Former NFL quarter back Peyton Manning sits down for a Q&A during the Middle Tennessee Sports Awards at the Music City Center Thursday May 26, 2016, in Nashville, Tenn.

Peyton Manning poses with David Bramble and his son after accepting the Kaia Jergenson Courage Award for his son Baylor Bramble (not pictured) during the Middle Tennessee Sports Awards at the Music City Center Thursday May 26, 2016, in Nashville, Tenn.

Marcus Mariota and Pekka Rinne and Jalen Hurd will dominate the conversation soon enough, and we’ll follow Bryce Drew and Stephanie White in their rebuilds and Vanderbilt-Tennessee in its rivalry resumption.

For a spring night in downtown Nashville, though, there was not a bigger name in the sports world than Baylor Bramble. And Peyton Manning was on that stage Thursday in an enormous Music City Center ballroom, which was later filled by Bramble’s story.

Bramble’s father, pastor David Bramble of Northside Baptist Church in Murfreesboro, accepted the Kaia Jergenson Courage Award at the first Middle Tennessee Sports Awards on behalf of his son, who continues to battle the effects of a severe head injury.

Bramble, 17, a junior football player at Siegel, suffered it in an Oct. 23 win over Warren County. He came off the field complaining that his head hurt. He was soon being airlifted to Nashville; he had emergency surgery to relieve pressure on the brain; he spent six months in different hospitals; and last month he wrote on his iPad from home: “IAMNOTQUITING.”

“He is home fighting like a champion,” David Bramble, flanked by younger son Brady, told the crowd of Baylor.

That was the hit-home moment, in front of about 1,200 people, on an evening that gave high school athletes in the area a new and deserved platform for their achievements. Crystal Dangerfield, the Blackman point guard and McDonald’s All-American who committed long ago to Geno Auriemma’s dominant Connecticut program, was named All-Midstate Female Athlete of the Year.

• MORE: 
  Full list of award winners and honorees

Brentwood Academy quarterback Jeremiah Oatsvall was named Male Athlete of the Year. Every major high school sport had an individual winner, and Independence football coach Scott Blade got the coaching award.

Community service, leadership and sportsmanship were honored, and so was academic achievement — did you know Aidan Pace of Fayetteville has a perfect grade-point average AND got a perfect score of 36 on his ACT?

And Manning took over the middle of the program, with a lengthy question and answer session with Tennessean sports editor Dave Ammenheuser. He provided some nuggets on his post-retirement career (it won’t be in coaching), on his “Saturday Night Live” skit in which he pegged kids with a football (it was a hollowed-out Nerf), on whether he’ll let his son play football (he will), and on the Titans recruiting him when he ended up signing with the Denver Broncos in 2012.

“I was pretty close,” Manning said of choosing the Titans.

And yes, Manning will go well beyond the one game per season of attending Tennessee football that he was able to do as a pro.

“I’m a huge Butch Jones fan,” Manning said, “I’m excited about the Tennessee Vols and how we’re gonna do this year.”

And we’ll all get to that soon enough. Thursday served as an effective pause and a chance to herald the less-heralded. The Fred Russell Lifetime Achievement Award, named after the longtime sports editor of The Banner, went to longtime Father Ryan volleyball coach Jinx Cockerham.

The Courage Award is named after Jergenson, a former Lipscomb University basketball player who had both legs amputated after a bacterial meningitis infection and returned to the team as a manager. Now a pharmacist and a mother, she was on hand to present the award.

It could have gone to finalist Roszetta Bibbs, an East Nashville basketball player who has been battling brain cancer; or to Andrew Kittrell, a Mt. Juliet Christian Academy football player who is one of the team’s top players on a prosthetic leg.

But this was another moment in what David Bramble called “a remarkable journey of love, and if you’ve ever wanted to see the work of God, then look to Baylor.”

He then told of his son’s iPad message and said: “So we ask you not to quit and to continue to pray for Baylor.”

After the standing ovation, George Plaster, who emceed the event deftly and with a joke for every situation, had only this as the Brambles walked off the stage: “I have no idea how you follow that.”

Reach Joe Rexrode on Twitter @JoeRexrode. 

Beech High School didn’t waste much time in filling its vacancy for the girls basketball head coach.

It didn’t have to look very far either as athletic director Kristi Utley accepted the position on Thursday.

“I’m excited,” Utley said. “Any time I commit to something, there’s only one way I know how to do it, and that’s the best way I know how to do it.”

Kristi Utley

Utley succeeds Kari Douglas, who stepped down on Monday to focus on spending more time with her family.

Douglas missed the 2015-16 season while on maternity leave, and the Lady Buccaneers finished 11-21 under interim head coach Troy Carnes. Carnes, who accepted the head-coaching position at Davidson Academy, led Beech to the Region 5-AAA Tournament after victories against third-seeded Hendersonville and second-seeded Mt. Juliet en route to a runner-up finish in the District 9-AAA Tournament.

Beech suffered a 48-40 loss to visiting Clarksville in the Region 5-AAA quarterfinals to end its season.

With Utley being familiar with the players in the program, the move means minimal transition for players as summer activities draw closer.

“I just felt like, right now, I had the time that I could commit to something like girls basketball,” Utley said.

Utley, a 1988 graduate of Beech, played at the University of Kentucky from 1988-89 through the 1991-92 season, helping the 1989-90 squad win the Women’s National Invitational Tournament (NIT) championship. Utley is 10th all time in Lady Wildcat history for 3-pointers made in a career (110) and shot nearly 40 percent from behind the arc, tops in Kentucky history for players with a minimum of 200 attempts. She is also seventh in made free throws (318) and ninth in free-throw percentage (78 percent), and she led the team in scoring in 1988-89 as a freshman with 12.9 points per game.

Utley served as the assistant basketball and head softball for two years when she returned to Beech for the 1995-96 school year, but she gave up the basketball position after her second season.

“I was coaching both (basketball and softball), and it just wasn’t the right time,” Utley said.

Utley coached softball through the 2003-04 season, leading the team to Class AAA state championships in 1997, 2001 and 2004 and runner-up finishes in 1998 and 1999. Utley returned to the softball program midway through the 2011 season, along with David Woods and Wayne Smith, and coached the Lady Buccaneers to the state championship that year as well.

Now, she’s ready to get back on the bench at her alma mater.

“I feel fine with the time commitment, but it’s just going to take getting used to it,” Utley said. “I’m probably a lot more comfortable coaching basketball, believe it or not, than I was coaching softball.”

The Lady Bucs graduated three seniors – two-time All-County Player of the Year Deja Smith, Lauren Crowley and Lexi Cook.

Rising seniors McCall Decker and Joslyn Brinkley, rising juniors Reese Taylor and Savannah Jarratt, and rising sophomore Kendra Mueller all gained considerable experience last season.

“I’m just excited to get in there,” Utley said. “I’m aware of what we have coming back, because I went to quite a few of the games last year. I’m just ready to get in there and see where we are and see what kind of improvements the girls need to make and what the team as a whole needs to do.”

Reach Chris Brooks at cbrooks@tennessean.com or at 615-575-7118. Follow him on Twitter @CB_SumnerSports.

Tennessee State coach Rod Reed hopes to persuade Tennessee to play his team.

While Butch Jones tries to talk prospects into coming to Tennessee at the Vols’ first satellite camp June 5 at Tennessee State, Tigers coach Rod Reed will try to persuade Jones to do something he would like.

Make no mistake, Reed also will pitch his program to the 400-500 high school players who are expected to show up at Hale Stadium for what the Vols are calling Tennessee Statement Camp ’16.

But at some point, Reed will take advantage of having Jones on his campus and try to talk him into doing something no Vols coach ever has done — play the Tigers.

UT has played other in-state Ohio Valley Conference teams Austin Peay and UT Martin over the past few years, and it will play Tennessee Tech this season.

The Vols also played Chattanooga, another in-state Football Championship Subdivision team, in 2014 and FCS power Montana in 2011.

