|
Inductees
Eleven
inductees were recognized at the annual awards banquet and
induction ceremony on February 27th at the Renaissance Hotel
in Nashville.
The 2004
inductees are as follows:
Vice
Admiral William Lawrence USN (retired), a native
of Nashville, played three varsity sports for the U.S. Naval
Academy. His distinguished military decorations include: Distinguished
Service Medal (4 awards), Silver Star (3 awards), Legion of
Merit, Distinguished Flying Cross, Bronze Star with Combat
V, Purple Heart (2 awards) among others. His athletic awards
include the Theodore Roosevelt Award (the highest honor of
the NCAA), the Liberty Bowl's Distinguished Service Award,
and the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame
Gold Medal (their highest award). He authored Tennessee's
state poem "Oh Tennessee, My Tennessee" while a
POW in North Vietnam.
Lloyd
Neal, former Tennessee State University basketball
All-American, went on to play seven seasons in the NBA with
the Portland Trailblazers. While with the Trailblazers he
was named to the NBA All-Rookie team, earned an NBA championship
and was the first player to ever have his number retired by
the Portland Trailblazers.
Andy Roberts,
one of the most dominant racquetball players of the 90's,
attended the University of Memphis on a racquetball scholarship
where he won six intercollegiate championships. The Memphis
native went on to win eighteen pro tournament victories, four
national pro championships, a World Amateur singles title,
a national amateur singles title, two national amateur doubles
titles, and was chosen as a member of the U.S. National team
for eight consecutive terms.
Ken
Sparks,
the winningest coach in Carson-Newman football history, began
his 24th season in 2003 with a record of 225-52-2 (a winning
percentage of .812 placing him fourth among active coaches
in all divisions of the NCAA). His teams have won five national
championships, four national runner-up finishes, 16 SAC championships
and 18 NAIA or NCAA playoff appearances. He was named NAIA
Coach of the Year in 1984, SAC Coach of the Year by his peers
nine times, Fellowship of Christian Athletes National Coach
of the Year, the American Football Coach Magazine Division
II Coach of the Year and the Tennessee Sports Writers Coach
of the Year in 1999 and received the All-American Football
Foundation's Lifetime Achievement Award in 2002.
June
Stewart, while rising to the ranks of Associate
Athletic Director at Vanderbilt University, was highly regarded
and honored for her athletic administrative career. She was
President of the College Sports Information Directors of America
(CoSIDA) in 1991, Member of the NCAA Women's Basketball Committee
(1990-96), and member of the SEC Executive Committee (1995).
Stewart was inducted to the CoSIDA Hall of Fame in 1996 and
received a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2000. She also received
the All-American Football Foundation Scoop Hudgins SID Award
in 1999 and was the Nashville Sports Council Volunteer of
the Year in 2002.
John
Tucker, at his retirement in 1996, was the
winningest high school football coach in Tennessee with 332
victories. That year, he was also ranked by USA Today among
the top five active high school coaches in America. While
coaching at seven different Tennessee schools (25 seasons
at Milan High School), he won two state championships (1971,
1977), one state runner-up (1993) and 16 district-region titles
while maintaining a winning percentage of .700. Tucker has
received many Coach of the Year honors and has been inducted
to the Jackson-Madison County Sports Hall of Fame, the TSSAA
Hall of Fame, the Gibson County Sports Hall of Fame and the
National High School Athletic Coaches Association Sports Hall
of Fame.
Holly
Warlick, considered by many to be the finest
point guard to ever play for the Lady Vols, was the first
player in the history of Tennessee athletics (men or women)
to have her jersey retired. As a rookie, Warlick helped lead
the Lady Vols to their first Final Four appearance in school
history in 1977. She reached the Final Four three times as
a player and was national championship runner-up. A three-time
All-American, she previously held UT records for most assists
in a game (14), most steals in a game (9), most assists in
a season (225) and most games in a career (142). She was a
member of the 1980 U.S. Olympic basketball team and was an
Olympic torchbearer for the 1996 Games. She has been named
to the UT Lady Vol Hall of Fame, the Women's Basketball Hall
of Fame, the Knoxville Sports Hall of Fame and was selected
to the CONVERSE/Lady Vol Team of the Decade for the 1980s.
Reggie
White, native of Chattanooga and former University
of Tennessee Defensive Tackle, was a unanimous All-America
selection, Lombardi Award finalist, Defensive Lineman of the
Year and the SEC's Player of the Year in 1983. Renowned for
his relentless sacking ability, White holds Tennessee records
for most sacks in a single game (4), season (15) and career
(32). A first round draft choice of the Philadelphia Eagles
in 1985, White embarked on a 13-year NFL career, which included
11 Pro-Bowl appearances and a Super Bowl XXXI Championship
as a member of the Green Bay Packers. White retired as, and
continues to be, the NFL's all-time career sack leader. He
was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2002.
