Idabel native was high school coaching legend in Arizona

A farewell to people with Oklahoma ties who enjoyed the game day experience:

•Jesse Parker, 77, of Phoenix. The Idabel native was a legendary high school football coach in Arizona. He led Camelback High School and Mesa Mountain View to a combined five state championships and four state runner-up finishes.

Over a 40-year career in Arizona, Palmer’s teams won a state-record 309 games. He was inducted into the Arizona Coaches Association Hall of Fame and is a member of the National High School Athletic Coaches Association Hall of Fame.

Parker played tight end at Idabel High School and Paris Junior College in Texas. He finished his college career at East Central in Ada.

All of Parker’s high school teams were known for discipline and hard work.

“Extremely competitive. Very detailed,” former Phoenix-St. Mary’s coach Pat Lavin told azcentral sports about Parker. “His kids idolized him. He had the perfect balance. He was a great mentor and friend to them ... they had a certain amount of fear they played with. And I mean that in a good way. He had their attention on the field all the time.”

Mesa Mountain View named its football field in honor of Parker during a ceremony before the 2016 season opener.

•Roy Galloway, 82, of Moore liked to watch sports, especially the Thunder, Sooners and Dallas Cowboys. He started snow skiing at age 50 and liked to play church league softball.

Galloway graduated from Canute High, where he was the Washita County sprint champion. He preferred to play golf in cowboys boots. Galloway owned a trucking company.

•Zachary Van Horn, 10, of Jenks. A ballplayer. A big brother.

•Mary Anne Roye Kirkland, 79, of Norman spent many years as president of the Tip-In Club at OU. She was a longtime season ticket holder for both basketball and football.

•Guy Wilhoit, 88, of Tulsa. A longtime runner. Participated in the Run for Your Life program at Whiteside Park and several Tulsa Runs. A real estate appraiser.

•Bill Bowles, 86, of Westminster, Colo. He played football and basketball and ran track at Fairview High School in the late 1940s. Bowles was the high-point man at the Class B state track meet in 1948; he collected points while winning the 100- and 200yard dashes and anchoring a first-place mile relay and second-place 880 relay. One of Bowles’ track rivals — and a friend — was Cleveland High School star Billy Vessels. Bowles went to Oklahoma on a track scholarship and later became a minister in the Methodist church.

•John Sabolich, 68, of Oklahoma City. A visionary in the field of prosthetics and whose family business is one of the world’s leaders. One of Sabolich’s passions away from work was racing cars at State Fair Speedway with sons Scott and Brian. John raced open-wheel modifieds in the 1980s and 1990s, recording top-10 standings finishes in ‘90 and ‘91. John is a member of the Oklahoma Hall of Fame.

•Willie Townes, 74, of Dallas was an honorable mention All-American as a defensive end at the University of Tulsa. The two-time All-Missouri Valley Conference pick was a second-round draft choice by the Dallas Cowboys in 1966, and Townes would play three years for the rising NFL power. Hamstring injuries limited Townes’ career, although he started 29 of the 38 games he played. The Tulsa Athletics Hall of Famer played one year with the New Orleans Saints and retired after he was released in 1971 by the New York Giants. A native of Hattiesburg, Miss.

•Bob Perry, 83, of New Bern, N.C., was an outfielder in the New York Giants farm system. His second season as a professional, 1956, was spent with the Muskogee Giants of the Class D Sooner State League. In 129 games for Muskogee, Perry batted .278 with 23 home runs. He spent 16 years in pro ball, getting two brief major league stints with the Los Angeles Angels.

•Seth Herndon Jr., 79, of Tulsa was an exceptional polo player for more than 40 years. He won several championships, including the World Cup. Also enjoyed golf and fishing. Herndon worked in the oil and gas industry.

•Jeff Schoborg, 60, of Tulsa. As a youngster, he hung out on the sideline at Tulsa Washington High School football games with his father, who was the Hornets’ team doctor. Schoborg became an athlete who ran a marathon in Paris and ran with the bulls in Pamplona, Spain. He was an attorney.