Tennessee State coach Rod Reed, right, is featured on the Tennessee’s flyer for its first satellite camp, which will take place on TSU’s campus next week.

But the Big Orange and the Big Blue never have played.

TSU tried to get a game with UT in 2014 when the Vols found themselves in a bind after UAB punted its football program. Tennessee was scheduled to open the 2015 season against UAB at Nissan Stadium.

TSU athletics director Teresa Phillips, who developed a close relationship with Jones when Jones recruited her son Kyle, who ended up signing with the Vols, was willing to reschedule the Tigers’ 2015 opener so the Tigers could replace UAB on UT’s schedule.

Tennessee instead paid Bowling Green $1.2 million to play in the guarantee game.

The Tigers played a guarantee game against Vanderbilt in 2006 and Air Force in 2011, and they will play the Commodores again this season. 

But the payoff won’t be nearly as much as it would be for a game against UT in Knoxville.

“That would really be a good game for us,” Phillips said. “We tried to get something worked out before.”

The Vols will roll onto TSU’s campus with a big show for the satellite camp. It will include an orange-and-white decorated tractor trailer parked on the track at Hale Stadium to serve as Jones’ office.

A giant video screen with concert speakers nearby will show Vols highlights while blaring “Rocky Top.”

UT is paying TSU the standard fee for use of Hale Stadium, the indoor facility and the football team’s practice field. An extra fee is still being negotiated, which will go directly to TSU’s football program.

And TSU will benefit from the camp being on its campus because only a few, if any, of the recruits will end up at UT. The Tigers could find some prospects along with the staff from Middle Tennessee State, which also will be there.

Jones talked about how much he respects Phillips, Reed and the TSU program as a whole when he broke the news about the satellite camp earlier this month at the Big Orange Caravan stop in Franklin.

It will be interesting to see whether respecting the Tigers also means Jones considers them to be a worthy opponent.

Vanderbilt, 3 other SEC teams will be at FRA satellite camp

Derek Mason

Don’t worry, Vanderbilt fans, the Commodores aren’t getting left out of the satellite camp business.

Coach Derek Mason confirmed that he and several members of his staff will join coaches from 19 other colleges, including three from the SEC — Alabama, Mississippi State and Texas A&M — at the Music City Showcase on June 5 at Franklin Road Academy.

The other staffs that will be there are Memphis, Air Force, Western Kentucky, Tennessee Tech, Chattanooga, UT Martin, East Tennessee State, Cumberland, Charleston Southern, Carson-Newman, Dartmouth, Maryville, Jackson State, UNC Charlotte and Lindsey Wilson.

The cost for players in the seventh grade and older is $30. Registration is available at musiccityfootballcamp.com and also the day of the camp at FRA beginning at 4:30 p.m.

Titans help launch reality series

Taylor Lewan

The Titans’ Taylor Lewan and Anthony Fasano as well as former player Steve Hutchinson will be featured in the debut of the original television reality series “Jack of All Tastes.”

Lewan, Fasano and Hutchinson took Jackie Long, host of the show and the wife of former NFL star Jake Long, to their favorite dining spots in Nashville for the 30-minute episode.

Lewan accompanied Long to The Southern in the SoBro district; Fasano took her to Le Sel on Music Row and Hutchinson took her to The 404 Kitchen in the Gulch.

After each meal, the executive chefs at each restaurant — Matt Farley (The Southern), Jason Brumm (Le Sel) and Matt Bolus (404 Kitchen) — gave Long a tour of the kitchen to get the inside scoop on how each of the players’ favorite meals were prepared.

Nashville was the first city Long visited. The second, which also already has been shot, was Charlotte, N.C., where Long dined with Carolina Panthers players Ryan Kalil, Luke Kuechly and Thomas Davis.

The show also will visit Miami, Atlanta, New York and New Orleans.

Dolphin Digital Media, which is producing the series, will announce the network along with the dates and times it will air following final production of the first six episodes.

Fans can follow Long’s culinary adventures on Instagram at jackofalltastes.

Drive 4 Dinger Tournament is next weekend

Todd Bowles

New York Jets coach Todd Bowles, former NFL coach Mike Shanahan and former Titans Kevin Carter, Michael Roos, Kevin Dyson, Chris Sanders, Benji Olson and Zach Piller are among those who will play in the fifth annual Drive 4 Dinger Celebrity Golf Tournament on Friday at Vanderbilt Legends Club.

There will be a dinner and auction the following day at Embassy Suites Cool Springs.

The event honors former Titans offensive coordinator Mike Heimerdinger, who died from cancer in 2011.

It is open to the public. Registration for the tournament ($500 per golfer, $1,600 per foursome) and tickets for the dinner/auction ($75 individual, $125 couples, $600 table) is available at Drive4Dinger.com. You don’t have to play in the tournament to attend the dinner/auction.

Proceeds go to Meals 4 Health and Healing Program, which delivers healthy, organic meals to patients undergoing cancer treatment and their families at no cost.

Others playing in the tournament include Jets defensive coordinator Kacy Rodgers, who played for the Vols, Seahawks assistant Kippy Brown, who coached for the Vols, local PGA member Johan Kok, Grammy Award-winning artist Gary Chapman and local media personalities Cory Curtis, Bob Mueller, Rudy Kalis and Chris Harris.

Vanderbilt fans can catch new coach on the tube

Stephanie White

Vanderbilt women’s basketball fans who would like to see new Commodores coach Stephanie Whitein action will get the chance by tuning in on TV.

White is coach of the WNBA’s Indiana Fever, which has five televised games over the next four weeks beginning Sunday.

The Fever plays at the Atlanta Dream at 2 p.m. Sunday (NBA-TV). The other games: June 12 against the Seattle Storm (5 p.m., NBA-TV), June 14 at the Minnesota Lynx (7 p.m., ESPN2), June 19 against the New York Liberty (1 p.m., NBA-TV) and June 25 at the Dallas Wings (7:30 p.m., NBA-TV).

White will start working at Vanderbilt after the WNBA season ends in the fall.

Longtime Martin coach and administrator dies    

Royce Hughes

Royce Hughes, who coached basketball, tennis, softball, cheerleading and served as senior women’s athletics director at Martin Methodist, died Monday. She was 73.

Hughes began her career at Martin in 1968 and in 1973 became the school’s first tennis coach. After coaching basketball from 1975-78, she started the softball team in 1979.

She was inducted into the Martin Athletics Hall of Fame in 1996 and in 2004 the Giles County Commission christened May 17 “Royce Hughes Day” in recognition of her work with Special Olympics.

More speakers for Music City Sports Festival

A couple of additions to the speaker series have been made to the Music City Sports Festival, which is scheduled for next Saturday-Sunday at Music City Center.

Predators forward Craig Smith will speak from 12:30-1:30 p.m. Saturday, and Titans linebacker Brian Orakpo from 2:30-3 p.m. Sunday.

They’ll join Titans first-round draft pick Jack Conklin (Saturday, 11:30 a.m.-12:15 p.m), new Vanderbilt men’s basketball coach Bryce Drew (Saturday, 2-3 p.m.), former Vanderbilt and NBA center Will Perdue (Saturday, 10:30-11:15 a.m.). Middle Tennessee State men’s basketball coach Kermit Davis and radio commentator Chip Walters (Saturday, 3-3:45 p.m.), ESPN football analyst Trevor Matich (Sunday, 1:30-2:15 p.m.) and the anglers who provide information for The Tennessean’s weekly fishing report (8:45-9:30 a.m.).

For tickets or more information, visit musiccitysportsfestival.com.

If you have an item for Midstate Chatter, contact Mike Organ at 615-259-8021 or on Twitter @MikeOrganWriter.

