WICHITA FALLS (KFDX/KJLT) — The 2022 Nexstar Sports Awards were held on June 23, 2021, at the Wharehouse event center in Wichita Falls, Texas.
Seven Texoma athletes or coaches were inducted into the Hall of Fame and 17 special awards were presented to local sports figures and outstanding sports moments. In addition to these awards, six awards were given out to celebrate the Midwestern State University’s centennial.
This hall of fame inductee played collegiately at Midwestern State for three seasons but it’s not his playing career that earned him induction into the Nexstar Sports Hall of Fame. It’s a 43-year coaching career at Burkburnett High School. Danny Nix announced his retirement just over three months ago. Here is a piece we aired on KFDX and Texoma’s Fox.
“You know, when you coach, it’s such a time-consuming job that there’s a lot of things you sacrifice to do the thing you love. And so I think it’s just time to do some other things with family and friends and just more things like that,” Coach Danny Nix said.
“Well, he had opportunities to leave and, you know, go down the metroplex and be a head coach, but like he always told me he would go best with happiness,” Joe Thannert said. “He was always happy to stay here. He loved the community, the kids, the school, the teachers, and everybody he worked with.”
“When I was the principal at Burkburnett High School. He and I ate lunch together every day in the cafeteria with the kids. Ownes said. And oftentimes in our conversations, he would bring up that phrase and working in Burkburnett and being in it and being a Bulldog, that’s what it’s all about”.
“1982 the first year I was the head coach, I got the job. There was a coaching clinic in Fort Worth and Jim Valdano was speaking and he said, ‘Man, too many time coaches mess with happy, Don’t mess with happy. That just stuck with me forever and I was always happy,” Nix said. “You know, my daughter was happy, Susie was happy, I was happy. Looking back, it was a great decision.”
“While 866 wins is tremendous and he’s left a legacy in a mark not only on Burkburnett but across the entire state,” Brad Owen said. “Those wins are very important to him. I would say that Danny, what Danny is even more proud of is how many successful young men have gone on and left our program because of the respect, the dignity, the work ethic and the discipline that Danny Nix instilled in them while he had them. And so I think that success that they’ve had on the court kind of transcends basketball.”
“I mean, you’d be amazed how many kids, when they come back to Burk, always come by his house and see him and his wife, or they stop by the school,” Thannert said. “I mean, there are several times during the school year that each player will walk into the office just to see how we were doing.”
“But it was like 40 years of having brothers in our family, Nix said. “And that’s the way we feel about everybody that’s played for us. And without a doubt, that’s much more enjoyable than a victory or a district championship or even teams that go great, a long way in the playoffs. But the times we had together in the family feeling that we have here, that’s so special. I’ve played or coached on a basketball team since I was 12 years old, so it’s going to be quite an adjustment and in October, you’re supposed to be getting ready for a season, I know when that rolls around, there will be a funny feeling, but that’s ok. My job has been easy because of those people, the community, the school, the teachers, and their school. This is an unbelievable high school, and so I’ve just been blessed with that. It’s just been a lucky ride.
Nix finished his career with 866 wins, 19 district championships, 11 appearances in the regional tournament, and two trips to state.
