Hall of Fame
It has been four decades since Jeff Jantz first stepped on the SNU basketball court, yet he is still SNU’s all-time leading scorer with 2,104 career points, an outstanding statistic considering the fact that there was no three-point shot when he played for the Bethany Nazarene College Redskins from 1970-1974.
It wasn’t a given that Jantz, a state high school co-player of the year from La Junta, Colo., would come to a small Oklahoma college that had been competing in intercollegiate athletics for only a few years. Though many NCAA Division I schools were recruiting him, legend has it that a plane ride with then coach Larry Mills and athletic director David Baker sealed the deal. While at SNU, then BNC, Jantz became the student-athlete to receive an NAIA All-American honorable mention and an NCCAA All-American first team selection in the school’s history.
Helping BNC gain national recognition in the NAIA rankings, Jantz led his team in scoring all four years. His 282 field goals in the 1973-74 season still ranks third for a single season, and he is still second in all-time rebounds with 1,022. After graduation, Jantz and teammate Steve Peterson played a year in France, taking their team to the French National Championship. On his return as a free agent, he was invited to try out for the Los Angeles Lakers of the NBA. Jantz now brings his competitive spirit and tenacity to his career as a successful State Farm Agent in Oklahoma City.