SPORTS ON NASHVILLE TV

The top five ratings for local sporting events on television for May 16-22:
1. NBA playoffs: Thunder-Warriors (May 16), 4.6 rating
2. NBA playoffs: Thunder-Warriors (May 22), 4.0 rating
3. NBA playoffs: Thunder-Warriors (May 18), 3.9 rating
4. NASCAR: All-Star Race-Charlotte (May 21), 3.4 rating
5. NBA playoffs: Cavaliers-Raptors (May 21), 3.3 rating
Each rating point is equal to 9,902 Nashville homes. SEC Network ratings not available.
Source: Mark Binda, WTVF-5 programming & research director

SEC

Andrew Maraniss, right, with Perry Wallace, has become a full time writer who will contribute to an ESPN website and The Tennessean, and also work on more sports-related books.

Writing his first book inspired Andrew Maraniss to turn a new chapter in his life.

Documenting Pearl High graduate Perry Wallace’s turbulent experience as the first African-American to play basketball in the SEC at Vanderbilt and the subsequent success that came after the book “Strong Inside” was published was so exhilarating for Maraniss that he’s decided to make writing his full time gig.

The former Vanderbilt sports information director is stepping away from an 18-year career at McNeely Pigott and Fox, the last four years as a partner, to follow in the footsteps of his father, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and bestselling author David Maraniss, to focus on a series of writing and other related projects.

“Working on ‘Strong Inside’ and then seeing it come to fruition was a confidence-booster that this is something I can do,” Maraniss said.

Along with his plans to write other books, Maraniss is contributing to ESPN’s new website The Undefeated, which is focusing on “the intersection of race, sports and culture,” and also writing a weekly question-and-answer column for The Tennessean featuring Nashville newsmakers.

In many ways, Maraniss, 46, is returning to his first love. It was writing that brought him from Austin, Texas, to Nashville in 1988 as a student at Vanderbilt on the Fred Russell-Grantland Rice Scholarship for sports journalism.

The success of “Strong Inside,” which is close to selling out its second printing, meaning nearly 12,000 copies have been sold, left Maraniss swamped by trying to continue to hold down his position at McNeely, Pigott and Fox and meeting the obligations associated with the book.

Strong Inside by Andrew Maraniss

A flood of speaking engagement requests came for Maraniss and Wallace after the release of the book at the end of 2014 and are still coming today. In the next few weeks, they will speak in Washington, D.C., Des Moines, Iowa, Kansas City, Mo., and Lawrence, Kan.

The paperback version of “Strong Inside” will be released in August.

Maraniss also just finished editing a middle school version of the book for ages 10-14, which will be published by Penguin’s young adult imprint, Philomel, in January 2017.

And a documentary based on the book is in the editing stage and expected to premiere at film festivals early in 2017.

“I worked on the book for seven years before I had a publisher, so for a long time I didn’t know if it would ever get out there or if anyone would read it,” Maraniss said. “But at the same time I had high expectations because I knew Perry Wallace’s story was so interesting. Still, it exceeded my expectations. I’m really grateful for the enthusiasm that has been there for the book and the reviews it’s gotten and the people who have read it and commented on it.”

Maraniss won’t give away much about the proposals he has for other books.

“I’ll say that one is a children’s sports and history series and the other for adults dealing with historical events that took place in the Deep South in the early 1900s,” Maraniss said.

Maraniss already has written his first story for theundefeated.com, which was on former Vanderbilt and Alabama basketball coach C.M. Newton, who also served as athletics director at Kentucky.

“C.M. Newton is 86 now and I went down and saw him in Tuscaloosa,” Maraniss said. “It’s interesting; he’s beloved by three different fan bases in the SEC. He’s a special guy.”

Maraniss’ next story will be about Pearl High’s athletic and academic legacy.

The first Q&A Maraniss will write for The Tennessean will be on Titans defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau.

Kornet’s sister was at UCLA during shooting

Nicole Kornet

Nicole Kornet, the sister of Vanderbilt forward Luke Kornet, was on the UCLA campus Wednesday when a gunman opened fire in an apparent murder-suicide. Nicole Kornet is a senior on the UCLA women’s basketball team.

The gunman reportedly killed a professor before turning the gun on himself.

Kornet’s mother, Tracy, a WSMV-4 reporter, posted on Twitter: “Prayers to the families of the dead at #UCLA. My daughter is safe and on lockdown in the gym. Thx for asking.”

Former Brentwood guard Patrick signs with Packers

Former Brentwood offensive guard Lucas Patrick, who was a two-year starter at Duke, signed a free agent contract with the Green Bay Packers.

The 6-foot-3, 313-pound Patrick made the All-ACC honorable mention list in 2015.

Peyton and “Snacks” to visit White House

Peyton Manning and former Vols punter Britton Colquitt along with former La Vergne and Tennessee State offensive guard Robert “Snacks” Myers are scheduled to visit the White House on Monday as members of the Super Bowl 50 champion Denver Broncos.

Another camp coming for high school football players

Satellite football camps keep popping up in the Midstate.

There will be two Sunday — Tennessee’s Statement Camp ’16 at TSU’s Hale Stadium and the Music City Showcase at Franklin Road Academy. A total of 23 college coaching staffs will be at those two camps for high school prospects.

On Thursday, there will be 23 coaching staffs at a camp at Goodpasture being put on by Field House Camps.

Some of those staffs include Florida, South Carolina, Southern Miss, TSU, Tennessee Tech, Austin Peay, UT Martin and Cumberland.

Memorial golf tournament to be broadcast on WUXP

WTVF-5, the local CBS affiliate, will carry the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals Telethon on Sunday, meaning the final round of the Memorial Golf Tournament will be broadcast live on WUXP-30 from 1:30-5 p.m. A live stream and updates will be available at thememorialtournament.com and pgatour.com/live.

Former Vol’s daughter starring in local TV ads

Taylor Allen

It comes as no surprise that Corey Allen’s 14-year-old daughter Taylor is developing into a talented basketball player.

She’s simply following in the footsteps of her dad, who starred at Whites Creek, led Aquinas to the junior college national championship and finished his career as a starter at Tennessee.

What wasn’t expected is the success Taylor is having off the court, including as an actress in several local TV commercials.

Her latest is in the recurring role she has in the Old Hickory Credit Union spots.

SEC tourney had almost $20 million in economic impact

The 2016 SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament had a direct economic impact on Nashville of $19,966,738, according to the Nashville Sports Council.

That was more than any of the previous years the tournament was played at Bridgestone Arena.

Shaw leaving Vandy women’s team for Wisconsin

Kendall Shaw, who played in 25 games for the Vanderbilt women’s basketball team last season, is transferring to Wisconsin.

The 6-foot-4 center, who has one year of eligibility left, averaged 2.2 points and 1.4 rebounds after missing the previous two seasons with injuries.

Titans chaplain speaks to FCA camp

Former Titans fullback Casey Cramer, who is now the team’s chaplain, was the featured speaker at the Greater Nashville FCA camp this past week.

Athletes from four inner city schools and four private schools attended leadership training at Deer Run Retreat in Thompson Station.

Stallings’ son sets RBI record for Triple-A club 

Jacob Stallings

Jacob Stallings, the son of former Vanderbilt basketball coach Kevin Stallings, set a club record Tuesday when he had seven RBIs for the Triple-A Indianapolis Indians.

The Pittsburgh catching prospect, who played at Brentwood Academy, homered twice in a 9-3 win over Rochester.

He had a leadoff homer in the third inning, a three-run double in the fourth, an RBI single in the sixth and a two-run homer in the eighth.

Belmont’s Tiner adds preaching to play-by-play duties 

As if Belmont baseball and women’s basketball play-by-play announcer Rich Tiner didn’t have enough already on his plate, the school’s director of mass communications is now a full time preacher.

Tiner became the pastor at The Pointe Church, previously First Church of God at Mt. Juliet, located on Morningside Drive, which is just off Lebanon Road.

Metro Parks meetings coming up

A series of community meetings are scheduled for Nashvillians to have the opportunity to provide input on the future of Metro’s parks.

The meetings are scheduled for 6 p.m. Wednesday at Southeast Community Center on Hickory Hollow Parkway, at noon Thursday at the Downtown Library with Mayor Megan Barry and at 6 p.m. Thursday at Old Hickory Community Center and McCabe Community Center.

