Hall of Fame
Billy Barnes came to SAU in 1967 from El Dorado. As good a scorer as the muscular 6-5 center was, it was the backboards that he owned. Barnes holds all of the Mulerider rebounding records, 1,160 in a career from 1967-71, 407 for a season in 1970-71, and for a game with an incredible 27 against Arkansas Tech in 1970-71.
During his Mulerider career, Barnes was NAIA Honorable Mention All-America, and a three-time First Team All-AIC selection from 1969-71. He is fifth in career scoring at SAU with 1,604 points, averaging 15.1 per game. Barnes is a three-time member of the SAU 400-Point Club with 454 points his junior season, 434 points as a senior, and 411points his sophomore year. As a freshman, he joined the 300-Point Club with 301 points. He twice led the Muleriders as the season scoring leader, averaging 15.8 points in 1968-69, and 17.5 in 1969-70.
Barnes led Southern Arkansas to a 73-33 record in his four years with the Muleriders, and to the AIC championship in 1970-71 with a 23-5 overall record.
After graduating from SAU, Barnes signed as a free agent with the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL), and was drafted in the 11th round by the Memphis Pros, a member of the American Basketball Association (ABA), now the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He is currently director of secondary education at the Pulaski County Special School District.
