Hall of Fame
Joplin native and Memorial HS athletic standout, Mike Loyd, has had a successful football coaching career. Loyd's career spans over 35 years with stops at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College (NEO), Joplin HS, and Rogers (Ark.) HS, Vero Beach (Fla.), Ponte Verda (Fla.), Ardmore (Okla.), Grove (Okla.), McAlester (Okla,), and Tulsa Memorial HS.
Quarterback Loyd, who finished college ball at Missouri Southern, had stints professionally with the St. Louis Cardinals of the NFL, Edmonton and Saskatchewan of the CFL, and the Oklahoma Outlaws of the USFL before concentrating on coaching.
The 6-foot-4 Loyd graduated from Memorial HS in 1974. His freshman football coach was Forrest Reed before playing varsity under Charlie Cooper. The Eagles were 7-3 and 8-2 in 1972 and 1973, respectively, with the 1972 edition going 6-0 in the Ozark Conference, Loyd also starred on the basketball floor under coaches Bill Stipp and Ron Baker. The 1973-74 Eagles went 21-9 and finished fourth in MSHSAA Class 3A under Baker.
Joplin shared the Ozark Conference title under Loyd in 1997, Ardmore finished 67-27 will all eight teams reaching the playoffs, McAlester and Tulsa Memorial combined for five trips to the playoffs, and NEO was 44-7 under Loyd with a 1991 National Junior College Athletics Association (NJCAA) Championship.