If you have an item for Midstate Chatter, contact Mike Organ at 615-259-8021 or on Twitter @MikeOrganWriter.

SPORTS ON NASHVILLE TV

The top five local ratings for sporting events on television for May 23-29:
1. NBA playoffs: Warriors-Thunder (May 28), 5.9 rating
2. NBA playoffs: Warriors-Thunder (May 26), 5.8 rating
3. Auto racing: Indianapolis 500, 5.5 rating
4. NASCAR: Charlotte 600, 4.9 rating
5. NBA playoffs: Cavaliers-Raptors (May 27), 4.5 rating  
Each rating point equals 9,902 Nashville homes.
Source: Mark Binda, WTVF-5 programming & research director

NEW HAVEN, Conn. — Former Yale basketball captain Jack Montague, who was a standout at Brentwood High School, filed a lawsuit Thursday accusing the Ivy League university of wrongfully expelling him over a sexual assault allegation.

Former Brentwood High basketball star and Yale basketball captain Jack Montague.

The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Connecticut, says Montague was punished over what he believes was consensual sex. It says Montague had a relationship with the woman, a fellow Yale student, and asserts that she came back to his room to spend the night after the encounter in question in October 2014.

The lawsuit argues that the university used the case against Montague, a popular and well-liked athlete, as an opportunity to show it was tough on sexual misconduct following a survey on sexual assault by the Association of American Universities. The association estimated that one in four Yale undergraduates had experienced an incident that “does not meet Yale’s standard for consent.”

“In short, imposing harsh discipline on Montague would surely make an impact,” the lawsuit says.

A Yale spokesman, Tom Conroy, said the lawsuit is factually inaccurate and baseless and the university plans a vigorous defense.

“Yale’s procedures for addressing allegations of sexual misconduct are thorough and fair,” he said. “Allegations are investigated by an impartial fact-finder, heard by five trained members of the Yale community, and decided by the accused student’s dean.”

Montague, a senior, was accused in a complaint filed on the woman’s behalf by a Title IX official Nov. 18. A university panel ruled against him, and the provost upheld the ruling, according to his attorneys. Montague was expelled Feb. 10.

His lawsuit names Yale as a defendant along with two university officials who were involved in processing the complaint against him. It alleges the woman only wanted someone from the school’s Title IX office to talk with Montague about the incident and provide training but she was encouraged to participate in a formal complaint process.

According to the lawsuit, the woman said in her account to a fact-finder that she told Montague she did not want to have intercourse but he looked as if he did not hear what she said. Montague told the fact-finder that nothing about the encounter made him think the woman was hesitant or uncomfortable. The dispute is about the last of four sexual encounters between the two students, his attorneys say.

Police and the local prosecutor said no criminal allegation has been filed in the case.

The lawsuit asks that Montague be reinstated as a student or for Yale to reopen the proceedings against him. It also seeks damages.

Expulsion at Yale requires a threshold of “preponderance of the evidence” for establishing wrongdoing, lower than any criminal case.

“Only about one out of 10 cases ends in expulsion, and the decision to expel a student is made only after the most careful consideration, based on the facts and, when appropriate, disciplinary history,” the school said.

Sam Fischer

PLAYER OF THE YEAR

SAM FISCHER

Brentwood, Jr.

Why chosen: Fischer captured a Class AAA state title in his first trip. He beat Science Hill’s Andrew Morton 6-3, 6-1 in the finals.

Quote: “It’s always been (Sean and Steven) Karl, Karl, Karl the past couple years, so it’s a huge honor to fall in their footsteps a bit as they went on to be great players, so it’s exciting; it’s a huge deal, so I’m excited.”

Family: Dad Martin, mom Dana, sister Georgia (15).

College plans: “I absolutely want to play college tennis. Still undecided.”

Athletic background: I played basketball and lacrosse until middle school, but tennis has always been my priority.

Favorite sport besides tennis: Basketball.

Best high school sports moment: Watching my teammate clinch our district title —Go BHS!!

Favorite athlete: Kobe Bryant.

Favorite food: Honey-seared Chicken / Pei Wei.

Where do you see yourself in 10 years: A career in physics / astronomy.

Summer plans: Playing the Summer Tournaments — Southerns, National Clay Courts (Delray Beach), National Hard (Kalamazoo).

FIRST TEAM

SINGLES

HUSSAIN AL ZUBAIDI, Siegel, Fr.

Reached the Class AAA state semifinals before falling to Science Hill’s Andrew Morton.

GEORGE HARWELL, MBA, Jr.

Captured his second consecutive DII-AA state singles title, defeating rival Miles Jackson in the finals.

MILES JACKSON, Ensworth, So.

Pushed rival George Harwell to the limit in the DII-AA finals before falling 6-7, 6-3, 4-6.

NATHAN ZOU, Central Magnet, Fr.

Captured the Class A-AA state title with a 6-4, 6-3 win over Knox Catholic’s Jacob Lorino.

DOUBLES

STEFAN ANTIC, HAYES CANUPP, Ravenwood, Jr., Jr.

Reached the AAA state semifinals before falling to eventual champs Griffin Davis and Charlie Adams (Bearden).

NOAH BAKER, SAM BURRUS, Friendship Christian, Jr., Jr.

Reached the DII-A semifinals before losing to eventual champs Cade Reasons and George Markos (USJ).

SECOND TEAM

SINGLES

George Corzine, University School of Nashville, Fr.

Cole Crosland, White Co., Jr.

Timmy O’Brien, Zion Christian, So.

Isaiah Polk, Page, Sr.

Kato Richardson, Hendersonville, Sr.

DOUBLES

Josh Walker, Dylan Chambers, Mt. Juliet, Jr., Jr.

Griffin Emrick, Thomas Goodwyn, MTCS, Jr., Sr.

COACH OF THE YEAR

Bill Jayne

BILL JAYNE, BRENTWOOD

Why chosen: Jayne led Brentwood to the Class AAA team semifinals and was also there to help Sam Fischer claim the Class AAA singles title over Science Hill’s Andrew Morton.

Quote: “I’m very happy for him. His game continues to improve. We won the boys individual title with Maxx Lipman my first year of coaching, so Sam being able to do that again is a testament to what Brentwood High School has.”

Brentwood’s Somer Henry

PLAYER OF THE YEAR

SOMER HENRY

Brentwood, So.

Why chosen: Henry captured her second straight Class AAA state singles title, defeating Collierville’s Sneha Sinha in the championship match.

Quote: “I try not to think about it too much and just play it point by point, and I think that helped a lot.”

Family: Dad Tracy, mom Becky, brothers Brett (28), Peyton (26), Blake (21) and sister Caroline (13).

College plans: “I plan to go to a Division I college to play tennis. I love the South but am looking all over.”

Athletic background: I played pretty much every sport when I was little, but I broke my arm badly in soccer when I was 8 and my dad said no more contact sports for a while. As soon as my cast came off I started playing tennis again and focused on it from then on.

Favorite sport besides tennis: Basketball

Best high school sports moment: When I won state last year, my freshman year.

Favorite athlete: Roger Federer.

Favorite food: Cookies.

Where do you see yourself in 10 years: I would like to be living in Nashville and teaching tennis.

Summer plans: I am going to a Young Life Camp in Colorado for a week then playing multiple tournaments — Southern and National. My favorite one is in San Diego.

FIRST TEAM

SINGLES

SOFIA PHILLIPS, Clarksville, So.

Reached the Class AAA semifinals for the second straight season.

WINSLOW HUTH, Harpeth Hall, 8th

Reached the DII-AA state finals, falling to Baylor’s Drew Hawkins.

SKYLAR McDONALD, Fayetteville, Sr.

Reached the Class A-AA semifinals before falling to eventual champ Danielle Vines of Elizabethton.

KYLIE HUMPHREY, Oakland, So.

Reached the Class AAA state tournament before falling to Clarksville’s Sofia Phillips.

DOUBLES

KATIE DEWALD, GEORGIA FISCHER, Brentwood, Jr., Fr.

