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Earl Sullins Obituary

Earl Sullins Obituary

Sylvester Earl Sullins, Ponca City resident, died Friday, July 16, 2004, at the Shawn Manor Nursing Home. He was 98. The funeral will be held at 10 a.m. on Thursday, July 22, at the First Baptist Church with Chuck Bowman, retired director of Fellowship of Christian Athletes, officiating. Burial will follow at Odd Fellows Cemetery. Arrangements are made under the direction of Trout Funeral Home.

Earl was born on Dec. 16, 1905, to Charles Byron and Bertha Clementine Minor Sullins in Eugene, Mo. He attended and graduated Red Rock High School. In 1931 he obtained his bachelor of arts degree at Central State Teachers College in Edmond and, in 1958, was recognized by the university as a Distinguished Graduate. In 1941 he received his master of arts degree from Colorado State College in Greeley, Colo. After teaching his first year at Paoli in 1931, he moved and began teaching and coaching at the Ponca City High School.
In 1942 Earl became the physical education director for the Army Air Corps during World War II. After the war, he came back to Ponca City and picked up where he left off. He also served as Ponca City's athletic director. Coach Sullins finished his career in 1971 with a span of teaching in the school system from 1932 to 1971, a football record of 115-47-10, and the winningest coach in the modern era of Po-Hi baseball. Ponca City's football stadium was named "Sullins Stadium" in 1977, and he was also inducted into the Oklahoma Coaches Hall of Fame and the Ponca City Sports Hall of Fame. Earl's basic philosophy concerning coaching was "That our team be respected on and off the football field" and that "There are many values a boy can receive from football that he won't receive in the classroom." Earl's shadow and high principles still prevail for those ordinary and extraordinary players whose lives he touched, and to those players he'll always be "Coach."

He is survived by three nephews, Charles Crabtree of Denver, Colo., Dwight Crabtree of Denver, Colo., and Calvin Earl Sullins of Victoria, Texas; two nieces, Sue Sullins Fraim of Edmond and Kay Sullins of Edmond; and many great nieces, nephews and friends.

He was preceded in death by his parents; two sisters, Goldie Sullins Crabtree and Dorothy Sullins McCormick; and one brother, Oscar Mailett Sullins.

Memorial contributions may be made to Ponca City High School Athletic Department or to the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, c/o Mr. Chuck Bowman, 829 North Air Depot Blvd., Edmond, Okla. 73034.