Sam Aubrey (June 15, 1922 – May 5, 2008) was the

head coach A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches. In some sports, the head coach is instead called the "manager", as in assoc ...

of the

Oklahoma State University Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New ...

men's basketball team between 1970 and 1973. Aubrey was the starting

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for the 1946 NCAA men's basketball champions, Oklahoma A&M University under coach

Henry Iba Henry Payne Iba (; August 6, 1904 – January 15, 1993) was an American basketball coach and college athletics administrator. He served as the head basketball coach at Northwest Missouri State Teacher's College, now known as Northwest Missouri S ...

Early years, playing career, and military service

Aubrey was born in

Sapulpa, Oklahoma Sapulpa is a city in Creek and Tulsa counties in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The population was 20,544 at the 2010 United States census, compared to 19,166 at the 2000 census. The population as of 2022 is 22,205. As of 2019, the estimated popul ...

, and attended

Tulsa Central High School Central High School is the oldest high school in Tulsa, Oklahoma. It was founded in 1906 as Tulsa High School, and located in downtown Tulsa until 1976. The school now has a campus in northwest Tulsa. Tulsa Central is part of the Tulsa Public ...

. He enrolled at Oklahoma A&M and was offered a partial scholarship by coach Iba. He won a letter as a sophomore for the 1941-42 Oklahoma A&M basketball team that won the

Missouri Valley Conference The Missouri Valley Conference (also called MVC or simply "The Valley") is the third-oldest collegiate athletic conference in the United States. The conference's members are primarily located in the midwest. History The MVC was established ...

championship. As a junior for the 1942-43 team, he again won a varsity letter as a

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. Aubrey then enlisted in the Army and won a

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against an e ...

for valor in combat during the Arno-Po campaign in Italy. He also received a

Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, w ...

after he was shot in the back in September 1944, with the bullet exiting near the front of his left hip. The wound resulted in extensive injuries, including destruction of the large muscle in his left hip, an inability to walk for two months, a cast from his waist down, and a lengthy hospitalization. After the war, Aubrey returned to Oklahoma A&M and, despite his injuries, returned to the basketball team less than a year after being shot. He started every for the 1945–46 Oklahoma A&M Aggies men's basketball team that won the NCAA championship.

Coaching career

After graduating from Oklahoma A&M in 1946, Aubrey began coaching basketball. He began as the basketball coach at Pryor High School, compiling a 46-29 in three years in that post. He then coached for four years at Oklahoma Tech where he compiled a record of 67-52. He returned to Oklahoma A&M as the freshman coach in 1953. In 10 seasons as freshman coach, he compiled a record of 62-18. He then became a full-time assistant coach in 1964. After serving for 16 years as an assistant under Iba, Aubrey succeeded Iba as head coach in February 1970. However, he resigned after winning only 18 games in three seasons, including only seven in Big Eight play.

Death

Aubrey died in May 2008 at a retirement center in Stillwater.
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aubrey, Sam 1922 births 2008 deaths Basketball coaches from Oklahoma Basketball players from Oklahoma Forwards (basketball) High school basketball coaches in Oklahoma Junior college men's basketball coaches in the United States Oklahoma State Cowboys basketball players Oklahoma State Cowboys basketball coaches Sportspeople from Tulsa, Oklahoma