Leonard Hamilton is the current Florida State Head Basketball Coach had a brilliant college career at UT Martin.
The first weekend in May is a weekend of celebration for the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame. On the morning of May 4, Delta Dental will present the ‘Champion Within Luncheon’ at the Renaissance Hotel Nashville. The theme is taken from a famous quote by Booker T. Washington: “Success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he as overcome while trying to succeed.”
The luncheon, honoring Joan Cronan, Andrew Williams, Mike Reed, Rick Stockstill, Peggy Michaels, Rachel Bevans, Brian Baker, the Goodlettsville Little League Team and Tiffany Baines, will be emceed by Emmy Award winning sports broadcaster Hope Hines. Doors open at 11 am with lunch served at 11:30 am. Keynote speaker Fred Bailey, a blind wrestler and TSU graduate, is founder of ‘Children Are People,’ an after-school program that offers disadvantaged Sumner County students a chance to develop the academic and life skills needed to succeed.
Helping to honor these outstanding individuals will be members of the 2013 inductee class including Penny Hardaway, Kelly Holcomb, Trey Teague and Coach Rick Byrd who are all members of the 2013 Inductee Class being inducted that evening at the Hall of Fame’s signature event. Reserved tickets for the luncheon are $40 and can be purchased by calling 615-242-4750.
The 2013 Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame Induction Banquet is later Saturday, May 4, at the Renaissance Hotel. The Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame’s goal is to enshrine successful teams and individuals who display sportsmanship, good character and success, creating a legacy for others to follow. This year that illustrious group includes such luminaries as Rick Byrd, Trey Teague, Dr. Chris Jones, Kelly Holcomb, Frank Wycheck, Penny Hardaway, Leonard Hamilton, and Larry Seivers. The Lifetime Achievement award will be given to John Ed Miller, and the Posthumous Inductees will be long time radio and television broadcaster and Bob Bell and football great Ermal Allen.
Trey Teague, At the University of Tennessee was All SEC and All American; drafted by the Denver Broncos was part of the 1998 Super Bowl Championship team.
This year the Hall will also be honoring Vince Gill as the 2012 Lifetime Achievement Recipient. For the past 20 years, The Vinny Pro-Celebrity Invitational, under Gill’s leadership, has raised in excess of $5.5 million, which has benefited a variety of golf programs throughout Tennessee. These programs are directed primarily to its youth in order to further the interest and growth of the game as well as to teach valuable life skills through golf and to otherwise increase their educational and employment opportunities. The money generated by The Vinny has been to the betterment of the game of golf and has positively impacted the lives of thousands of Tennesseans.
Reserved tickets for the banquet are $125 and can be purchased by calling 615-242-4750. Leading up to its annual Induction Ceremony & Awards banquet, the Hall will host the Reunion of Champions at Adams and Reese Law Firm on Friday, May 3, which will be attended by past inductees as well as the 2013 class of inductees.
