Bingham headlines Emporia State inductees into the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame – Emporia State University Athletics

Baseball | 10/14/2024 2:26:00 PM

October 14, 2024-Former Emporia State baseball coach Dave Bingham was formally inducted into the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame on Sunday night at a ceremony in Topeka. He was joined in the 2024 class by former Emporia State HPER instructor Kelly Rankin who went in the Hall as a starter in track and field for multiple Olympics. They become the 24th and 25th inductees into the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame with ties to Emporia State.
 
Bingham was a part of seven NAIA World Series teams for the Hornets as a player and coach. He led the Hornets to the World Series as a player in his junior and senior years before taking Emporia State to five World Series appearances as a coach. His Hornets won the 1978 NAIA National Championship and finished as the national runners-up in 1987.

Bingham’s coaching career began as an assistant in 1970 following his playing days at ESU.  He left to play briefly for the Washington Senators before returning to Emporia in 1972.  Bingham was named head coach after the 1973 season.  Bingham compiled a record of 557-270-2 from 1974-87.  Included were eight CSIC championships, 11 District 10 titles, five Area III crowns and the 1978 NAIA National Championship.  He was selected as District 10 Coach of the Year 11 times, Area III Coach of the Year six times, and was named as NAIA National Coach of the Year three times in 1976, 1984, and 1986.  

Bingham received international acclaim, having served as an assistant coach for the United States baseball teams in 1979, 1981, 1983, 1984, 1987 and 1988.  He was an assistant for the 1984 Silver Medal team at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles and the Gold Medal winning 1988 team at the 1988 Seoul Games.  He was head coach of the U.S. baseball team in 1984 when they captured the bronze medal at the World Baseball Championships.  

Bingham left ESU following the 1987 season to become the head coach at the University of Kansas. He posted a 249-225 record at KU from 1988 to 1995, including the first two NCAA tournaments in school history and the Jayhawks first NCAA College World Series appearance in 1993.

After leaving Kansas he started the Bingham Baseball Academy in 1995. He returned to the collegiate ranks in 2004 as an assistant coach at New Mexico before taking an assistant coaching spot at the University of Nebraska from 2005-11.

Rankin was an instructor in the Department of Health, Physical Education and Recreation at Emporia State when he began serving as a starter for NAIA competitions. He is the only American to serve as the head starter for two Olympic Games – Los Angeles in 1984 and Atlanta in 1996.

Bingham and Ranking joined ten other inductees into the KSHOF Class of 2024.  The other inductees are:

Erik Kynard – Olympic Gold Medalist High Jumper at Kansas State

Melvin Lister – National champion in the Long Jump at Leavenworth H.S., Butler County CC, and Arkansas

Mark Mangino – National Assistant Football Coach-of-the-Year at Oklahoma; and Head Coach for Orange Bowl Champion at Kansas

Ron Neugent – Swimming Gold Medalist in World University Games; and American Record-Holder at Kansas

Scott Russell – NCAA champ and Olympic qualifier for Canada in the Javelin at Kansas

Kevin Saunders – Bronze Medalist and Record-Holder for U.S. in Paralympic Games

Will Shields – Native Kansan, 14-year NFL veteran with Kansas City Chiefs and member of College and NFL halls of fame

Sean Snyder – Consensus All-American punter and national special teams coach of the year at Kansas State

Mark Turgeon – All-State basketball player at Topeka Hayden H.S., four-time NCAA Tournament qualifier at Kansas, Missouri Valley (Wichita State) and Big Ten Champion (Maryland) Head Coach and conference Coach-of-the-Year.

Annette Wiles – Two-time NAIA Basketball All-American and NAIA Tournament MVP at Fort Hays State

The 12 member class raises the total number of Kansas Sports Hall of Fame inductees to 340. The Kansas Sports Hall of Fame has operated for 63 years and is located at the Wichita Boathouse.

The KSHOF is a 501(c)(3) non-profit, (EIN is: 41-2060659), and donors are eligible for tax benefits for their donation. Money raised from the donations will go towards programming and serving the community by educating our youth and community about Kansas athletes.