The
Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame held their annual Induction
Banquet and Awards Ceremony on February 29th at the Renaissance
Hotel in Nashville.
The
2008 inductees are as follows:
Sterling
Marlin - legendary NASCAR driver is only the third
driver in Cup history to win back-to-back Daytona 500s (1994,
1995). He has finished among the top 10 in the Cup series
five times. He won three consecutive track championships
at the Nashville Raceway from 1980-82 and has twice been
named Tennessee's Professional Athlete of the Year (1995,
1996).
Madeline Manning
Mims - former TSU Tigerbelle won Olympic gold and
silver medals in 1968 and broke the 800-meter 2:00 mark
to gain All-World and All-American honors. She won a silver
medal in 1972 and also competed in the 1976 and 1980 games.
She was ranked #1 in the world by Track and Field News in
1967, 1968, 1969. She held the American Track Record for
the women's 800-meter for 15 years. She has been inducted
to the National Track and Field Hall of Fame and the Olympic
Hall of Fame.
Ronald Lawson,
Sr. (posthumous) - earned national recognition as
a high school All-American in basketball at Pearl High School
where he led his team to three Black National High School
Championships from 1958-1960. He played for the legendary
John Wooten at UCLA before graduating from Fisk University.
As a head coach, he won championships on both the high school
and collegiate level. At Cameron High his teams won 17 titles
including back-to-back State Championships (1971, 1972).
While coaching at Fisk University, he was named SIAC Coach
of the Year. He has been inducted to the TSSAA Hall of Fame.
Margaret Sexton
Gleaves - a Nashville native and outstanding basketball
player in the 1940's and 50's. She is an eight-time All-American
guard who played on five national championship teams and
was one of the original 16 inductees to the Helms Basketball
Gall of Fame in 1966. She played for Bellevue High School,
Nashville Business College, Vultee Aircraft and Cooks Goldblumes.
She was inducted to the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame
in 2002.
Gene Hickerson
- Born in Trenton, Tennessee, he became only the third
Tennessean to be inducted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
A tackle at the University of Mississippi, he shifted to
guard as a rookie for the Cleveland Browns where he played
for 14 seasons. He was lead blocker for three Hall of Fame
running backs: Jim Brown, Bobby Mitchell and Leroy Kelly.
He was All-NFL five consecutive seasons and was voted to
six straight Pro Bowls. He played in four NFL title games
and won with Cleveland in 1964. He has been named to the
NFL's All-Decade Team for the 1960s and was inducted to
the NFL Hall of Fame in 2007.
Joan Cronan
- in her 24th year as the Women's Athletic Director at the
University of Tennessee. She has directed the Lady Vols
to the SEC Women's All-Sports Award in 2004, 2005 and 2006.
In 2005, she was named the national Athletic Director of
the Year. Under her guidance, the Lady Vols athletic programs
have won seven NCAA national titles, 37 Top-Five NCAA finishes,
66 Top-10 NCAA finishes, 25 SEC regular season crowns and
18 SEC Tournament Championships. She has been inducted to
the FCA Hall of Champions, the LSU Alumni Hall of Distinction
and the College of Charleston Hall of Fame.
Mike Paxton
- a baseball and football standout at Oakhaven High School
in west Tennessee, he graduated as the career strikeout
leader for Memphis State University in 1975. Drafted by
the Boston Red Sox, he was the 1977 Red Sox Co-Rookie of
the Year. He played for the Cleveland Indians from 1978-80
and tied a major league record of 4 strikeouts in one inning
(1978). He has been inducted to the M Club Hall of Fame
at the University of Memphis.
Jerry Reese
- a native of Tiptonville, Tennessee, he played college
football for UT-Martin where he was named team MVP following
his senior season. After several years of assistant coaching
at UT-Martin, he joined the New York Giant's scouting department
and worked his way up through the ranks ultimately being
promoted to Director of Player Personnel in 2002. He was
named Sr. Vice President and General Manager of the Giants
in 2007 becoming only the third African-American general
manager in NFL history. He was inducted to the UT-Martin
Hall of Fame in 1995.
Jack Lupton
- his creation of The Honors Course in Chattanooga changed
the face of Tennessee Golf. He dedicated The Honors Course
to amateur golf and invited the finest championships be
played there. He helped create a President's Fund for special
golf projects in the state while he also helped fund the
women's golf program at the University of Tennessee. His
$3 million contribution helped fund the Golf House of Tennessee.
He was inducted to the Tennessee Golf Hall of Fame in 1995.
Fred Smith
(Lifetime Achievement Inductee) - Chairman, President and
CEO of the FedEx Corporation headquartered in Memphis. He
and his company are prominent in sports sponsorships both
nationally and in Tennessee. The FedEx Forum is home to
both the NBA Memphis Grizzlies and the University of Memphis
Tigers Basketball; FedExField is the home of the Washington
Redskins; the FedExCup is a new PGA championship; the Southern
Heritage Classic (annual football game between Jackson State
University and Tennessee State University) has been sponsored
by FedEx Express for 12 years; the FedEx Orange Bowl is
played on January 3rd; FedEx is the sponsor of the Joe Gibbs
Racing #11 driven by 2006 "Rookie of the Year",
Denny Hamlin.
Dick Huffman
(posthumous) - he made nine All-America teams while
playing football for the University of Tennessee in the
1940s. He was drafted to the NFL in 1945 and played tackle
for the Los Angeles Rams from 1947-1950. He was a one-time
Pro Bowler before being lured to the Canadian Football league
where he played seven seasons and was named All-Western
Offensive Tackle in 1952, 1954 and 1957. He was named All-Western
Defensive Tackle in 1953-1957. He was inducted to the Canadian
Football Hall of Fame in 1987.