Buddy Travis began his storied career in basketball in 1949 as he played at Amarillo College. While there, he was named first team All American and set a scoring record with 40 points in one game.  

He then moved on to his first coaching position at Clarendon College and led his team to a West Zone (previous name for WJCAC) conference championship before heading to Howard College. 

In 1959, Travis found his stride in coaching and in his first year with Howard, he led the team to a West Zone conference championship, a regional championship, a state championship and a 5th place finish at the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) national tournament. The team ended his inaugural season with a 34-4 record. 

The years to come held numerous records for Coach Travis bringing home several conference and regional championships. When he left Howard College, after 11 years of coaching, he had a win-loss record of 506-263 under his belt in the Western Conference.