The Heyday of Olney Football

Back in the late 1950s and into the 1960s, we were great fans of Olney football and followed the Olney Cubs wherever they played. During those years, we watched as they worked their way to the Class 2A semifinals.

One year we drove to Dallas to watch the annual Texas/Oklahoma football game - the Oil Bowl. It was exciting to be at that particular game because Olney’s own Jim Grisham (OU) and Harold Philipp (UT) were playing against each other!

We wanted to yell for both teams, but people sitting around us thought we were a little crazy! It was exciting anyway, but a little disappointing as we watched OU beat UT by 1 point!

To some of you who may be reading this, I am sure you have some good football stories to share. You may even remember some of the Olney players from the late ‘50s and early ‘60s.

Just a few that I can think of were: Tom Enloe, Harold Andrews, Truman Hobbs, Earl Phillip, Ray Rue, Harold Philipp, R.L. Spivey, Jim Lovett, Jim Grisham, Jimmy Krueger, and others.

Forward to 2026. It is the beginning of a new year at Olney ISD. We look forward to the new football year and wish the Cubs a great winning year. We look forward to all the Olney sports events, knowing that there will be great achievements in all areas of events.

We have come to expect great things from all our students at Olney ISD—academics, sports, band, plays, and the many top UIL winning achievements.

None of this would happen without strong leadership and outstanding, dedicated teachers and coaches who really care about our students. To that we all say, “Thank you!”

We look forward to the many accomplishments that our students will achieve this school year. 2026-27 is going to be a great year at Olney ISD—GO CUBS!