Betty
Wiseman, an active figure in Belmont University
athletics for three decades, established one of the first
women's basketball programs in the state in 1968. She was
the head coach at Belmont for 16 seasons compiling a record
of 248-152. She led the Nashville university to four consecutive
berths in the NWIT from 1973-1977. In 1999, she was given
the Josten-Berenson Service Award by the Women's Basketball
Coaches Association to recognize her lifelong commitment to
women's basketball. In addition, she was honored twice as
VSAC Basketball Coach of the Year and once as tennis Coach
of the Year. Among her many awards, she has been named Distinguished
Professor of the Year, Health Educator of the Year by the
Tennessee Association of Health, and was the first recipient
of Belmont's Presidential Faculty Achievement Award in 1997.
Henry
Allen Kimbro (posthumous), a native of Nashville,
was a legendary baseball player in the Negro Baseball League
from 1937 to 1951. He played in six All-Star Games (five as
an Elite Giant and one as a Black Yankee), had a lifetime batting
average of .315, lead the league in stolen bases in 1944 and
finished one homerun behind league leaders Josh Gibson and Buck
Leonard. He tied with Cool Papa Bell for League lead in at-bats
in 1945 and led the league in runs scored in 1946 and 1947.
Kimbro has been featured in many articles and documentaries
and was inducted to the Baltimore Oriole Wall of Fame in 1998.
Joe
Worden
(posthumous), long-time athletic trainer for Vanderbilt University,
received the highest honor in his profession when he was inducted
to the National Athletic Trainers Association Hall of Fame
in 1984. He became Vanderbilt's trainer in 1949 and handled
all sports until 1971 when he was assigned to specialize in
football and basketball. After his official retirement in
1986, he continued to volunteer his services and never missed
a game until his death in 1998 - almost 50 years of dedication
that made him one of the most respected and admired members
of the Vanderbilt Athletic staff.
Honorees
and "Tennessean of the Year"
Tennessean
of the Year - Avron
Fogelman - Memphis resident and persistent
pioneer in bringing professional sports to Tennessee; brought
the first 2 professional sports teams to the state; the Memphis
Blues of the ABA and the original Memphis Grizzlies of the
WFL.
Outstanding
Achievement - Shaun
Micheel - a Memphis native, won the 2003 PGA
Championship, earning a five-year exemption on the PGA tour.
With that win, he becomes the third Tennessean in history
to win a PGA major.
Professional
Team of the Year - Tennessee
Titans - Since 1999, the Tennessee Titans have
won more games than any other NFL franchise. They finished
the season 12-4 and qualified for the playoffs for the fourth
time in five years. Tennessee will send five players to the
Pro Bowl including the league's co-MVP, quarterback Steve
McNair.
Male
Professional Athlete of the Year
Keith
Bulluck - Tennessee Titans linebacker in his
fourth NFL season was named to the NFL All-Pro Team, led his
team in tackles and was named Titans "Defensive Player
of the Year".
Steve
McNair - Tennessee Titans quarterback named
Co-MVP of the NFL, finished the season with the league's highest
passer rating, named NFL All-Pro Team for the second time,
and led his team to the playoffs for the fourth time in five
seasons.
Tom
Pappas
- former University of Tennessee decathlete is ranked #1 in
the world and was the 2003 USA Outdoor Decathlon Champion,
the 2003 World Indoor Heptathlon gold medallist and the second
American in history to win the World Outdoor Decathlon Championship
in 2003.
Female
Professional Athlete of the Year - Cindy
Parlow - youngest soccer player to ever win
both an Olympic gold medal and a Women's World Cup title.
She is among the top 10 goal scorers in U.S. Women's National
Team history and currently plays for the WUSA Atlanta Beat.
Female
Amateur Athlete of the Year - Kara
Lawson - UT Lady Vols Basketball standout named
Kodak All-American, First Team All-SEC, Academic All-American,
NCAA Final Four All-Tournament team, University of Tennessee
Torchbearer, and Naismith "Player of the Year" finalist.
Male
Amateur Athlete of the Year - Brandt
Snedeker - first Vanderbilt golfer to be named
First Team All-American, Southeast All-Region, SEC Male golfer
of the Year, All-SEC team and 2003 U.S. Public Links Champion.
Amateur
Team of the Year - Farragut
High School Baseball and
Boy's Soccer teams
- both teams won the AAA State Championship on the same day,
on side-by-side fields, and lost only one game during the
season. They ranked #3 and #2 in the nation, respectively
The Tennessee
Sports Hall of Fame is a statewide non-profit organization
founded to honor the outstanding achievement of Tennesseans
in the realm of sports, to perpetuate the memory of their
careers and to provide a permanent Hall of Fame for the display
of mementos commemorating their contributions.
|
