Hall of Fame
Jimmy Culp enrolled at Southern State College (now Southern Arkansas University) in 1952 fresh out of White Hall High School. From his freshman year to his senior season in 1957, Culp was one of the most versatile athletes to ever wear a Mulerider uniform. He played football, basketball, and baseball, and participated in track and field. He not only played, but excelled in every sport. He led the now defunct Arkansas Intercollegiate Conference football receiving and basketball scoring during the same academic year.
In the 1960’s, he became the most celebrated young basketball coach in Arkansas after a three-year record of 83-12 at North Little Rock High School that included a state championship and three conference titles in the state’s highest classification. While coaching, he played independent basketball for Carder Buick of Searcy, leading them to five state AAU tournament championships in seven years.
In the 1980’s, Culp became seriously involved in bodybuilding and the Senior Olympics. At 55 years of age, he finished second in 1989 in the 40 and over division of the Mr. America Contest in Chicago. Also at 55, he set state Senior Olympics records in the 100, 200, and 400-meter dashes in a meet at Russellville. Culp was awarded the Governors Physical Fitness Trophy for seniors in 2002.
A native of Redfield, Culp had 13 scholarship offers, some for football, some for basketball, and several for both. He signed with SAU because he liked Coach Elmer Smith and assistant Auburn Smith. SAU finished a 10-1 season in 1952 on Thanksgiving night by clinching the AIC title with a 21-7 victory over Arkansas-Monticello. Culp’s two touchdown circus receptions, both on deflected passes, were the difference. A week later in the opening basketball game, he came off the bench to score 16 points in a 97-77 win over Louisiana College. He was a starter by the third game. In the spring, he went out for baseball and opened the season as the starting left fielder and batting third. After one game, he switched to track and field and lettered as a sprinter.
In 1953-54 as a sophomore, he made All-AIC in football and basketball, becoming one of the final athletes to earn that distinction because the age of specialization was approaching. Culp ranks seventh among all-time SAU basketball scorers with 1,481 points in 80 games, an 18.5 average, topping out with a 23.0 point average as a sophomore and 20.1 as a senior leader on an NAIA District 17 championship team. His 18.5 average is fourth best ever. “Most of my shots were three-pointers, he said, “except they counted only two then. I liked to score.”
His coaching career started at Bald Knob where Doyle Wallace, a former SAU teammate, served as football coach and athletic director. Bald Knob had won one basketball game in two years before Culp’s arrival. After 19-6 and 25-5 seasons, he switched to Searcy as head coach in football and basketball. In 1962, he was offered the North Little Rock basketball job. His teams went 25-5, 26-4, and 32-3. He quit coaching after the 1964-65 basketball season with a 162-36 career record. One of his Searcy football teams went 9-1.
