Hall of Fame
Football, Boxing, Boxing Coach (1929-30, 1950-85)
Credited with being “the backbone of college boxing,” Jimmy Olivas spent 35 years as the head coach of the Wolf Pack boxing program from 1950-85. He still holds the record for longevity as a Wolf Pack mentor. He produced many champion teams and individuals. After building a reputation as a schoolboy boxer and football player in Los Angeles, Olivas came to Reno on a grid scholarship in 1929. He boxed on Nevada’s earliest teams in 1930-31 and was undefeated, winning the Pacific Coast and Far Western welterweight crowns. A football knee injury kept him out of the 1932 Olympic trials in New York where he was one of the favorites. During the Great Depression, he left school to enter the service, where he was a coach. He later promoted pro boxing in Reno and refereed. Olivas became the Nevada boxing coach in 1950. Among his products in 35 years of coaching were Mills Lane and Joe Bliss winning national championships, Jim Evans becoming an Olympic Trials national semifinalist and Emory Chapman capturing four major national heavyweight titles. Olivas was honored in 1966 as the Coach of the Year by the Sierra Nevada Sportswriter & Broadcasters. His contributions are still recognized through the Jimmy Olivas Athletic Foundation, which assists young people who have athletic skills and scholastic ability but do not have the financial resources to continue their higher education.
