RIP Bobby Lackey

[TheBryMan81 2502]

RGV/Weslaco Panther legend and the Lifetime Longhorn passed away late last night. Thoughts and prayers to his family and our Weslaco Community.

For those that don't know about him, he was the starting QB for DKRs first conference championship in 1959. In addition to playing QB, he was also the team's starting DB, punter, kicker, and punt/kickoff returner. I believe he was the first longhorn to be on the cover of Sports Illustrated. Read a story in our newspaper a few years back detailing one particular RRS game against #2 OUsucks (1958 I think?) where he threw the tying touchdown pass, kicked the go ahead extra point, and then picked off the OUsucks QB to seal the game. Dude was a baller.

(Edit: found a summary of the game that Barking Carnival did a few years ago: "Lackey was spectacular on both sides of the ball. Aside from throwing the winning touchdown, he recovered a fumbled punt, made an open field tackle on Bobby Boyd with a minute left in the game when it appeared the All American was touchdown bound, and then he sealed the win with an interception")

Before that, he was a First Team all state football and basketball player for Weslaco High, leading the Panthers to the 1955 state semifinal (football). UT Hall of Honor, RGV and Texas High School Sports HOFer.

Here's the announcement from Weslaco ISD.

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=4254326824644628&id=719985588078787

Spoiler

Weslaco ISD is saddened by the news of Valley legendary, multisport star Bobby Lackey’s passing.  Lackey’s legacy with the Weslaco Panthers and Texas Longhorns is well-established. He excelled in football, basketball and baseball.  
Lackey is best known for taking the 1955 football team to the Class 2A state semifinals, earning him First Team All-State honors. Lackey also won multiple championships and numerous honors in baseball and basketball where he was named First Team All-State.  
In honor of his numerous athletic accomplishments, Weslaco High School named the gymnasium after Lackey in the mid 1970s. In September 2002, Weslaco ISD renamed the football facility after Bobby Lackey.  The WHS athletic program also honors the top male athlete with the Bobby Lackey Award every year. 
Lackey went on to excel as a star quarterback for the Texas Longhorns.  He was the first Longhorn to be on the cover of the Sports Illustrated magazine. 
Weslaco’s favorite son also contributed to the community as a member of the city council from 1964-69 and the Weslaco ISD School Board from 1968-1974.
He was inducted to UT Hall of Honor in 1977, the Rio Grande Valley Sports Hall of Fame in 1990 and to the Texas High School Sports Hall of Fame 2011.

 

Edited September 3, 2021 by TheBryMan81

[cafe society 2841]

He was a favorite Longhorn of my Dad.  For some reason I have a recollection (could be mixing it up with someone else) of my Dad telling me about a two-way star who was missing an eye.  Surely someone here knows if I am confusing all this.

[Helobious 9481]

Not my csb, but close enough: 

My dad was a DB at Weslaco high in the late 80s. One day Lackey comes to a practice, and speaks to the team after. 40 or 50 year old white dude talking to a bunch of hispanic kids, a lot of them children of immigrants like my dad. Lackey shows up, shakes all their hands, and tells the team all about what college football and college itself was like. Said that if he could be successful at a big school in a big city there was no reason they couldn’t do the same, and to never look down on themselves just because of their background or where they were from. 
 

My dad would later go on to graduate from UT as a first generation college student. Obviously not “because” of that encounter, but it was definitely something that always stuck with my dad. He’d meet Lackey a few more times as an adult, always had good things to say about him. He was always really involved with Weslaco until he moved to Houston to be with his kids.

[LTtxfan 48980]

 

 

I think this is also Bobby here...

[Laga4 1270]

I saw Bobby Lackey play against aggy in 1959.  

Great Longhorn and person. 

RIP

[ImissWallyPryor 9045]

I hung out with his son about 40 years ago, along with a couple of his friends at SWT who were two of my best friends from HS. They all played golf at SWT, at least my two friends did. I think his son was Bobby Jr., but I may be misremembering. He was dressed more like a rodeo cowboy than a golfer. I knew of his dad’s name, but without the Internet, it was hard to get the particulars, and Brat wasn’t there to tell the stories of the legend  

My own personal three degrees of Bobby Lackey, lol.

[ImissWallyPryor 9045]

10 hours ago, Helobious said:

My dad was a DB at Weslaco high in the late 80s.

JFC…you’re just a baby compared to the rest of us. 

[ztejas 43266]

22 hours ago, LTtxfan said:

 

 

I think this is also Bobby here...

Looks like OU wasn't the only ass he got into that day. 

[RollLeft 5040]

15 hours ago, ImissWallyPryor said:

I hung out with his son about 40 years ago, along with a couple of his friends at SWT who were two of my best friends from HS. They all played golf at SWT, at least my two friends did. I think his son was Bobby Jr., but I may be misremembering. He was dressed more like a rodeo cowboy than a golfer. I knew of his dad’s name, but without the Internet, it was hard to get the particulars, and Brat wasn’t there to tell the stories of the legend  

My own personal three degrees of Bobby Lackey, lol.

