2026 Homecoming Honors Banquet - Distinguished Alumnus - John Baker '64

Описание: About 30 miles northwest of Austin sits Sunrise Ranch in Liberty Hill, where championship steers have been born and raised for more than 50 years under the careful eyes of John T. Baker ’64. Before he called Central Texas home, Baker was a student at the University of Corpus Christi (UCC), now Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. Baker attended UCC on a full football scholarship and graduated in 1964 with a degree in business.

“Playing football at UCC was such a wonderful experience for me,” Baker remembers fondly. “I made lifelong memories on that campus. I even met my best friend for life, Charlie Hancock, who was one of my teammates. He and his wife Dixie were a major part of my life.”

After graduation Baker married his wife Betty, and they were blessed with a son, John T. Baker, II. Following five years as an aviator in the U.S. Navy, he combined his love of aviation with his business education and purchased a Piper Aircraft Dealership in Austin — launching a successful career in aviation.

Baker would eventually turn his focus to livestock, a decision that would define his legacy. Over the course of his career, he raised more than 100 champion Texas Longhorn cattle and served as president of the Texas Longhorn Breeders Association of America and the Austin Livestock and Rodeo.

Along the way, he also became responsible for the most famous longhorn in the country — Bevo, the mascot for the University of Texas. The last three incarnations — Bevo XIII, Bevo XIV, and the current Bevo XV — have all come from Baker’s Sunrise Ranch.

Despite his close association with one of the University of Texas’ most storied traditions, Baker has remained deeply connected to the Island University. He and Betty established the John T. and Betty Baker Endowed Scholarship for Athletics, which has provided years of scholarship support to student-athletes.

“With a long life and many opportunities along the trail, it is a privilege and honor to give back to the university’s endowed scholarship for athletics,” Baker said. “I gained so many valuable lessons through the program and hope that some athletes might experience the same.”