Cross spent seven years at Oklahoma as a player and assistant for head coach Bud Wilkinson, returned to OU after a stint at Army West Point to serve as an assistant coach under Jim MacKenzie and Chuck Fairbanks, and then spent 20 years in athletics administration.
"Leon Cross was a Sooner through and through," said Vice President and Director of Athletics Joe Castiglione. "An All-American football player and assistant coach at OU, and then a longtime athletics administrator here, it goes without saying how much he meant to the University of Oklahoma. But it's also clear how much our university meant to him, and we are so appreciative of his lengthy, dedicated service. The OU Athletics community is truly saddened by his passing, and our thoughts are with his family and friends."
A product of Hobbs, N.M., Cross came to Oklahoma in 1957 as a player for Wilkinson amid the program's 47-game winning streak. He spent his freshman season as a practice helper and battled back from injuries in his first two eligible years to play three full seasons. The comeback from injury earned him the nickname "Old Rugged Cross" from his Sooners teammates.
Cross earned All-America honors at guard in 1962 playing both offensive and defensive lines for line coach Gomer Jones. He served as captain of OU's '62 Big Eight Championship team and was voted the Big Eight outstanding lineman that season by United Press International.
Following his playing career, Cross served one year as an assistant coach at OU under Wilkinson and three years as an assistant coach at Army West Point before returning to Oklahoma. He spent the 1967-71 seasons as defensive line coach and recruiting coordinator under MacKenzie and Fairbanks. He moved into an administrative role as assistant athletic director in 1971 and was promoted to associate athletic director in 1982. Cross retired from the university in 1991.
While serving as an assistant coach, Cross helped guide the Sooners to the 1967 and '68 Big Eight titles and a 1968 Orange Bowl victory over Tennessee. In his position as athletics administrator, Cross worked with the athletics booster clubs, fundraising programs and on special projects.
Cross assisted on stadium expansion projects, including the original 1980 south end zone expansion of Memorial Stadium, the construction of L. Dale Mitchell Park, and the softball and gymnastics facilities and rebuilding of the track and field facility. He also helped establish the Athletic Scholarship Donor Program and an athletic scholarship endowment program in the fall of 1980. His legacy at OU lives on through the D. Leon Cross Scholarship, which assists student-athletes.
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July 28, 2022 at 04:16AM
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OU Mourns the Passing of Leon Cross - University of Oklahoma - Soonersports.com
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