Lady Bruins duo won the AAA doubles title, not losing a point in two of the three wins.

ANNA MINCEY, AYA MELHEM, Blackman, Fr., Sr.

Reached the Class AAA state semifinals before a three-set loss to the runners-up.

SECOND TEAM

SINGLES

Emily Enoch, CPA, Jr.

Lauren Heinrich, Merrol Hyde, Sr.

Holly McClure, St. Cecilia, Jr.

Lou Phillips, Goodpasture, Sr.

Lauren Hadley Trammell, Brentwood Academy, So.

DOUBLES

Micayla May, Sarah Brackin, Page, Jr., Jr.

Thalia Stein, Mia Pretorius, USN, Jr., Fr.

COACH OF THE YEAR

Bill Jayne

BILL JAYNE, BRENTWOOD

Why chosen: Jayne helped lead the Lady Bruins to three state championships this season. He led the girls squad to its first Class AAA team state title since 2003, coached Somer Henry to her second consecutive individual title and watched as Katie DeWald and Georgia Fischer claimed the Class AAA doubles title.

Quote: “The talent that I have at Brentwood High School is incredible. This was the first time the girls have made it to state, so other than knowing we would face some tough competition we didn’t know a lot about it. They put their minds to it and just steamrolled through.”

Al Smith

If Jerry Glanville bothers to show up for the Roast of Floyd Reese, and that’s not a done deal since Glanville is on the fence about whether the June 28 event at Omni Nashville Hotel is worthy of his time, the former Oilers and Titans general manager is in for it.

Former Titans general manger Floyd Reese will be honored with a roast on June 28 at the Omni Nashville Holel.

Without even bothering to prepare, Glanville is capable of hurling more barbs at Reese than quarterback Warren Moon threw touchdowns for Glanville during his time as the Oilers coach.

“Geez, Floyd Reese is so unimportant to me in my life I haven’t even really worked on anything yet,” Glanville said. “Last night I was talking to the Plumbers and Pipefitters of America and I thought about how much more important they are to me than Floyd. I’d much rather have a good plumber than Floyd any day. Floyd is so unimportant I may not even show up.”

Don’t believe it. Glanville will be there.

There’s no way he’s passing on the chance to give his former linebackers coach a good-natured ribbing.

“I’ve gotten Floyd every job he ever had except one,” Glanville said. “He came to Georgia Tech with Pepper Rodgers, and Pepper retained one coach off the previous staff and to my misfortune it was me that was retained and I met Floyd. I stayed with Pepper 19 days in spring practice and that was about 10 days too long. I went to the Detroit Lions, and like a fool I recommended Floyd. We brought him along, and that ruined our whole frickin’ season.”

Jerry Glanville

Glanville, who lives in Knoxville, still is scratching his head about why Reese, who went on to serve as the Oilers and Titans general manager from 1994-2006, is being roasted.

“Usually, if they have a roast, a guy’s had to accomplish something,” Glanville said. “Is anybody going to come to this? How are they going to sell tickets to pay my big fee? I told Floyd the other day his kids had two choices: go to welding school or count on Jerry to keep getting their old man jobs so they could go to college.”

Remember, this is Glanville without putting much thought into what he will say when he joins current Titans GM Jon Robinson, longtime Oilers/Titans strength and conditioning coach Steve Watterson, former Titans defensive line coach Jim Washburn and former Titans and Oilers players Derrick Mason, Erron Kinney, Scott Sanderson and Al Smith at the roast.

Former Oilers running back Spencer Tillman, now a Fox Sports college football analyst, will emcee the roast sponsored by 102.5-FM. It will benefit Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt.

“There’s probably been a lot of venom stored up for these guys that’s just waiting to come out,” Reese said. “The truth is we’re trying to make it really fun. Jerry could do a comedy show of his own. Steve Watterson is one of the more unique personalities in the NFL. Spencer Tillman has a tremendous sense of humor, and he can imitate and emulate anyone. And, of course, there’s Jon Robinson, who has a tremendous sense of humor.”

Robinson is sure to bring up some gems from his time with Reese in the front office at New England after Reese left the Titans.

“Jon will have some unique stories about things we wanted to do, couldn’t do, tried to do, whatever it was,” Reese said.

For tickets or more information, visit thegamenashville.com.

Coach Forum coming to Vanderbilt in July

David Williams

Vanderbilt and the new Nashville Coaching Coalition will partner to host an innovative seminar — The Coach Forum — for high school and college coaches who want to improve their ability to mentor in areas other than X’s and O’s.

Some of the issues that will be covered include mental health, eating disorders, ending power-based violence, work-life balance for coaches, team trust and character development.

An impressive lineup of presenters includes former NFL player and author Joe Ehrmann, three-time Olympic gold medal winning swimmer Josh Davis, former Vanderbilt basketball star Shan Foster, Christ Presbyterian Academy football coach Ingle Martin, former Titan David Ball, six-time national champion UCLA gymnastics coach Valorie Kondos, WSMV-4 anchor Rudy Kalis and Vanderbilt athletics director David Williams.

“The Nashville Coaching Coalition is a new organization with a noble and valuable mission to prepare athletic coaches to be better leaders in their programs and their communities,” Williams said. “Many of the topics are matters of great importance in today’s sports world that do not often get addressed.”

The seminar is scheduled for 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m. July 21 at the Vanderbilt Student Life Center. For more information or to register, visit thecoachforum.com.

UT, MTSU women’s hoops in top 20 in attendance

The Tennessee and Middle Tennessee State women’s basketball teams were in the top 20 in average home attendance this past season.

The Lady Vols were second with an average crowd of 10,412 for 17 homes games, while the Blue Raiders were 17th with an average of 5,046 for 14 home games.

South Carolina was first (14,364).

Vanderbilt was 37th with an average of 2,906 for 16 home games.

Meanwhile, the Tennessee State men’s team ranked 17th nationally for the largest increase in average attendance for home games.

The Tigers’ average went from 1,336 in 2014-15 to 2,500 for their 14 games at Gentry Center in 2015-16, an increase of 1,164.

Tullahoma native qualifies for top bodybuilding competition

Whitney Wiser

Former Tullahoma basketball, volleyball and track athlete Whitney Wiser is now a bodybuilder, and she recently qualified for the 2016 Olympia in the professional bikini division.

Wiser, a 2009 MTSU graduate, is now a personal trainer and Realtor in Nashville. She qualified for the Olympia, the Super Bowl of bodybuilding competitions, by winning the Muscle Mayhem contest June 4 in Overland Park, Kan.

The Olympia is Sept. 16-17 in Las Vegas.

Before that, Wiser will compete July 16 in the Flex Lewis Classic at Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center.

Wiser started competing in 2009 and earned her pro status in 2014.

Former Oilers All-Pro to sign book Sunday

"Think Like a Pro, Act Like a Pro"

Former Houston Oilers All-Pro linebacker Al Smith, who worked in the Titans’ front office, will sign his book — “Think Like A Pro, Act Like A Pro” from 4-7 p.m. Sunday at Kings Bowl on Galleria Boulevard in Franklin.

Smith was hired as director of player development at Vanderbilt in 2015.

The book includes Smith’s eight principles for achieving results, discipline and success not only in athletics, but also in business and life.

The book is available through Amazon.

Local umpire headed to College World Series

SEC baseball umpire Scott Cline, a Nashville resident, has been selected to work the 2016 College World Series.

Of the 2,500 Division I umpires in the nation, 96 are chosen to work the regionals, 36 the super regionals and eight for the CWS.

Nashville ranked 19th for hockey fans

Nashville was ranked 19th in The Best Cities for Hockey Fans by WalletHub.

A total of 72 cities were ranked based on performance level of NHL team, minimum season-ticket price, arena capacity, game attendance, franchise value and fan engagement.

The top five: Detroit, Boston, Pittsburgh, New York and Chicago.

Woody writes another book 

Larry Woody

Larry Woody has written a Kindle book — “Life On Mirth” — which is a collection of the humorous columns he’s written since retiring as a sports columnist for The Tennessean.

