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Tommy Bolton, Antioch High School Class of 1980 - a dominant pitcher at Antioch High School. He pitched Antioch to a AAA State Championship in 1979. Drafted by Boston Red Sox, where he played from 1980-1992. Also played for Cincinnati Reds (1992), Detroit Tigers (1993) and Baltimore Orioles (1994). Completed his professional baseball career pitching for Chicago White Sox (1995) and Pittsburgh Pirates (1996-1998) minor league teams.
Austin Denney, Donelson High School Class of 1962 - Played football, basketball, and baseball for three years at Donelson Middle. He was named All-Nashville (NIL) in all three sports and was named Nashville’s Athlete of the Year in 1962. Denney was awarded a football scholarship to the University of Tennessee, where he lettered in 1965 and 1966. He was named All-SEC and All-American in 1966. He was the University's first tight end and holds the record for the most touchdown pass receptions in a single season by a tight end at Tennessee. In 1966, he was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys, traded to the Chicago Bears, and was the starting tight end for Chicago from 1967 through 1969. He played for the Buffalo Bills in 1970 and 1971 and was selected as the “Most Popular Player” in 1970.
Jimmy Edwards, MNPS Principal, Inducted Posthumously - After graduating from Vanderbilt with engineering degree, Edwards began teaching math and coaching at Bellevue High in 1933. Became principal of Cumberland High in 1939, where his 10-year tenure was interrupted by military service from 1943-1945. Earned masters at Peabody College and served as principal of DuPont High from 1949-1952, Donelson High principal from 1953-1971, and Antioch High principal until retiring in 1974. Edwards was a member of TSSAA Board of Control for 28 years, served as president from 1970-1973 and TSSAA Hall of Fame member.
Dianne Frierson Fowler, Hillwood High School Class of 1976 - Lettered in basketball, cross-country, volleyball, track and field, and tennis. Was the NIL girls basketball all-time leading scorer (2,984). She was selected four times to the NIL all-girls basketball team, two times NIL Most Valuable Player, four times All-Regional girls basketball team, and Tennessee All-State girls basketball team (1976). In 1976, she was also a member of the AAU National Basketball Champions (Junior Olympic team) and in 1977, won the Junior Pan AM Championship in Mexico City as a member of Coach Pat Head Summit’s USA national team. Attended UCLA, where she was a four-year women's basketball starting point guard (1976-1980), NWIT All-American in 1977, and Academic All-American (Third Team) in 1980. She was selected as one of the top 15 women basketball players in the first 25 years of UCLA basketball history. Dianne was assistant women’s basketball coach at the University of Arizona from 1980-1982. She is a member of the United States Professional Tennis Association as a coach with wheelchair tennis specialty. She has also coached for the International Tennis Federation and was the national coach for the Turkish men’s and women’s wheelchair tennis teams.
Roy Herald, Howard High School, Class of 1950 - Roy Herald was All-City in football, basketball, and baseball for two consecutive years (1949 and 1950). In 1950, Roy was the winner of the prestigious Hume Award for outstanding senior football player in Metro schools and also won the baseball batting championship with a .541 batting average. After attending college at Middle Tennessee State University, Tennessee State University and David Lipscomb University, he attended the New York Yankees training camp and signed and played one year of professional baseball with the Pittsburgh Pirates. Herald was a graduate of the U.S. Secret Service Protection School in Washington, D.C. and provided protection for seven U.S. presidents. Herald retired from the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department after 42 years of service with the rank of Major.
Ronald Lawson Sr., Pearl High School Class of 1959, Inducted Posthumously - Ronald “Scat” Lawson Sr. was a high school and college athlete and outstanding basketball coach. Lawson helped lead his Pearl basketball team to two of its three straight Black National High School Championships. He attended UCLA so he could play for legendary coach John Wooden. He played for the Harlem Magicians and a local semi-professional team, the Nashville Shamrocks. He began coaching in 1964 at Cameron High School, long-time rival of Pearl High. Under Coach Lawson’s direction, Cameron won the first state championship in 1970 with a 29-1 record and repeated in 1971 with a perfect 32-0 record. Cameron went 61-1 over those two seasons, including 55 straight victories. The Cameron Middle School gymnasium is named in his honor. When Cameron closed as a high school in 1971, Lawson became head coach of the men’s basketball team at Fisk University. In his second year at Fisk, the team went 24-5 and won the Southern Inter-Collegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC). He finished his coaching career at Fisk in 1979. Since his untimely death in 2002, he has been inducted into the TSSAA Hall of Fame in 2004 and inducted into the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame in 2008.
John Mitchell, John Overton High School Class of 1983 - John Mitchell was All-NIL in basketball and Nashville Banner and Tennessean Most Valuable Player in baseball his senior year at Overton High School. During his senior year, Mitchell had a 9-0 record with a 0.41 ERA and was signed by George Digby, scout for the Boston Red Sox. Later, he was signed by the New York Mets and was the AAA Minor League Pitcher of the Year with the Mets. He was called up to the Mets and pitched for them from 1986-1989. In 1990, he played for the Baltimore Orioles.
