James Franklin Potts

James Franklin Potts, B.B.A. ’67, M.S. ’68, died Feb. 9 after battling ALS.

Potts was born March 3, 1945, in Lampasas, Texas, to Uel Ollie and Mildred Clark Potts. He grew up in Lometa, Texas, where he graduated from high school in 1963. He excelled in all sports and became an avid hunter and fisherman. He attended Baylor University and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in economics and a master’s degree in economics and finance in 1967 when he began his teaching career. 

He married and moved to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to obtain his Ph.D. Potts attended classes while teaching at a nearby college in Hammond. His active lifestyle led him to raise three children, work in the church nursery, fish in three bass clubs and play on numerous softball teams.

Potts returned to Baylor and continued to educate thousands of students in the field of finance. He was tough but fair, and when they left, students knew they had learned something valuable. He loved his colleagues and made many friends. He was thrilled to teach alongside his brother, Tom. He never considered this a job — it was his calling. 

He met his wife, Cindy Potts, B.A. ’04, at Baylor, and they married in 1992, blending their two families into one. He treated her children as his own and loved them all. He was not only a great Papaw, but a mentor as well.

His life revolved around family, teaching, fishing, hunting and golf. He was unmatched in the story and joke department. Potts was generous to others — always quietly and behind the scenes. He loved the Lord and was a member of the Band of Brothers class at Columbus Avenue Baptist Church, where he taught Sunday School for years. When ALS made it impossible to attend, he Zoomed the class. Members came each week to play dominoes with him at his home. He also volunteered with the Kid’s Hope program.

Pott’s ALS diagnosis stunned him and all who knew him, but he handled the challenge with grace and determination.