• OVC Hall of Fame History
BRENTWOOD, Tenn. – Former Eastern Kentucky University President
Dr. Doug Whitlock, former Jacksonville State Associate Athletic Director for Sports Medicine
Jim Skidmore and former Morehead State men’s golf coach
Dr. Rex Chaney have been elected into the Ohio Valley Conference Hall of Fame. They will be officially inducted at the annual OVC Honors Brunch which will be held Friday, May 29 at the DoubleTree Hotel in downtown Nashville.
The Ohio Valley Conference Hall of Fame was organized in 1977 with the intent of honoring the coaches, administrators, faculty and staff who have been associated with the OVC for at least five years and provided extensive and outstanding service to the Conference. With the induction of this year’s class, the membership will reach 76.
Whitlock was associated with Eastern Kentucky University for more than 50 years from his time as a student until serving as President of the University. As a student (1961-65) he served as the sports editor for the Eastern Progress newspaper from 1961-63 and after graduation moved into the role of Director of Public Information (1970-76) where he oversaw university photography, sports information, publications, graphics artists and news. From 1976-97 he served as Executive Assistant to the President including serving on numerous Ohio Valley Conference committees.
From there Whitlock moved into the position of Vice President for Administrative Affairs (1998-2003) before retiring from full-time work and serving as a part-time professor only to come out of retirement four years later to serve as the 11th president in EKU history from 2007-13. During his tenure as President he saw the department of athletics earn the 2011-12 OVC Commissioner’s Cup, which is the symbol of overall athletic excellence in Conference-sponsored championships. As President he was known for his expertise in working with the budget and during that time EKU produced its first Truman, Goldwater and Fulbright scholars as well as added several Ph.D. programs. He also oversaw the building of a new arts center, a new facility for the Manchester campus and the first phase of a new science center.
After graduating from Eastern Kentucky with a master’s of arts in health education, Skidmore became Jacksonville State’s first full-time athletic trainer in August 1974 and worked 40 years at the University until his retirement at the end of the 2013-14 school year. During his tenure in the sports medicine field he was bestowed several of the highest honors in his profession including being elected into the American Sports Medicine Institute in 2005, the Jacksonville State Athletic Hall of Fame in 2005 and the Alabama Athletic Trainers Hall of Fame in 2009.
He was the only full-time athletic trainer in the department for more than 19 years until the department expanded in the early 1990s. His work in the prevention, recognition, management and rehabilitation of injuries helped Jacksonville State excel on the field as the Gamecocks won 37 Gulf South Conference and three national championships at the Division II level before claiming 58 OVC Championships after the school joined the league in 2003.
Chaney was associated with Morehead State from 1953 until his retirement at the conclusion of the 2013-14 school year. Chaney earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Morehead State before joining MSU as a member of the Health, Physical Education and Recreation faculty in 1961. He would spend seven years as the head baseball coach and four as a men’s assistant basketball coach before serving 38 years as the head of the Morehead State men’s golf program. As the baseball coach (1961-67) he compiled a 111-56 record on the diamond, leading the Eagles to at least a share of the OVC East Division crown in 1961, 1962, 1963 and 1964 and being named the OVC Coach of the Year in 1963.
As the men’s golf coach he guided MSU to OVC Championships in each 1977, 1981, 1993 and 1999, being named OVC Coach of the Year in each of those years. He also directed the program to six other top three finishes at the OVC Championship in addition to coaching 20 all-league selections, six OVC All-Tournament honorees, six conference runners-up and two OVC Players of the Year. He also recruited, coached and mentored Josh Teater who is currently playing on the PGA Tour. Chaney was inducted into the MSU Athletic Hall of Fame in 2000.