David Nelson is a former men's basketball standout at McMurry from Odessa, Texas. He played from 1974-78 and graduated from McMurry in May of 1978 with a degree in accounting.
Nelson broke into the starting lineup as a freshman on the 1974-75 team led by Hershel Kimbrell, who was inducted into the McM Hall of Honor in 2011. This team is one of four under Kimbrell to reach 20 wins with a 22-6 record, including two wins over Hardin-Simmons and one over Abilene Christian.
For his efforts that season, Nelson was named Texas Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year and was a TAC Honorable Mention. His final three seasons, specifically his senior year, would bring even more success for Nelson.
The Odessa native went on to lead the team in rebounding from 1975-77 and was McMurry's leading scorer in the 1977-78 season. Furthermore, Nelson was the first player in McMurry Basketball history to both score over 1,000 points and record over 1,000 rebounds. He ranks 15th all-time with 1,372 career points and has 1,048 career rebounds which at the time broke a school record.
As a senior, Nelson earned TIAA first team all-conference honors, NAIA District 8 first team honors, the Bobby Chappell Most Inspirational Player award, the McMurry Athlete of the Year award and helped his team win the TIAA Conference Tournament.
Perhaps his best moment came in 1978 against cross-town rival Hardin-Simmons, where Nelson hit the game-winning basket as time expired to secure a home victory. That same night, Nelson broke the rebounding record held by his cousin, Russell Noll, and celebrated Coach Kimbrell's 500th game.
Among some of Nelson's teammates are McMurry's all-time scoring leader, Rick Penny, as well as Keith Sullivan, Ron Holmes, Larry Gibson, Terry Crocker and Cave Baum. Nelson was a member of HEI and Theta Chi Guy while on campus.
After graduation, Nelson enjoyed a successful career as a certified public accountant. From 1994-2017, Nelson was the Chief Financial Officer at the Nurses Unlimited Home Health agency before enjoying a semi-retirement as a part-time accountant consultant.
He and his family have been involved with numerous community service projects, as Nelson earned the 2013 Faye Smith Spirit Volunteer of the Year Award presented by Medical Center Health Systems.
He is married to the former Lori Hamilton '80, and the couple have three children, Christopher Nelson, Sarah Nelson Talley and Jayme Nelson. They also have three grandchildren.
