Hall of Fame
Burial Holmes was an All-American football player at West Liberty who also earned All-WVIAC honors in track and field despite having his collegiate career interrupted by military service. Holmes was West Liberty's first NAIA football All-American as a defensive tackle in 1961 but the Tiltonsville (Ohio) High School graduate left school in 1962 to fulfill his military commitment with the U.S. Air Force.
Following his honorable discharge, Holmes came back to the hilltop to finish his degree and emerged as an impact performer on the Hilltopper track team. As a senior in 1968, the versatile athlete was the WVIAC champion in the discus and runner-up in the shot put at the conference championship meet. Holmes was honored in 1974 as a member of the WVIAC's All-Time All-Conference Football Team.
After graduation, Holmes began a teaching and coaching career at Grant Middle School in Steubenville, Ohio, before returning to the classroom to earn his M.A. degree in Guidance and Counseling from Youngstown State. At the time of his induction, Holmes was completing his second decade as a highly-regarded administrator with the Ohio County School System in Wheeling.
