Conference

Todd Graham, the current head football coach at Arizona State University, was an All-America defensive back for East Central University in 1986. Graham holds a pair of degrees in education from ECU.

Rex and Rob Ryan, current coaches in the NFL, were recently inducted into the Southwestern Oklahoma State University Athletic Hall of Fame. Both Rex and Rob graduated from SWOSU in 1986. Rex is currently the head coach for the New York Jets. Rob is the defensive coordinator for the Dallas Cowboys.

Gus Malzahn, currently the head football coach at Arkansas State, is a 1990 graduate of Henderson State University. Malzahn played two years of football at HSU and later earned his bachelor's degree in physical education.

Dennis Rodman, a 2011 inductee into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, was a three-time NAIA All-America selection at Southeastern Oklahoma State University from 1983-86.

Four-time Pro Bowl tight end Jeremy Shockey was born on August 18, 1980 in Ada, Oklahoma, home of East Central University. Shockey was a member of the New York Giants Super Bowl XLII Championship, and is currently a member of the Carolina Panthers franchise.

Southern Nazarene University President Dr. Loren Gresham was the head coach of then-known-as Bethany Nazarene College for its 1981 NAIA Men's Basketball National Championship.

Arkansas Tech's women's athletics teams became known as the Golden Suns in 1975 after a successful vote among female student-athletes. Before that, they were knows as the Wonder Girls or the Wonderettes.

Ouachita Baptist University was named for the Ouachita River, which forms the eastern boundary of the Arkadelphia campus. Ouachita is a Caddo Indian word which is thought to have meant “eastern boundary of our nation.” OBU is the oldest member institution in the Great American Conference, formed in 1886.