Missouri State

RAY FORSYTHE
Football, Basketball and Track, 1946-50
Inducted September 25, 1976

One of the most prolific of all Missouri State athletes, with a total of 12 letters for his Bruin career, Ray Forsythe was a three-sport standout. A native of Cabool, he earned four monograms each in football, basketball, and track between 1946 and 1950. He gained his greatest acclaim on the gridiron and was the Bears’ starting quarterback all four years at MSU. Playing under coaches Howard Blair, Tom O’Boyle, and Fred Thomsen during his four varsity seasons, Forsythe was an all-league first team selection his last three years and was the Bears’ co-captain in 1949. He led the team to a tie for the MIAA title with Maryville in 1948 and MSU went on to play in the Missouri-Kansas Bowl Game. The Bears were second in the league in 1947 and 1949.

In basketball, Forsythe was a member of Coach Andy McDonald’s last four Missouri State teams, including the small college powerhouses in 1949 and 1950 which were among the top defensive teams in the nation and claimed MIAA titles in 1949 and 1950 after finishing second the two previous years. MSU made an appearance in the NAIA national tournament in 1949 and Forsythe was back at his alma mater as the Athletic Business Manager under Coach Bob Vanatta in 1952 when MSU claimed the NAIA national basketball championship.