Rhodes Athletic Hall of Fame
Outside the classroom and library, many students excel in theatre, music or a sport. Keith Arman wasn’t a student to sit around and think about the next season. Keith was busy participating on Southwestern athletic teams year-round. He was a key contributor to the Lynx basketball team and an outstanding runner for the cross-country and track and field teams.
Keith would begin the year wearing his running shoes, competing on the cross-country team. Then from November through February he would lace up his high-top Converse basketball shoes to play point guard for the Lynx. In March he would forego the cozy confines of Mallory Gym and put on his spikes to run on the cinder track at Fargason Field.
Keith was a mainstay on the Southwestern track teams, for which he served as captain his senior year. He ran the mile and two-mile runs. As Hall of Fame Coach Freeman Marr remarked, “Keith may be the most improved athlete I ever coached. He progressed from being a middle-of-the pack performer to one of the best distance runners we had.” Freeman Marr was known for trying to score every point and utilize every athlete to win a meet. So, against Union, when Coach Marr asked Keith to run not only the mile and two-mile runs, but also the 880-yard dash, Keith responded with a first, second, and first-place performance. His first-place finish in the 880 was the first time he had ever run the race.
A native of Hot Springs, Arkansas, and a star basketball player at Hot Springs High School, Keith chose to attend Southwestern for its academic reputation and the opportunity to play college basketball. Playing for Coach Winky May, Keith was an outstanding point guard with excellent ball handling and defensive skills, averaging 10 points per game his junior and senior seasons.
After graduating from Southwestern, Keith earned his law degree from the University of Arkansas.Since 1965 he has been a successful and prominent attorney in Hot Springs. For the commitment he exemplified to his teammates and coaches in three sports and the outstanding academic and athletic record he compiled as a Lynx, Rhodes is honored to induct R. Keith Arman into the Rhodes Athletic Hall of Fame this 19th day of October, 2012.