It is the seventh book Woody has written, his most notable being “A Dixie Farewell — the Life and Death of Chucky Mullins” which was made into an ESPN documentary featuring former Vanderbilt football player Brad Gaines, as well as biographies on Sounds founder Larry Schmittou and two-time Daytona 500 winner Sterling Marlin.

“Life On Mirth” is available on Amazon.

DuPont establishing sports hall of fame

An All Sports Hall of Fame for DuPont High, which closed in 1986, is being created.

The final details were worked out at the DuPont alumni meeting Monday.

The first induction of six former athletes is expected to be named at the school’s all-class reunion in August.

Florida swim team trains at Ensworth’s pool

The Florida Gators swim team trained this past week at Ensworth’s natatorium in preparation for the U.S. Olympic Trials in Omaha (June 26-July 3).

Florida’s pool in Gainesville is under construction. Coach Gregg Troy wanted to find a facility with ample pool space and time and chose Ensworth. He and Ensworth coach Christian Bahr, who coached in Jacksonville, Fla., earlier in his career, are old friends.

If you have an item for Midstate Chatter, contact Mike Organ at 615-259-8021 and on Twitter @MikeOrganWriter.

SPORTS ON NASHVILLE TV

The top five local ratings for sporting events on television for May 30-June 5:

1. NBA finals: Cavaliers-Warriors (Game 1), 12.2 rating

2.  NBA finals:Cavaliers-Warriors (Game 2), 9.8 rating

3. NBA playoffs: Thunder-Warriors (Game 7), 8.2 rating

4. PGA: Memorial (round 3), 2.2 rating

5. Indy racing: Chevrolet Duel Race 1, 2.1 rating
Each rating point is equal to 9,902 Nashville homes.
Source: Mark Binda, WTVF-5 programming & research director

Brentwood Academy’s Jeremiah Oatsvall

Blackman’s Crystal Dangerfield

Blackman’s Crystal Dangerfield and Brentwood Academy’s Jeremiah Oatsvall.

Former Blackman standout Crystal Dangerfield left behind a legacy as one of the top girls high school basketball players in Tennessee history.

Jeremiah Oatsvall still has another year to build on the one he’s created at Brentwood Academy.

The Tennessean named Dangerfield and Oatsvall the Female and Male Athletes of the Year, respectively, at the inaugural Middle Tennessee Sports Awards, presented by Farm Bureau Health Plans, on May 26.

Oatsvall helped lead Brentwood Academy to a pair of Division II-AA state championships in 2015-16, garnering state tournament MVP honors in both football and basketball.

“I really didn’t expect all the self-accolades,” said Oatsvall, who, despite receiving numerous Division I scholarship offers in both sports, recently decided to play football in college. “After getting that first football state championship it just kind of carried over to all the other sports, including basketball, and we were just able to get the job done.”

The Division II-AA Mr. Football semifinalist threw for 1,965 yards, ran for 1,164 more and accounted for 30 total touchdowns, culminating in the two-sport star’s 439-yard, four-touchdown performance in the team’s 56-55 BlueCross Bowl win over rival Montgomery Bell Academy.

His numbers on the basketball court — 13.8 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 2.0 steals per game — weren’t quite as gaudy, but, like in the fall, the 6-foot guard played some of his best ball on the state’s biggest stage, tallying a combined 40 points in Brentwood Academy’s state tournament wins against McCallie (70-51) and Ensworth (82-49).

One of the most heavily recruited players to come out of the Midstate, Dangerfield, a UConn signee, averaged more than 23 points, 4.4 rebounds and three assists a game as Blackman reached the Region 4-AAA semifinals.

“This is special. I’m leaving high school on a high note. I feel blessed that I’ve been able to be recognized for something that I love to do,” Dangerfield said. “My basketball career has led to a lot of fun and exciting moments.”

She was a McDonald’s All-American and a three-time Gatorade State Player of the Year. She was also a two-time Miss Basketball winner in Class AAA.

Dangerfield also won the Morgan Wootten Award for the top McDonald’s All-American and was a finalist for the Naismith Player of the Year (national award).

Pope John Paul II High has a new boys basketball head coach after hiring former Knights’ assistant Charles Wade.

Cottrell replaces Kip Brown, who accepted the head-coaching position at his alma mater – Beech – in April.

Wade was an assistant coach for three years when Brown began coaching the Knights during the 2011-12 season, and he also assisted former PJP II girls coach Julie Rollins as well for a season.

It is the first prep head-coaching position for Wade, who was the head basketball and football coach at Bellevue Middle School the last two seasons.

“I’m nervous but excited as well,” Wade said. “I’m very humbled.”

Two weeks ago, the Knights were set to hire Chris Cottrell, who most recently was the head coach at Davis and Elkins (W.V.) College (an National Collegiate Athletic Association Division II program), but Cottrell resigned last fall prior to the start of the 2015-16 season.

However, prior to his arrival in Hendersonville to begin the job, Cottrell accepted a position elsewhere, leaving the school scrambling to fill the vacancy with summer camps beginning.

“It put us about a month-and-a-half behind, because we thought we had our guy,” PJP II athletic director John Dempsey said. “It was on a Friday (when Cottrell declined the job). He was supposed to show up for our freshman tryouts the following Monday.”

It was at their own youth camp where they found their answer.

“(Wade and Brown) had agreed to help us do our kids’ camp,” Dempsey said. “I was walking through the gym and going to thank him for helping cover for us, and Kip had pointed at him and said he might be interested for the job. So, I walked over and talked to (Wade), and he said he’d think about it and pray about it.”

Wade initially hadn’t inquired about the position when it first became available.

“My family and I had just moved back to Hendersonville last year,” Wade said. “My wife had just started on her doctorate (degree), so I was really unsure at the time about whether I should commit to something that was going to take a lot of my time away from my family. But the second time around, my wife really encouraged me to do so.”

PJP II went 21-9 this past season, suffering a 63-43 loss at Ensworth in a Division II-Class AA state quarterfinal contest. Brown’s record at PJP II was 90-57 over five seasons, including state quarterfinal appearances in each of the last two seasons.

The Knights lost three seniors to graduation – Ryan Hatten, Nick Nixon and Trent Griffin.

Wade has familiarity with the rising senior class, which includes Jalon Cambridge, C.J. Laws, Jamaal Thompson and Matthew Galvin.

“I’ve coached some of these kids – the senior class – when they were freshmen,” Wade said. “I knew some of the underclassmen from visiting Kip’s games and practices from time to time, so I think it’s going to make the transition really smooth.”

Wade said he doesn’t want to bring too many changes to the Knights’ style of play. He expects to run a high-tempo offense with full-court, man-to-man defense, as well as a few other wrinkles.

“I’ve learned a lot from Kip, so I’ll apply a lot of what he did,” Wade said. “They had a lot of success last year, so I’d be remiss to come in and change what was working.”

Charles Wade

What might be the biggest challenge is the region Wade will begin his high-school head coaching career in, Division II-Class AA.

“Right now, (Brentwood Academy) has it rolling,” Wade said. “But in this region, anybody can beat anybody on a given night. It’s a challenge each night.”

Reach Chris Brooks at cbrooks@tennessean.com or at 615-575-7118. Follow him on Twitter @CB_SumnerSports.

Rusty Staats began the dead period with a trip out West.

The Watertown High standout made an unofficial visit to the Air Force Academy last weekend.

He quickly transitioned back to work though, despite this week being the first of the TSSAA’s two-week dead period.

“I go to the gym in Watertown and lift every day or go somewhere and run,” Staats said. “I have to stay in shape. I’m thinking three or four days a week, probably not on the weekends.”

During the dead period — which impacts all sports — coaches and players can’t have any contact as no practices, open facilities or weight training/conditioning are permitted by the TSSAA.

Stratford High sophomore Onterreius Smith throws a pass during a National Playmakers Academy workout on Tuesday afternoon at the South Inglewood Community Center.

