NAY HALE - INDUCTEE #36
hall of fame fast fact:
Nay Hale, whose full name was Sam Nay Hale, had to fend off a lot of "neighing" about his name. But there was a horse connection. "My grandfather wanted to buy a horse, and the guy said he would sell it to him only with the understanding that he name a son after him," Jim Hale said. "His name was Sam Nay." Hale chose Nay because he didn't like the name Sam, daughter Barbara added.
Nay Hale
Sam “Nay” Hale of Canyon won four basketball letters at WT. He played for Coach Wayne McCorkle’s 1920-21 team, which went 9-1 as the first WT team to play in the Texas Intercollegiate Athletic Association.
His next season, the legendary Sam Burton took over as WT coach. Burton’s first three teams, with Hale as the centerpiece, went 12-4, 12-4, and 13-3. Hale scored 20 of WT’s 24 points when the Buffs defeated North Texas State 24-22 in 1922-23. He was only 5’11” and 150 pounds, but he averaged 15 points a game, shooting bucket shots from between his knees.
Hale also played baseball and football for WT. As second baseman, he was the leading hitter on the baseball team for two seasons. He played football only one year (1925) as a punter and back. He also played the clarinet in the school band.
Sam Nay Hale died in 1976.
