The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Falk inducted into College Baseball Hall of Fame
07.05.2007 | Baseball
LUBBOCK, Texas -- Former Longhorns player and coach Bibb Falk was inducted posthumously into the College Baseball Hall of Fame on Wednesday. Falk was represented at the Lubbock Convention Center ceremony by his niece Clemmie Hext.
"To hear all the baseball stories of Uncle Bibb," Hext said, "you would have to be somewhere for a long while. He was gruff on the outside but had a heart of gold on the inside, and he touched so many lives. He always had a determined look on his face and a baseball rulebook in his pocket. He was a baseball man through and through but a wonderful human being. He truly loved all his players - especially the ones who competed on the 1949 and '50 national championship teams at Texas."
Falk was both a player and a coach for the Longhorns' baseball squad. He lettered on three Southwest Conference (SWC) championship teams from 1918-20.
After Texas, Falk played 12 seasons of Major League Baseball with the Chicago White Sox and Cleveland Indians. He ended his career with a .314 batting average and 1,463 hits. His best seasons came in 1924, when he ranked third in the American League with a .352 batting average to go with 99 RBI, and 1926, when he hit .345 and ranked sixth in the AL with 108 RBI.
He coached Texas from 1940-67 amassing a record of 478-176 (.730). Falk led UT to College World Series titles in 1949 and '50, a runner-up finish in '53 and third-place finishes in '62 and '63. He also piloted the Longhorns to 20 SWC titles. He also coached nine consecutive Southwest Conference Championship teams during his tenure between 1946-54 as the Horns went 111-19 in league action.
He ranks among the top 15 Division I baseball coaches all-time in CWS history for appearances (10), games (37), winning percentage (.541) and victories (20).
Falk also lettered two years as a tackle on the Longhorns' football squad, including the 1919 SWC championship squad. He is a member of the College Baseball Coaches Hall of Fame and was inducted into the Longhorn Hall of Honor in 1962.
In addition to Falk, the Class of 2007 included coaches Jim Brock of Arizona State, Chuck "Bobo" Brayton of Washington State, Jerry Kindall of Arizona and Dick Siebert of Minnesota, along with standout former players Jim Abbott of Michigan, Pete Incaviglia of Oklahoma State, Fred Lynn of USC, John Olerud of Washington State, Phil Stephenson of Wichita State and Derek Tatsuno of Hawaii.
The first-ever Veteran Class of pre-1947 included legendary players Christy Mathewson of Bucknell, Lou Gehrig of Columbia and players-turned-coaches Joe Sewell of Alabama and John "Jack" Barry of Holy Cross.
Two former Longhorns were inducted in the inaugural Class of 2006, including pitcher and outfielder Brooks Kieschnick and coach Cliff Gustafson.