Related:  TSWA All-State baseball teams

Staats is a 6-foot-4, 270-pound four-year starter at offensive tackle. He has received scholarship offers from Air Force, Tennessee Tech, Morehead State and Kentucky Christian.

“The grind is going to hit (after the dead period),” Watertown coach Gavin Webster said. “You want them to take some time off, but you encourage them that if you can’t do anything else, get out and run a little bit and try to do a little something. We don’t want them sitting in the (air conditioning) for two weeks doing nothing. It’s really going to be hot when they roll back in here.”

Davidson Academy senior Obinna Eze is the No. 8-ranked prospect in Tennessee according to 247Sports.

Watertown won eight games and placed second in Region 4-2A last season.

“Our strength and conditioning coach (Coach Josh Hackett) has us working hard,” Staats said. “We’re all getting stronger and faster. I think we’re ready for the season.”

Webster added, “We’ve worked out and conditioned pretty good. We feel like we have them in pretty decent shape. Hopefully, they can keep some of that. We’re a small rural town. Not everybody has access to a gym, so we don’t stress over it that much. It will show when they come back.”

Taking a breath

Lipscomb Academy senior Tucker Hamar — who helped his squad to eight wins and a second-round playoff appearance last season — is also attempting to balance conditioning with some relaxation.

“It’s a pretty good mix,” said Hamar, a 6-foot-2, 240-pound center. “I’m trying to stay in shape. I’ll go to the Y (YMCA) a day or two during the week. The rest of the week I’ll probably just be out fishing.

“The coaches really do encourage us to stay in shape on our own. They recommend that we do be working out.”

Related:   Summitt left ‘imprint’ on Tennessee girls basketball

While many coaches don’t oppose the mandatory break, some would prefer a different time frame.

“I think it’s great for everybody, but I’ve always (felt that) for football, it needs to be the first two weeks of June,” Siegel  coach Greg Wyant said. “Basically, what we’re saying is go out for two weeks and sit in the air conditioning and play games and don’t do anything for two weeks. Then, come back into the heat. I personally don’t think that is fair for our football kids or any of our fall athletes.

“I think the dead period is a great thing. I think every athlete needs to take two weeks off. I’ve got no problem with that. I just have a problem with where it falls for fall sports.”

Several Midstate players participate in National Playmakers Academy workouts during the dead period. A group of athletes, a majority from Stratford, got together at South Inglewood Community Center on Tuesday to keep their games sharp.

Many teams will participate in seven-on-seven passing competitions when team activity resumes.

Stratford High senor Bradley Jones receives a pass during a National Playmakers Academy workout on Tuesday afternoon at the South Inglewood Community Center.

Until then, Blackman coach David Watson sees this as valuable downtime for players and coaches.

“I think it’s huge personally to have two weeks where you have a last hurrah, or recharge your batteries,” Watson said. “It’s a chance to spend time with your family. Most coaches — even when they are not doing anything — are still planning and thinking about football, but this gives them two weeks where you can relax a bit.

“You know (that) after this, it’s going to be a grind, hopefully until the first week of December.”

Riverdale first-year head coach Will Kriesky is confident that his players understand the importance of maintaining their conditioning during the layoff.

“They know our workouts,” Kriesky said. “We give them a schedule to take with them and to do. A lot of them will go to different gyms and train with different groups.

“I told them after spring practice, ‘We’ll hit it hard until the dead period.’ They know during this two-week break (that) they need to stay in shape.”

Tom Kreager contributed to this report. Reach Craig Harris at 615-259-8238 and on Twitter @CHTennessean. 

TSSAA Summer Dead Period

Period: Sunday, June 26, 12 a.m. to Sunday July 9, 12 a.m.

Restrictions: No coaching, observing, or contact between coach and players in sport involved. There is no practice,

no open facilities, and no weight training/conditioning.

Sports affected: All TSSAA-sanctioned sports.

John Jenkins, who is now with the Phoenix Suns, played at Station Camp and Vanderbilt.

Former Station Camp and Vanderbilt standout John Jenkins, talks with one of his basketball campers, Alex Froboese, on Wednesday.

GALLATIN — Station Camp High School is a place where John Jenkins became a Parade All-American, averaged 42.3 points as a senior and the Gallatin Fire Marshall regularly stopped by to make sure the gymnasium did not overcrowd.

The former Vanderbilt standout returned this week to the place where his No. 12 jersey is retired for the fourth annual John Jenkins Basketball Camp that began Wednesday and concludes Friday. The Phoenix Suns shooting guard took some time before the start of his camp to talk to The Tennessean about the camp’s growth, his high school days, and playing in the NBA.

RELATED: Jenkins hosts third annual camp

RELATED:Vanderbilt’s top 10 pro basketball players

The John Jenkins Camp is now in its fourth year. What does that mean to you?

It’s unbelievable how far it’s come. At first, I just wanted to make it a little thing for my hometown and didn’t really know what to expect, and (now) it’s big for our city’s standards. It’s pretty cool to experience, and giving back to my community is all I want to do. The game of basketball is a fun sport and you can learn a lot of life lessons from it.

You had an illustrious high school career at Station Camp. What is the feeling like when you step back inside the gymnasium? Do you have any lasting memories from your high school days? You have said on a couple of instances it felt like a blur.

It’s really crazy because I was so in the moment. My team depended on me every single night to show up and maybe hit 40 or 50 points a game. For a 16-year old kid that takes a lot of focus, along with doing my chores at home and doing my schoolwork.

Every night I was getting everyone’s best defender, every team’s best shot, and the crowds were going crazy. Some of them wanted to see me fail, and as a kid that was tough for me to go through. (Some nights) I had 40, we lost, and I felt like I had zero. Or if I had 50 and we won it was OK. I never really got to enjoy the moment afterward.

After the last game of my senior year, I felt like I had an elephant off my back because I had so much pressure.

Former Station Camp and Vanderbilt standout John Jenkins works with players at his youth camp on Wednesday.

How are things now? You struggled to get playing time with the Dallas Mavericks, got waived, and then picked up by the Phoenix Suns. Do you like the fit?

I had a great preseason and it went well. But in the NBA on a veteran team, they’re going to play their veterans over the younger guys. That’s just how it is the majority of the time. I had a great coach in coach (Rick) Carlisle, Dallas is a first-class organization.

Coach Carlisle actually called Phoenix on my behalf and let them know that they should give me a chance and they did, so I thank him for that. And now I’m just trying to do good on that and hopefully cement a spot in the rotation.

Phoenix has five players from Kentucky. Does it feel like an old SEC battleground from time to time? You didn’t play against every Kentucky player on the team, but there has to be some familiarity, right?

There is. I played against Eric Bledsoe since we were in AAU and played against Brandon Knight. I make sure I wear my Vandy shirts all the time and they wear their UK stuff all the time. I’m just glad there are a bunch of SEC guys in the locker room. We’re all one now so it’s good for our team.

You played well over the last quarter of the season and you shot the ball well from deep. In today’s NBA with a bigger emphasis put on shooting the 3-pointer, does that give you confidence that you can make any roster in the league?

(Shooting) is right up my alley and shooting 3s is something I’ve done my whole life. And now that it’s becoming a staple in the NBA and teams have to have shooters, it’s going to extend my career even more. I’m thankful for it.

The death of Pat Summitt Tuesday had a huge effect on the state of Tennessee and the country’s basketball community as a whole. What did she mean to you?

All sports just know her as one of the best coaches of all time. Not only with what she did on the court, but how she approached her players and what she demanded out of them. That’s rare these days. I played against her son in high school, she was there, and I was shocked, as if she was an NBA player or something. She was a legend. I wish the best for her family, it’s sad to see her go.

Jenkins speaks to campers following the conclusion of Friday’s session of his fourth annual basketball camp at Station Camp High School.

Phoenix Suns guard John Jenkins works with some younger players during the final day of his fourth annual basketball camp at Station Camp High School.

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Chris Carney has been hired to succeed Tyler Brown as the head boys basketball coach at Wilson Central.

