From the day he hit a last-second basket for an overtime victory in a state high school basketball tournament, Bill Wright became a fixture in sports page headlines as a star athlete and later as a successful coach. Blessed with ability for any sport he pursued, he gained enduring recognition in baseball and basketball.
Wright, who led Duke University in hitting while stationed on the campus during World War II, was tabbed the shortstop of the future with the St. Louis Browns and had all the earmarks of certain stardom. Unfortunately tuberculosis, a rampant disease at the time, forced Wright to cut short his professional baseball career the year after he had led the league in RBI’s at the Aberdeen, South Dakota, farm club. A highlight of his basketball career, which included seasons at both Duke and the University of Tennessee, was his selection as First-Team All-Conference for both the Blue Devils and the Vols.
Wright, who taught school and coached in Knoxville, served as the University of Tennessee’s first academic counselor for athletes. He also took on the position of UT baseball coach and compiled a distinguished record over a nineteen year career, winning three SEC Eastern Division titles. He was inducted into the Knoxville Hall of Fame in 1988. Looked at as a whole, Bill Wright’s distinguished career as an athlete, academic counselor, and coach paints a clear picture of a very important and honored player in the history of Tennessee sports.