Southeastern Oklahoma State University Athletics

RAYMOND COTTON JORDAN lived a defensive end’s dream when he intercepted a pass and returned it 35 yards for the winning touchdown in a thrilling 13-7 victory over East Central that clinched the Oklahoma Intercollegiate Conference championship in 1967.
 
He came to Southeastern after two All-Conference seasons at Murray State and was among the first African-American athletes on campus, and would go on to become the first black athlete to earn a degree.
 
Jordan would earn first team all-conference honors on the defensive side of the ball in 1967 and 1968 and was a member of the team's 1967 Oklahoma Collegiate Conference championship team.
 
Following his career at Southeastern he made the move to the sidelines, starting his coaching career at Wewoka Junior High in 1968 with eighth- and ninth-graders in football, basketball, track and field, and high-school tennis.
 
Later at Beggs HS he would guide the team to its first-ever Class A state championship, and along the way coached future All-Staters and NFL players Rodney Tate and Bobby Grayson.
 
Jordan would add coaching stops at Northeastern Oklahoma State, Mississippi Valley State, and Arkansas-Pine Bluff.
 
He returned to the highs school ranks in 1984 at Vian High School, earning where his teams qualified for the State Playoffs in 10 of 13 seasons, with several of his players going on to successful stints in college and the NFL.
 
Jordan’s accomplishments didn’t end with his coaching career. He served from 1999-2010 as athletic director at Vian High School, earning Athletic Director of the Year in 2006-07 and Oklahoma Athletic Director of the Year in 2003 by the Oklahoma Secondary Schools Athletic Association.
 
He has also been inducted into the Hillsboro, Texas, High School Hall of Fame, where he was a two sport star, earning all-district honors in football and basketball.
 
Jordan, through his efforts on and off the field, excelled to a level that brings great honor to Southeastern Oklahoma State University.  The University honors him today, August 18, 2018, with membership in the Southeastern Oklahoma State Athletics Hall of Fame.