William B. Dunavant, Jr. is a native Tennessean and Chairman of the Board of Dunavant Enterprises, Inc. in Memphis. He graduated from The McCallie School in Chattanooga, attended Vanderbilt University and graduated from the University of Memphis. Dunavant is one of the leading sportsmen in Tennessee history as an athlete, avid hunter, fisherman, conservationist and sports entrepreneur. He built Dunavant Enterprises into the world’s largest cotton merchandising company. He put Tennessee on the global cotton map when he made the first sale of U.S.–grown cotton to China in 1972.
As an accomplished amateur athlete, Dunavant won numerous tennis and golf tournaments. Billy was a fierce competitor and would play anybody in tennis. In fact, he even had an on-going rivalry with tennis legend Bobby Riggs. His love of tennis led Dunavant to develop the Racquet Club of Memphis in 1972 and he brought the U.S National Indoor Tennis Championships to Memphis in 1975, it continues today as Tennessee’s only professional tennis tournament. Billy personally brought such stars as Jimmy Connors, John McEnroe, Bjorn Borg and Andre Agassi to the Memphis tournament.
In 1984 and 1985, Dunavant was the owner of the United States Football League’s Memphis Showboats. Dunavant signed former University of Tennessee star and Pro Football Hall of Famer Reggie White to his first professional contract. He led the pursuit of an NFL expansion franchise for Memphis. Since 1994 and continuing today, his organization has managed the AutoZone Liberty Bowl Football Classic.
As a major donor and contributor to Ducks Unlimited, he spearheaded the campaign and is credited as the key figure in bringing the Ducks Unlimited world headquarters to Memphis from Chicago in 1992. Dunavant continues today as a leader in preserving Tennessee’s reputation in conservation and outdoor sports.