Harold Rice, Cameron High School Class of 1965, Inducted Posthumously - Outstanding football player at Cameron High School from 1962-1965. He signed a football scholarship with Tennessee State University and starred for four years with the Big Blue Tigers football team under the direction of legendary coach John Merritt and defensive coordinator Joe Gilliam. Rice was an excellent defensive end and defensive tackle and played on the undefeated 1965 TSU team. In 1969, Harold was drafted by the Oakland Raiders and played for three years for head coach John Madden. He played various positions on defense. Following his professional football career, Rice was employed by the State of Tennessee for the Department of Corrections at Spencer Youth Center/Woodland Hills Development Center for 27 years. He influenced the lives of many children through his dedicated teaching, coaching, and counseling.
Margaret Sexton Gleaves, Bellevue High School Class of 1938, Inducted Posthumously - Margaret Sexton Gleaves, an outstanding basketball player in the 1930’s and 1940’s, requires little introduction for sport historians and students of the game of basketball. The eight-time All-American guard played on five national championship teams and was one of the original 16 inductees into the Helms Basketball Hall of Fame in 1966. Her name filled the sports pages nationwide with the athletic feats she performed on hardwood floors across Tennessee and other parts of the nation. For a span of 10 years, Gleaves was honored as an AAU All-American while playing for Bellevue High School in 1939, Nashville Business College 1939-1942, Vultee Aircraft 1944-1945, and Cooks Goldblumes 1946-1949. In 1948, Margaret was selected the Most Valuable Player in the National AAU Tournament. Her achievements in sports over an extended period helped keep alive a public interest in sports for females, which helped open doors to opportunities in collegiate sports for women.
Tommy Squires, Madison High School Class of 1966 - Tommy Squires played basketball at Madison High School and went on to work in journalism at The Tennessean, covering sports for more than 38 years. He was inducted into the Middle Tennessee Coaches’ High School Hall of Fame in both football (1991) and basketball (1994). He won the Southern League Sportswriter Award in 1979. In 1982, Squires was selected to be on the Gannett Company’s start-up team to launch USA Today in Arlington,VA. In 1998, he resigned from the Gannett Company to return home to Nashville to start three new sports publications. He launched Titans Exclusive, the official fan publication of the Tennessee Titans; SportsNashville, a weekly sports magazine covering high schools, colleges, and professional sports; and Kats Klaw, the first Arena League team publication of the Nashville Kats. In October 2002, the Gannett Company purchased all the publications and rehired him to oversee online sports on Tennessean.com. He was the online sports editor until retiring in September 2004.
David Vaughn Jr., Cameron High School Class of 1971 - At Cameron High School, David Vaughn served as captain of the basketball team which held the State Championship title in both 1970 with a 29-1 record and in 1971 with a perfect 32-0 record. He was named to the All-State and All- Tournament teams and held records for most points in a single game and most field goals. His undefeated high school team won 55 straight games, and Vaughn was named a High School All-American. In 1971, he was honored as the NIL Player of the Year. He attended Oral Roberts University, where he was the team’s second leading scorer and the #1 rebounder averaging 23 points and 14 rebounds per game. He also holds the most rebounds record in a single game at 34, the nation’s best. After leaving early from ORU to play his last year at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Vaughn accepted an offer to play professional basketball with the Virginia Squires in the American Basketball Association in 1974-1976. He led the team in rebounds and was the third leading scorer. When the A.B.A. went defunct in 1976, he accepted an offer to play in the European League with Avignon, France. From 1979-1983, Vaughn averaged 20 points and 20 rebounds per game as he helped his team win a berth in the European Cup in 1981.
Porter W. Williams, Pearl High School Class of 1969 - Williams lettered in football, basketball, and track at Pearl High. He earned numerous NIL awards and recognitions by the TSSAA, the Optimist Club, and others. Porter was only the second player in NIL history to make the All-Nashville and All-Metro teams three times (1967, 1968, and 1969). He was selected as a member of the TSSAA All-Stars team, the All-State team, the NIL All-Decade team (1960-1969), and the All- NIL League team. He was a contributor to the school’s history-making 1969 season with participation in the Clinic Bowl game, resulting in winning the Litkenhous State Championship. Williams attended Western Kentucky University, where he was named All-OVC and All-American, as well as being the recipient of numerous other awards. Williams continues to hold school records at Western 35 years later. In 2005, he was inducted into the Western Kentucky University Athletic Hall of Fame. Williams played for the World Football League's Portland Storm in 1974 and the Birmingham Vulcans in 1975. He also played with the Canadian Football League’s Hamilton Tiger Cats in 1976. A football injury ended his career.
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