An outstanding athlete, an exemplary father, and a true man for others, John Murphy, graduate of the class of 1970, has been chosen as an inductee into the 2012 Jesuit Sports Hall of Fame. This accolade, given to only a handful of alumni each year aligns Mr. Murphy with other graduates who have demonstrated what it means to be a true Jesuit Ranger.
John Murphy grew up playing a variety of sports, including football, basketball, and baseball. His father, the local YMCA coach for his football team during his fourth, fifth, and sixth grade years, helped nurture his passion for football that he and some of his teammates would eventually carry on to Jesuit. A “tremendous influence” on everyone around him, John’s father, as described by one of John’s teammates, Tim Sullivan ’70, “got [his teammates] all started out in the right way.”
Attending Christ the King School from the first to sixth grade, John, who was already playing baseball and basketball in addition to football, then transferred to St. Rita’s, where he would spend the 7th and 8th grade. Along with some of his childhood friends and teammates, John enrolled at Jesuit College Prep, hoping to continue his athletic career.
One fond story that Herb Roberts ’70, a teammate and dear friend of John, recounts involves an 8th grade football game against Greenhill. As Mr. Roberts recalls, “There were weight limits back then, and John wasn’t allowed to play fullback, so he was moved to guard. But later in the game we realized Greenhill didn’t have weight limits, so the coach moved John back to fullback, and he ended up scoring five touchdowns,” a demonstration of John’s skills at such a young age in his athletic career.
After sitting out from sports sophomore year, Murphy quickly proved in football how truly gifted he was, earning The Dallas Morning
News’ “All-Private” Offensive Player of the Year as a junior and senior, and its “All-Greater Dallas” Honorable Mention as a senior, as well as being recognized as “All American” his senior year. John’s athletic prowess was also displayed in track and field, where he was recognized as the State Meet Discus Champion his senior year.
One of Mr. Murphy’s other teammates, Tim Sullivan ’70, described Murphy as the “best football player that I’ve known in my entire life. He made everybody on the team better, made us all look good,” revealing the strong influence and sheer dominance John had on the gridiron.
Mr. Murphy also attributes his hard work at Jesuit to the daily challenges he faced at practice. “I don’t know if it was the two-a-day practices or all the wind sprints that we had to run and the coaches egging us on,” recalled Murphy, “but it made me realize that when you think you’ve hit the wall, you can always dig a little deeper, either mentally or physically, and find a little bit more there to push you on, and I think that gives you the confidence in life to face any adversity.”
Mr. Murphy wasn’t just a football and discus prodigy, though. “John could’ve played any sport in the world and excelled at it,” Sullivan remarked. “He could’ve been a world-class soccer player, and he could’ve played baseball, basketball, track, or football in college.”
One reason John excelled in football in his years at Jesuit was because of his dedicated coach, Gary Pasqua. According to Herb Roberts, coach “helped John see it was not just about him, but about his friends, teammates, and Jesuit.”
Sullivan, who, like Roberts, started playing football with John in the fourth grade, emphasized Mr. Murphy’s admirable character, noting, “He played football for his friends and for his family. John didn’t need football to be happy with himself or to be successful, he played so that he could help all of us out more than anything else.”
Due to the massive success John had found in Jesuit sports, Coach Frank Broyles of Arkansas University made a trip down to Dallas and recruited him to the Razorbacks. John subsequently attended Arkansas for one year, but transferred to The University of North Texas, where he graduated in 1976 with a BBA.
After college, John moved up to Alaska, pursuing a career in the oilfield. Currently, he is the Project Engineering Manager for M-I SWACO, where he has worked for over 30 years and received numerous awards. With his dear wife Kelly, John helped raise their three children, Brian, Sarah, and Ashley, to be outstanding role models.
Even though Jesuit was only just establishing its strong community service background when John went there, he took what he learned from Jesuit and applied it to the people around him in Alaska. John actively supports a multitude of organizations, flying out to remote villages to assist with housing and infrastructure needs, and even delivering Christmas presents with his family to the under-served children as a part of the “Nutaqsiivik” program, an Alaskan health program.
A regular contributor to the “Brother Francis Homeless Shelter” in Anchorage, John was also a member of the Board of Directors for the Tudor Elementary Community School and the vice president of the Homeowners’ Association for four years.
The combination of John’s formidable strength and his conscientious personality made him one of Jesuit’s most impressive students. Perhaps Roberts’ remark about Murphy sums it all up: “Not only is John as good of a football player you’re ever going to find, but also as good of a friend you’re ever going to find.”
Congratulations to John Murphy, class of 1970, not only a terrific and first-class athlete but also a worthy and estimable man for others, whose years at Jesuit will be forever remembered in the Jesuit Sports Hall of Fame.
Jesuit Sports Hall of Fame Inductee Jerry Taliaferro ’63
Jesuit Sports Hall of Fame Inductee: John Murphy ’70
Jesuit Sports Hall of Fame Inductee: Adrian Winnubst ’81
Jesuit Sports Hall of Fame Inductee: T. J. Hansen ’01
Pat Schnitzius ’45 Grabs John F. Campbell Fan of the Year Honor
Gold R anger Award Winner – Mike Boeding ’60
Rev. Philip Postell Distinguished Service Award: John Schmeltz ’74
