Herb Sheaner – A Longhorn track star, a Bronze Star and Purple Heart recipient, and a character builder of young boys turning to men
Herb Sheaner’s connection to the University of Texas is direct and foundational. He was drafted into the Army in 1943 while studying at Texas A&M. Deployed to Germany the next year, he landed on the front lines at the Battle of the Bulge.”My whole infantry regiment got captured,” Herb Sheaner said of being surrounded by Germans on the fifth day of the battle. He would spend the rest of the war as a POW until he and another soldier escaped in April of 1945. The Purple Heart and the Bronze Star are among several military commendations he received. He wrote Prisoner’s Odyssey about his wartime experience.
WORLD WAR II VETERAN HERBERT M. SHEANER, JR. TO BE HONORED AT
FOUNDING FORWARD DALLAS AREA CHAPTER 54TH ANNUAL
ACCOLADES AWARDS DINNER SET FOR VETERANS DAY, TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 11
101-year-old U.S. Army veteran to receive President’s Salute Award
Tickets available online or by mail
Herb Sheaner ran track for the Texas Longhorns in the late 1940s under legendary coach Clyde Littlefield, and even though he wasn’t an NCAA champion or an Olympic‑level Longhorn athlete, Sheaner is an important part of the Clyde Littlefield coaching tree that amplified the Longhorn influence across Texas high‑school athletics for decades. He is, in effect, one of the most important Longhorn‑connected ambassadors the sport has ever had in the state.
After graduating from Texas, he coached track, field, and cross country at Jesuit Dallas from 1955 to 1975. In 1964, he launched the highly successful “Jesuit Relays,” which were renamed the “Jesuit-Sheaner Relays” upon his retirement in 1975. Over his 20-year coaching career, he inspired many young men to become multiple state champions, nationally ranked athletes, and record setters.
Even though he wasn’t an NCAA champion or Olympic‑level Longhorn athlete, Sheaner is part of the Clyde Littlefield coaching tree, which makes him a connective thread in Texas track lineage. His post‑UT career amplified the Longhorn influence across Texas high‑school athletics for decades.
He is, in effect, one of the most important Longhorn‑connected ambassadors the sport has ever had in the state.