Bobby Lackey Jr's daughter Kim was also quite the talent.

[Vito Andolini 9112]

On 9/2/2021 at 9:06 PM, cafe society said:

He was a favorite Longhorn of my Dad.  For some reason I have a recollection (could be mixing it up with someone else) of my Dad telling me about a two-way star who was missing an eye.  Surely someone here knows if I am confusing all this.

Old buddy, you’re thinking of Bobby Dillon, who died just two years ago.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bobby_Dillon

Bobby Dan Dillon (February 23, 1930 – August 22, 2019) was an American professional football player in the National Football League (NFL). He played as a safety and spent his entire eight-year career with the Green Bay Packers.

Dillon was an All-American with the University of Texas Longhorns. Although he was a safety, he also returned kicks and played several games at halfback. He finished his college career with 13 interceptions on defense, one touchdown as a halfback, and multiple kick returns for touchdowns. He was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the 3rd round (28th pick) of the 1952 NFL draft.

After multiple accidents during his childhood, Dillon lost one of his eyes and played his entire career with a glass eye. Despite his handicap, he became one of the most successful defensive backs of his era. His 52 career interceptions are still a Packers' franchise record. He was a four-time Associated Press All-Pro and four-time Pro Bowler. He intended to retire at the end of the 1958 season, but the Packers' new head coach, Vince Lombardi, convinced him to return for the 1959 season. After an injury halfway through the season, he lost his starting job and retired. The 1959 season was the only year during Dillon's tenure that the Packers had a winning record. In recognition of his football achievements, Dillon was elected to the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame in 1974 and the Texas Sports Hall of Fame in 1996.

[VirginiaLonghorn 4750]

My favorite Longhorn as a child.  I put “22” decals on my football helmet because I wanted to be Bobby Lackey …

🤘

[ImissWallyPryor 9045]

5 hours ago, Vito Andolini said:

In recognition of his football achievements, Dillon was elected to the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame in 1974 and the Texas Sports Hall of Fame in 1996.

You forgot the best part…

Pro Football Hall of Fame

Five months after his death, he was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame as part of the NFL's centennial class, with the formal induction ceremony planned for August 2020.

Edited September 4, 2021 by ImissWallyPryor

[Not that Bob 734]

My first childhood hero. We used to be able to run on to the field after games. I talked him out of his chin strap. He balked, saying that breaking in new ones chaffed his skin, but he gave it to me anyway.  I Still have it. Thanks Mr. Lackey.

[Bullneck 18987]

On 9/2/2021 at 11:26 PM, LTtxfan said:

 

 

I think this is also Bobby here...

53

October 11, 1958

Dallas

#16 Texas

15

#2 Oklahoma

14

[Bullneck 18987]

On 9/3/2021 at 8:58 AM, ImissWallyPryor said:

JFC…you’re just a baby compared to the rest of us. 

I was thinking the same thing.

[Vito Andolini 9112]

23 minutes ago, ImissWallyPryor said:

You forgot the best part…

Pro Football Hall of Fame

Five months after his death, he was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame as part of the NFL's centennial class, with the formal induction ceremony planned for August 2020.

I just clipped the first three paragraphs of the Wiki article as I saw it started summarizing his time at Wilsonart, and didn’t notice they had sneakily placed the HOF note at the bottom, so good catch. 

[pyrohornIII 4809]

Lackey was about a decade before my remembering zone.   I have enjoyed reading your recollections of him.   He reminds me of another UT DB from the valley who went on to play in the pros named Landry.  

One of the best things about Surly is this type of service.   It's kind of like having a digital hall of honor we can open any time and share things about great people  of UT.  It's oral history turned into written.  I wish we had one board devoted to UT individuals who made an impact, great or small, so we could have our own little wikipedia here in surly for reference.  

 

[BigHorn'13 3355]

2 minutes ago, pyrohornIII said:

One of the best things about Surly is this type of service.   It's kind of like having a digital hall of honor we can open any time and share things about great people  of UT.  It's oral history turned into written.

So much this. Being the only Horn in my family, hearing these stories and being able to pass down to my kid(s) is fucking awesome. 

RIP Mr. Lackey. Your story lives on

[Brisketexan 104628]

 
 
I think this is also Bobby here...

Looks like he wasn’t gonna lackey some loving later on.

And I Iove to see the story about him coming back and talking to the Weslaco kids. My dad was a kid like that - grew up in a nothing border town. But the high school had this one teacher who had gone to A&M. And he would take the school/team bus at least once a year to take the kids to Collie Station to see the campus and an aggy game. Told those boys that if he could go to college there, they could too. A whole generation of those kids followed his lead and went to college (sure, it was Aggy, but hey…college). I remember tagging along with my dad when he’d get together with his high school buddies, most of whom had gone to aggy like he did. Buncha messican kids from nowhere…and all had pretty successful lives, because one teacher showed them they could.

That’s how you give back, gentlemen. Hook’em, Lackey.

[jeevsie 3722]

RIP to a legendary Longhorn - a tremendous representative of our university and our hometown.

Edited September 4, 2021 by jeevsie