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Mark Stillwell – Missouri State University, retired
CoSIDA Hall of Fame Class of 2019

by Ned Reynolds, Sports Director, KYTV (NBC), Springfield, Mo., 1967-2016

Overworked yet underappreciated! Stoic yet passionate! Accurate yet always honest (sometimes painfully)!

All elements integral to the profession of sports information, to which CoSIDA members will attest, and functions performed to the highest level of integrity by CoSIDA Hall of Fame inductee Mark Stillwell. Stillwell is now retired after 41 years as a sports information director, first at his alma mater Drury College (now University) in Springfield, Missouri, and then for 37 years in a similar post at Southwest Missouri State University (now Missouri State).

And it was at the latter post that Captain Stillwell gained the greatest recognition for both the university and himself by practicing both the determination and dedication necessary in creating an identification for various programs striving to gain a foothold with the “bigger name” and more tradition-laden institutions.

Known throughout the community and by the media as Stillie, SID, or Captain (reference to his career as a U.S. Naval officer), Stillwell guided the information flow for Bears athletics. He coordinated efforts for 23 sports while Southwest Missouri State/Missouri State traversed its way through seven different conferences and the ultimate elevation to NCAA Division I status in 1982. Missouri State played host to NCAA regional and national competition in eight sports during that period, and Captain Stillwell’s various publications were awarded more than 60 honors from CoSIDA and from the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education.
 

The remarkable aspect of these achievements surrounds the fact that all were accomplished while Stillwell was serving in the Navy, a dedication he undertook during his years as a student at Drury. He then advanced to an active duty officer in the late 1960s and very early 1970s before returning to Reserve status and a career as SID.

It was in those early years at Missouri State that Officer Stillwell held command of four Springfield Navy Reserve units and was promoted to Lieutenant Commander in 1977, full Commander in 1981, and subsequently, to Captain in 1988. Yes, had he chosen to continue for several more years, “Stillie” would have been eligible for Rear Admiral, but, after 28 years of service, and with the burden of civilian duties ever increasing, the Captain retired from Naval service in 1991.

As a 52-year media member in Springfield, my association with the Captain has been both rewarding and memorable. Both of us share an affinity for baseball, but the adjective “avid” is far too lame to describe Stillwell’s dedication to the game, especially to the home state St. Louis Cardinals.

Mark has witnessed MLB regular season games in 66 different stadia, including ALL 30 current venues now in use. He has seen the Cardinals compete in 52 different parks, has seen games in Mexico and Puerto Rico, and the Captain allows, that if the Cardinals are chosen to play in Europe or the Orient sometime in the future, he plans to be in attendance.

While having been in his company on many of the in-state team games and sharing volumes of trivia challenges, it was an incident in the mid-1980s that resonates with me clearly and exemplifies his willingness to make all situations as good as they can be.

It was a warm August afternoon and I sat at my desk in the TV station fervently hoping that the Sahara of creativity being engendered by my limited intellect might somehow produce an oasis of thought. That didn’t happen.

So I dialed the Captain (cell phones were a figment of imagination back then) and begged him for help. “Why don’t you come over to football practice and interview (name will remain anonymous). He’s been looking good in workouts.” Knowing this individual to be very recalcitrant of nature, I expressed reluctance.

“He’s done a complete turnaround,” assured Stillie, “and I’ll even be there to soothe the way.”

And, to that end, Mark Stillwell put his duties aside and helped this reporter with an interview that eventually won a Missouri Broadcasters Award as among the year’s best stories. And that is simply a miniscule example of the assistance, over and above what’s required, that has earned the Captain the honors a Hall of Fame induction entails.

Honors are hardly something new to this long-time member of the Ozarks sports scene.

Stillwell has been inducted into both Springfield’s and Missouri’s Sports Halls of Fame, as well as the college athletics Hall of Fame at Missouri State. Yet, until this upcoming CoSIDA Hall of Fame induction, the awarding of the Paul Morrison prize from the Missouri Valley Conference in 2008 has to rank among his most coveted possessions. Named for the long-time SID at Drake University, this annual presentation is bestowed on the individual making the most significant contributions to the league, and carries with it a place in the Missouri Valley Conference Hall of Fame.

Certainly this CoSIDA honoree has a treasure chest of memories, including being a major part of NCAA Division II championships on a regional and national level in basketball and baseball; the first-ever NCAA Division I basketball tournament appearances under the coaching of the late Charlie Spoonhour; the Final Four appearances of the Missouri State Lady Bears in 1992 and again in 2001 led by Cheryl Burnett and Jackie Stiles; the magical ride to the basketball Sweet 16 in 1999 under Steve Alford; and the baseball victorious trek to the College World Series in Omaha in 2003.

Along with being a part of those athletic successes, Captain Stillwell says advancing of some three dozen of his proteges into further careers in the world of sports information rates as a point of great satisfaction to him, because it is an example of the professionalism and dedication under which his office was directed over the course of 37 years.

The Hall of Fame honor accorded Mr. Mark Stillwell by his peers in CoSIDA has to rank with his single greatest professional achievements, quite simply because it’s a measure of the years of dedication and diligence being recognized for their level of excellence.

But, from a personal standpoint, marrying his wife of 42 years, Tina, is the crowning victory of all.

Congratulations Mark Stillwell . . . . CoSIDA Hall of Fame 2019!