Tom Nix has had a profound influence on the youth of Memphis since 1951. The native of Oma, Mississippi, earned his B.S. at Memphis State University, where he was an outstanding football lineman. Years later he would be named to the all-time Tiger Team, 1924-1958. A former U.S. Marine, Nix in 1957 began his coaching career at Whitehaven High School in Memphis. He moved to Christian Brothers High School in 1956 as head football coach, a position he held until 1984 when he took over duties of athletic director and teacher. His teams won nearly twenty city, county, district, and regional championships. None of those teams will be forgotten, but his 1977 squad must be singled out as the greatest of them all. That team was the only one in CBHS history to bring home the state championship. As Tennessee’s most successful high school coach, with twenty-five years experience in class AAA, Nix’s awesome record stood at 239-79-7. With such a remarkable achievement, it is no surprise that Nix has received numerous honors, including many coach of the year awards and the National Football Foundation Hall of Fame award for contribution to amateur football in 1980. In 1990 the same foundation awarded Nix the “Rex Award.” A member of various halls of fame, Nix retired in 1995. The following year, Tom Nix Stadium at CBHS was dedicated, a fitting tribute to a Memphis sports legend.
