Hall of Fame
During Dr. Troy Bledsoe's 18 years as director of athletics at Fort Lewis College from 1974 through 1992, the school saw continued improvement and growth in its athletic department. Men and women's teams earned regional and national acclaim as all four core sports-football, volleyball, and men's and women's basketball-gained huge championship banners in the Fort Lewis College Fieldhouse during Bledsoe's career.
He also served as chairman of the Exercise Science Department while at Fort Lewis College. An exercise science instructor during his stay at Fort Lewis College, Bledsoe was promoted from associate professor to professor in 1983. He became a professor of exercise emeritus upon his retirement from the college in 1993.
Aside from his administrative and teaching duties, Bledsoe was a successful coach at Fort Lewis College. He coached the Raider golfers from 1974 through 1992. His teams have won numerous conference championships in both the Rocky Mountain Intercollegiate Golf Association and the Colorado Athletic Conference. His 1991-92 team won the NAIA District VII title and qualified for the national championships. His 1994-95 squad finished second in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference.
Bledsoe also coached the Fort Lewis College women's basketball team for four seasons during the early 1980s, laying the foundation for a program that became one of the most successful in Colorado. His .602 winning percentage was one of the highest in school history. All totaled, his teams posted a 59-39 record and advanced to three straight NAIA District VII playoffs.
During his first full season as head coach in 1982-83 (he took over as head coach early in the 1981-82 campaign), he guided the Raiders to their first RMAC women's basketball title with a 17-1 league and 18-6 overall record. His final team, in 1984-85, posted the first-ever 20-win season for the Fort Lewis College women's cagers.
Bledsoe was also instrumental in continuing old traditions and establishing newer ones at Fort Lewis College. In particular, two of the highlights of Fort Lewis College's athletic calendar have him to thank.
He was a key player in establishing the Fort Lewis College Athletic Hall of Fame in 1979, putting longtime Fort Lewis College basketball coach and administrator Ned Wallace into the Hall of Fame as the original inductee.
Bledsoe also organized springtime banquets to honor coaches and athletes from all sports. At recent All Sports Awards Banquets, the male and female senior student-athletes with the highest grade point averages are presented with the Troy Bledsoe Scholar-Athlete award.
Prior to arriving at Fort Lewis College, Bledsoe spent 15 years at the University of Denver. He was head men's basketball coach for the Pioneers for six seasons from 1962 through 1968, posting a 62-87 record. He was also an assistant basketball coach for the Pioneers for three seasons. While at Denver, he coached a number of future NBA players like Harry Hollines and Byron Beck.
Toward the end of his career at Denver, Bledsoe served as the coordinator of the graduate programs in physical education.
Bledsoe also coached four years at the University of Arkansas-Monticello, guiding that school to its first conference championship. In six years of high school coaching in Dumas, Ark., and Jonesboro, Ark., he had a pair of undefeated state champions.
Bledsoe earned a bachelor's degree from Hendrix College in 1949, where he was a multiple letter winner in football, basketball and tennis. He won two all-conference awards in basketball and one in football while at Hendrix.
He earned his master's degree from Memphis State University in 1955 and his doctorate from the University of Denver in 1974.
Bledsoe died on Dec. 30, 2009, in Grand Junction, Colo. He was 83. A scholarship in his name has been established, benefitting Skyhawk Athletics.
