30 Oct 2024 A Man of Excellence: Celebrating Dr. Robert Reising

By David Grimes

Bob Reising did not make his way to Arkansas until he was in his late 70s, but he made a lasting impact here, just like he did everywhere he went. Born in New Haven, Conn., in 1933, he was the youngest of four children. Officially, he was Dr. Robert Reising, having earned a Doctorate in Education from Duke University, and his career took him all over the eastern half of the United States. 

In 2010, he and his wife Judy made their way to Conway when he took a position at the University of Central Arkansas to assist student-athletes in the academic success program. He served in that capacity for three years, retiring at the age of 80. After retiring from UCA, Reising remained an active member of the Conway community, serving on the board of the Faulkner County Historical Society and participating in several local writers’ groups. 

A die-hard sports fan, Reising also used his writing skills to produce a monthly column for 501 LIFE Magazine. His “Celebrating Athletic Excellence” features highlighted athletes and coaches from the 11 counties that make up the 501 area code. Reising did not always simply pick the well-known, Hall of Fame types to spotlight in his stories. He enjoyed finding those athletes or coaches who were just as accomplished and deserving of recognition but managed to stay too far under the radar.

Reising himself had quite a prolific athletic career. He attended Michigan State University and was a catcher on the 1954 Spartan baseball team that took third place in the NCAA College World Series. He maintained close relationships with his teammates throughout 70 years of reunions, even attending one earlier this year aided by his daughter, Paula Reising.

His love of baseball led him to pursue a coaching career, and he had quite a run during the 1960s. In his first season as Head Coach at Defiance College in 1961, he led the Yellow Jackets to a 17-4 record, capturing the Mid-Ohio Conference title and earning a spot in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) National Tournament. In addition to his coaching duties, the then-27-year-old Reising also taught English composition and literature. A Boston newspaper article noted that he was one of the few coaches in the country to “mix Shakespeare and singles.” 

After one more season at Defiance, Reising moved on to Tennessee Tech as head coach in 1963. He was then hired to lead the baseball program at the University of South Carolina. His Gamecocks had winning records both years he was there, going 15-12 in 1964 and 16-12 in 1965. One of his players at South Carolina was Dan Reeves, who played in the outfield. Reeves was also the quarterback on the football team and would go on to play in the NFL for the Dallas Cowboys, winning a Super Bowl ring. Reeves would later coach in the NFL for over 20 years.

When Fort Hays State revived its baseball program in 1966 after more than four decades, they tapped Reising to lead the effort. After a 42-year hiatus, his Tigers won their opening game over Bethany College and would finish 7-12 for the season. Despite having a losing record, Reising was named NAIA District 10 Coach of the Year. 

He only spent a year at Fort Hays before moving on to Furman for two seasons. In his second and final campaign, the Paladins won the Southern Conference regular season crown and advanced to the NCAA baseball playoffs. Their 18 wins that season were the most in program history up to that point.

After that record-breaking season, Reising left the coaching profession to focus on the classroom, moving on to what is now the University of North Carolina at Pembroke. Reising was named Professor Emeritus of American Indian Studies, English and Education at the school after teaching there for 34 years.

The college has a long history of educating Native American students and preserving and promoting their history. During the 1970s, Reising helped develop several courses in Native American literature. He also did extensive research on Native American Olympic gold medalist Jim Thorpe and published two books on his life. In addition to teaching, researching and writing, Reising still found time to coach a local American Legion baseball team. In 2002, Reising was inducted into North Carolina’s Order of the Long Leaf Pine Society by Gov. Michael Easley. It is the highest honor for people who have made a significant impact on their community and state.

Bob and I had a lot in common, including our love of sports, history and writing. That’s a big reason why we became friends. I first met him through our membership in the old Arkansas Sports Club. The late local radioman Mike Harrison, who was also a huge sports fan, created the club to allow old coaches, players, fans and really anyone to meet monthly and talk about sports. Over the lunchtime hour, the crowd would hear from a speaker who told tales, with only a little playful embellishment, of their athletic accomplishments.

Bob and his wife, Judy, lived not far from the University of Central Arkansas. On occasion, I would get a call on Monday morning asking if I would be able to give him a ride to the luncheon. I always enjoyed picking him up, as I knew there would be some great conversation on the way to the meeting.

He was very serious about the accuracy of his articles. From time to time, he would call me when writing one of his monthly 501 LIFE columns to verify some information or to see if I knew anyone else who could get him some more background information. I was honored whenever he called. 

Bob will be missed by his family, his readers, and by those like me who were lucky to interact with him during his wonderfully full time here on this Earth.

Take a look back at Dr. Reising’s Athletic Excellence articles at 501lifemag.com/author/breising.

A Celebration of Life services will be held November 2, at 11 a.m. at First United Methodist Church, 1610 Prince St. in Conway. Dr. Reising established a UCA scholarship and hoped to see it fully funded and available to students. 

In lieu of flowers, consider making a donation to the Moonlight Graham Scholarship fund for athletes at the 

University of Central Arkansas by contacting Joan Shofner at [email protected].