Texas Tech football honoring the late Joe Hornaday before UH game

For three decades, Joe Hornaday championed Texas Tech football and other sports, leaving an indelible mark on the university. The school is paying tribute to the late sports information director before the Red Raiders' home game against Houston on Friday, September 18. In the Galaxy Stadium press box, a framed photograph of Hornaday occupies the front row, accompanied by the inscription "In Memory of Joe Hornaday" and the customary flip card containing team rosters and depth charts. The university also plans to observe a moment of silence in his honor before the game.

Hornaday passed away on September 9 at the age of 79, two weeks after sustaining a head injury from a fall at his Lubbock residence. Prior to becoming the sports information director in 1980, he served as an assistant sports information director for two years. Later, he held the position of assistant athletics director for public relations until his retirement in 2008.

Born in Austin, Hornaday attended Tech for four years in the late 1960s before enlisting in the U.S. Army. During his service in Frankfurt, Germany, he worked as a writer and editor for the 3rd Armored Division’s Spearhead newspaper. Subsequently, he spent five years at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram before returning to Texas Tech, where he obtained a journalism degree in 1979.

A celebration of his life will take place from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturday, October 10, in the north end zone club of Galaxy Stadium.