At 92 years of age, Dr. Benjamin Sacks was the oldest living inductee in the UNM Athletic Hall of Honor. He was also UNM’s oldest living letterman at the time.
Born in Philadephia, Sacks was a point guard for Roy Johnson’s 1924 basketball team. He was a two-time All-Southwest pick and team captain. He also lettered in tennis.
After graduating in 1926 with a bachelor’s in History, Sacks obtained his master’s at Canada’s McGill University then returned to Albuquerque to teach history at Albuquerque High. In his free hours he served as assistant coach to F.M. (Tony) Wilson in football and basketball, and as head mentor in tennis. One of his Bulldog pupils was Ralph Bowyer, an inaugural inductee to the UNM Hall of Honor in 1986.
In 1930, Sacks joined UNM’s faculty as assistant professor of History, continued his doctoral studies, and achieved his Ph.D. from Stanford in 1934. He eventually became a full professor at UNM and served as head of the History Department. At the outset of World War II, Sacks replaced Johnson as UNM’s interim basketball coach for the 1940-41.
After a brief stint as an Air Force officer, Sacks resumed his post at UNM until his retirement in 1963. That was proceeded by “un-retiring” to join the History Department at Arizona State where he retired again in 1979 at the age of 76.
From 1928-60, Sacks became a living legend as New Mexico’s top handball player. He was also an ardent ballroom dancer in his later years.
