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J.E. Pressly calls himself a 12-year man. He spent 12 years as the Odessa High baseball coach upon moving to the Permian Basin, served 12-year stints as a county commissioner and justice of the peace, and is now in his 12th year as a member of the Odessa College Board of Trustees.
But he's really a lifer when it comes to his contributions to the Odessa sports scene, and the 88-year-old Pressly was honored Monday night for a lifetime's worth of service to his favorite school.
He was inducted into the Western Junior College Athletic Conference Hall of Fame during halftime of the Odessa College men's basketball game at the OC Sports Center.
"I think that he's a legend," Odessa College athletics director Wayne Baker said. "He's going into this because of 60 years of service to the community of Odessa and Odessa College. … If nothing else, it's an award we can present to him for longevity."
Pressly, who is the namesake of Odessa High's baseball field, said he was "surprised" by the induction because he hasn't coached at Odessa College since 1971. He also jokingly lamented that a new Cadillac didn't come with the plaque commemorating his induction, but he said it was a "real nice" honor nonetheless.
"I don't know how, 60 years later, they got to me," Pressly said. "I guess they ran out of nominees."
More than 30 people were nominated this year for the WJCAC Hall of Fame, and Pressly is one of five inductees. He's only the third hall of fame member from Odessa College, joining golfer Kathy Whitworth and track and field coach James Segrest.
Pressly spent less than a decade as the Wranglers' baseball coach, but his impact on the program was significant. He started the program in 1964 and, only three years later, guided Odessa College to a national runner-up finish. His teams won 78 percent of their games and six consecutive conference championships in his eight seasons, and he coached seven NJCAA All-Americans.
Pressly said the Wranglers did it primarily with local players - "We only had three beds in the dormitory," he said - and without scholarships. He said his players had to wash dishes at school cafeterias in Odessa in order to feed themselves, but they learned how to work hard, be disciplined and play baseball.
Pressly said his greatest accomplishment is that 47 of his former players went on to play for four-year universities, and 17 of them became coaches themselves. Pressly said three of them have won Texas high school state championships.
"I think I left a mark on those kids," Pressly said. "We were hard on those kids, taught them how to play, helped them grow up. I was pretty hard on discipline. They said if you played ball for me for two years, you could play for anybody."
Pressly, who also spent 23 years as a part- or full-time scout for the Boston Red Sox, New York Mets and St. Louis Cardinals, said he had offers to coach baseball at Baylor and Oklahoma State. But he got tired of moving around after a six-year career as a minor leaguer in the Brooklyn Dodgers organization - he was at Dodgers' spring training during Jackie Robinson's rookie season in 1947 - so the Fort Worth native decided to stay in Odessa and make West Texas his new home.
Even though he hasn't coached in more than four decades, Pressly remains involved in Odessa sports. He said he'll occasionally lend advice to the Odessa High and Odessa College baseball teams if he's asked, and he rarely misses baseball and basketball games involving the Bronchos and Wranglers.
Baker said Pressly, a longtime member of the Wrangler Club, even has been known to attend away games from time to time. He traveled to Kansas to watch the Odessa College women's basketball team win the NJCAA championship in 2007.
Baker and Pressly both said free food in the Wrangler Room contributes to Pressly's near-spotless attendance record - "I'm not known to miss a meal," Pressly said - but it's also his love of sports and, more specifically, his love of Odessa sports.
"When you're retired, you can go where you want," Pressly said. "I go to Odessa High on Tuesday and Friday, and Odessa College on Monday and Thursday.
"I don't miss any of them. I came out here in (1953) and plan on staying."
