Toby Keith to receive another posthumous honor as OU announces list of honorary degrees

NORMAN — Country music superstar Toby Keith will be recognized posthumously with an honorary degree from the University of Oklahoma at one of OU’s graduation ceremonies next month, the university said Monday.

OU also will recognize with honorary degrees educator Barbara Ann Posey Jones, of Atlanta; the late Tom Love, the founder of Love’s Travel Stops; and Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient David Proctor. OU will confer the degrees for Love and Jones on May 10, while Keith and Proctor will be recognized during a May 11 ceremony. Both ceremonies will take place at Lloyd Noble Center.

“Through their exceptional talents, transformative leadership and unwavering commitment to serving others, each of this year’s honorary degree recipients has left an indelible mark on the world,” said OU President Joseph Harroz. “Their profound dedication has touched countless lives, and we take great pride in conferring the university’s highest honor upon them.”

The honorary degree is the latest posthumous honor from OU for Keith, who died on Feb. 5 at age 62 from stomach cancer. Keith long was known as a diehard fan of the Sooners and could often be seen on the sidelines of Gaylord Family — Oklahoma Memorial Stadium during football games or sitting along the baseline at Lloyd Noble Center during basketball games. When the OU softball team won its third straight national championship last June, Keith was on the field at USA Softball Hall of Fame Stadium, celebrating with players and coaches.

During OU’s Feb. 6 men's basketball game against Brigham Young, the university honored Keith as athletic director Joe Castiglione stood behind Keith’s seat. On the seat were a guitar, an OU ballcap and a red Solo cup — an homage to one of Keith’s most popular songs. At the OU spring football game on Saturday, a “TOBY” logo was painted on the 25-yard-line on Owen Field.

Keith was born in 1961 in the western Oklahoma city of Clinton. He graduated from Moore High School, and a street that runs in front of that school in the Oklahoma City suburb is named for Keith. Keith did not attend college.

As a musician, Keith had more than 60 songs hit the Billboard country chart, with 20 hitting No. 1 and 22 others making the top-10. His chart-toppers include "Should've Been a Cowboy," “How Do You Like Me Now?!,” “I Wanna Talk About Me” and “Courtesy of the Red, White, & Blue (The Angry American)." The song “Red Solo Cup” crossed over onto the Billboard pop chart and reached No. 15, giving him his biggest hit in that genre.

Keith was inducted into the New York-based all-genre Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. He received the BMI Icon award, and he was elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame shortly before his death.

Through his Toby Keith & Friends Golf Classic, launched in 2004, he helped raise a total of $18 million for nonprofits, including OK Kids Korral, a cost-free home for children and families seeking treatment for life-threatening illnesses.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OU to award Toby Keith posthumous honorary degree