was instrumental in the establishment of prep Cross Country in Arizona and was the first state meet organizer/...Read more

Joe Famulette, now deceased, was inducted into the Arizona Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 1993.  Coach Famulette was highly respected by his peers and revered by the Native American community which he represented on the basketball court.  His style of coaching was "Mush, Mush, Mush" as his...Read more

Gil Corona showed up at Arizona State Teacher's College (now Northern Arizona University) in Flagstaff in 1940.  Coach joined the Army Air Corps in 1942 at the beginning of WW II for the USA.  He was a Tech Sergeant and radioman on a B-26 bomber.  He was shot down on his 25th mission near Rome...Read more

Rollie Caldwell was another multiple sport coach from the early years of high school athletics. Coach Caldwell was inducted into the Arizona Athletic Coaches Hall of Fame in 1985 and recognized as a talent on all three major boy's sports, football, basketball, and baseball.  Caldwell was well...Read more

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