Hall of Fame

There have been a lot of great athletes in Durant history and one of the most acclaimed in the 1970s was Joey DaVault.

The 1980 DHS grad was a three-year stalwart in football, basketball and baseball for the Lions as well as completing two years in track, but may be best known as the player that scored the game-winning touchdown for the Lions’ first-ever gridiron championship.

The former Lion stalwart was a key member of the 2A football state championship team while garnering All-District as well as Honorable Mention All-State honors.

Head coach Cotton Wade called DaVault the quickest back he had ever coached at the time while also starting on defense at cornerback as well as even punting. In the 1979 state championship game as a senior, he rushed for 106 yards on 16 carries which included the overtime score that gave Durant a dramatic 38-32 win over Wewoka.

DaVault earned a bachelor’s degree at Southeastern, serving as graduate assistant for the football team and then his master’s degree at the University of Oklahoma. 

From 1990 until 2003, DaVault worked as a teacher and coach for Norman Public Schools, including head coach of the fast pitch softball team and golf team as well as assistant football coach. He was the school district Teacher of the Year in 1998, Mid-State Coach of the Year three times and All-State golf coach in 2000.

DaVault later served as Director of Adult and Continuing Education at Rose State College for four years as well as coordinating the Southeastern aviation program. In 2013 he was named the school’s athletic director where they added other sports and built a brand-new sports complex for the soccer teams during his tenure. During that time, he also served as the NJCAA Region 2 women’s director.

He retired in 2019 after spending 10 years at the small college in Midwest City.

DaVault was inducted as part of the 2024 honorees for the Durant Athletic Hall of Fame on Friday, October 25, 2024.
 

As a Durant High School athlete, Mike Martin was a true multi-sport standout for the Lions, excelling in football, basketball and track. During an outstanding career both at the high school and college level, Martin played for some all-time great coaches, which laid the foundation for an incredible coaching career of his own.

The 1961 DHS graduate was an athletic standout in just about everything he tried, being selected as an All-State alternate as a senior.

In football, he was the Lions’ starting quarterback and co-captain in 1959 and 1960 for Coach Vern Robertson. He was the leading scorer for his final two basketball seasons, sparking the Lions to their first state tournament appearance in 14 years before bowing out to powerhouse Tulsa Booker T. Washington, 72-54, in the opening round under the direction of basketball skipper John Gecks. Martin also showed his talents in track under the tutelage of another Hall of Fame member Lynn Marsh.

He went on to play collegiately at Southeastern Oklahoma State University where he was a three-year starter on Bloomer Sullivan’s basketball squad and a four-year starter for Dr. Don Parham in baseball, garnering All-Conference honors along the way for the Savages.

Martin soon began a long basketball coaching career in New Mexico, guiding Manzano High School to a pair of state championships.

He returned to Durant and guided the Southeastern program for six seasons through the late 1970s, including three teams that reached the NAIA national tournament. He also had a pair of coaching stints at Abilene Christian University covering 11 seasons, three of which resulted in conference titles, as well as two years at NCAA Division I Stephen F. Austin. Martin also spent time coaching basketball professionally in Brazil.

Martin was inducted into the Durant Athletic Hall of Fame during ceremonies on Friday, October 25, 2024.