Truman State University Athletics

Larry Swift entered the university in the fall of 1958, and it didn't take him long to make an impact on Bulldog basketball and the MIAA Conference. During his three-year playing career, he was a unanimous three-time All-Conference selection, a first-team and third-team choice for the United Press International Team. He set a school record for most points in a single game, 38, which has since been broken. But his Kirk Auditorium record of 36 points and his Kirk Auditorium record of 33 rebounds in a single game still stand. Mr. Swift still holds school records for best career scoring average in a three-year career, 20.1, and most rebounds for three seasons, 821. During his second year on the team, he helped the Bulldogs win a conference title and advance to the quarterfinals of the NCAA College Division Tournament before they were eliminated in a two-point cliffhanger with Cornell of Iowa. Mr. Swift also competed in track for the Bulldogs and set a record in the discus. After finishing his master's at Truman (then Northeast Missouri State Teacher's College), he coached basketball on the high school level in the Kansas City area until 1970 when he went into mortgage banking. Between 1970-82, he worked in Kansas City and briefly in Indianapolis, Ind. For the past three years prior to his induction, he has resided in Houston, TX and currently serves as Senior Vice-President of Marketing for the Drew Corporation, a subsidiary of Lamar Savings and Loan Company. He has served as an officer in mortgage and banking associations and on various committees.