The 29-year-old Carney spent the last four years coaching at Portland, leading the Panther program to a 31-81 record over that span.

Chris Carney talks to his Portland players during a game last season.

“I’m really excited and looking forward to the opportunity to be a part of the strong tradition at Wilson Central,” Carney said. “I’m excited to meet with returning players and to get to work after the dead period.”

He becomes the Wildcats’ third head coach in three years, after Brown spent just one season at the helm. Brown – who left for an assistant-coaching position at Spring Hill – led Wilson Central to a 12-15 overall record and a 4-10 mark in District 9-AAA last season, suffering a 70-56 loss to Lebanon in their postseason opener.

Tyler Brown resigns as Wilson Central boys basketball coach

Brown succeeded Troy Bond, who was the only coach in the program’s history before leaving for Oakland High School. Bond led the program to 292 wins and four state-tournament appearances over 14 seasons.

“When I first got to District 9-AAA four years ago and went to Wilson Central for the first time, I thought it was a dream spot,” Carney – who played at Camden High School and Maryville College – said. “It’s a young school, growing community and strong basketball tradition.”

Wilson Central lost two of its top three scorers, guards Desmond Mason and Aaron Schoch, from a seven-member senior class.

The Wildcats’ leading returning scorer will be rising junior forward Gavin Johnson.

With teams having completed summer camps prior to the current Tennessee Secondary Schools Athletic Association two-week dead period, Carney won’t be able to see his team in a competitive setting against another team until November.

“The timing isn’t ideal,” Carney – who will be a physical-education teacher – said. “Of course, you would want a full summer with a new team, but with the new rules of being able to do more in the month of July with our teams in the state of Tennessee, as soon as the dead period is over, we are going to get to work.”

Portland’s best season under Carney was the 2014-15 campaign, producing a 12-16 overall record and a 4-10 mark in 9-AAA.

Chris Carney

“In the four years I was at Portland, I gave my everything to the school and to building our basketball program,” Carney said. “I appreciate the administration there for giving me the job at 25 (years old) and allowing me to grow as a coach. It has helped me vastly.

“It is very tough to leave the kids that I have been working with for the past three years. They have given me everything they have had on and off the basketball court. That’s all you can ask of your kids, and I will miss those kids and the relationships that we developed together.”

The Panthers lost three senior starters to graduation – leading scorer Caelum Utley, small forward Jay Crutchfield and shooting guard Eric Kirk – from last season’s 6-23 campaign. Portland returns three junior guards – Luke Jones, Bryce Keith and Dawson Simmons – who gained considerable experience, along with sophomore guard Austin Hicks and junior forward Grant Cook.

“I am very appreciative of what Chris has done both on and off the court for Portland High School,” Portland principal David Woods said. “He is a hard-working young man and will be successful no matter where he goes. I wish him nothing but the best, and I know he will do a great job at Wilson Central.”

Portland will begin a coaching search immediately.

Reach Craig Harris at 615-259-8238 and on Twitter @CHTennessean. 

The Fabbros, from left: sister Sophia, mother Tina, Dante, sister Gina, father Stephen at the NHL draft.

Rather than return to her home in British Columbia, Canada, when her soccer playing career ends after next season at Austin Peay, Gina Fabbro is contemplating staying in the Midstate.

She has grown especially fond of the area with its friendly folks, honky-tonks, growing neighborhoods and ample healthcare job opportunities for nursing majors.

On June 24, Fabbro came up with another reason to stay. Her younger brother Dante became the top pick of the Predators in the NHL draft.

Gina, and her younger sister Sophia, who also plays soccer at Austin Peay, were with Dante and their parents in Buffalo at the draft when the Predators selected him 17th overall.

“It’s kind of crazy and a little ironic that we all ended up in Nashville,” Gina said. “I guess it was meant to be. I am a lot more determined to stay here now. Being able to watch my brother with the Predators honestly is going to be amazing.”

Dante, a defenseman who turned 18 four days before the draft, is committed to Boston University. He probably will play two or three seasons there before joining the Predators.

Sophia, who still has two years left to play soccer at Austin Peay, said the moment she and her family realized the Predators were going to draft Dante was electric.

Gina, Dante and Sophia Fabbro attend the NHL draft June 24, when the Predators made Dante their No. 1 pick. Gina and Sophia are on the soccer team at Austin Peay.

“We hadn’t said much about the possibility of Nashville drafting him because we didn’t want to jinx it,” Sophia said. “We were all sitting at the draft and it was like five seconds before they called his name and a camera guy came up to our family, so we knew at that point he was going to Nashville. Our whole family just burst into tears. Gina and I looked at each other and were like, ‘Oh my goodness, this can’t be happening. He’s coming to Nashville, and all of us are going to be down here.’”

While Gina and Sophia wouldn’t allow themselves to expect Dante to be drafted by the Predators, they weren’t surprised he went in the first round.

“Since we were growing up, my family, my cousins and all of us, had the mindset that we were going to go to college,” Gina said. “Nobody really felt forced to, but we just all wanted to pursue that path, and sports helped us do that. So we were all very competitive growing up. I think that helped Dante develop into a really good hockey player.”

Still smiling. #17

Because hockey season overlaps the college soccer season, Dante never has been able to see his sisters play at Austin Peay. He never had been to Nashville prior to the draft.

But he already had a pretty good idea about what to expect even before he arrived this past week for Predators Developmental Camp.

“My sisters have been talking about Nashville ever since they came down here,” Dante said. “They’ve had nothing but good things to say. They come into the city pretty often and go to Preds games, so all those connections really worked out. I’ve been walking around downtown a lot trying to get used to everything and enjoyed experiencing a lot of what they had already told me about.”

His sisters had told Dante that Nashville lives up to its title as the Music City, which makes it a good fit since the Fabbros are big country music fans.

“Country music is all we play when we’re together in the summers,” Dante said. “I love country music.”

“I told him it’s great in Nashville and you’re going to meet so many cool people,” Gina said. “And it’s just really fun there. I told him you do lots of stuff there we don’t really do in Canada.”

Gina and Sophia already had become Predators fans before Dante was drafted. They grew up with the game in British Columbia and found they missed it after they moved 2,535 miles to Clarksville.

“When we first got to school we realized how much we missed hockey,” Sophia said. “So we started going to Preds games. We’re always dragging our teammates down there. They didn’t really watch hockey, but some of them became fans.”

I guess the Fabbro’s were meant to be in Nashville. Dante your hard work has finally paid off and I am so happy I got to be there to see it. You make it easy to be your sister. You did good kid. Could not be more proud of you and all you have done. Love you forever. Xoxo❤️

Titans have job opening for big fuzzy raccoons

One of the longest tenured Titans employees has decided to hang up his gear. And that gear includes a giant raccoon head, costume and sword.

Pete Nelson, who has served as the franchise’s mascot T-Rac since 1999, retired this past week.

No word yet on whether another raccoon, the state’s official wild animal, has been trapped to replace Nelson.

Lipscomb pitcher Smith shining with Reds

Josh Smith

Former Lipscomb star Josh Smith was called up to help the struggling Cincinnati Reds’ pitching staff, and he’s done just that.

Smith has spent most of his career as a starter with the Reds organization but was brought up from Louisville to help in the eight-man bullpen.

He’s 0-1 with a 4.26 ERA in 12 appearances.

“Josh Smith has become a guy that (Reds manager) Bryan Price can use for multiple innings and has done a really nice job,” Cincinnati Enquirer sports writer C. Trent Rosecrans said. “That’s something they’ve desperately needed out of the bullpen.”

Also, former Lipscomb catcher Caleb Joseph rejoined the Orioles on Thursday after recovering from a groin injury. Joseph underwent testicular surgery after being hit by a foul ball May 29.

Former Tigerbelles being honored at Olympic trials

Chandra Cheeseborough-Guice

Former Tennessee State Tigerbelles Chandra Cheeseborough-Guice and Madeline Manning Mims are among the former Olympians being honored at the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials in Eugene, Ore.

They planned to participate in the opening ceremony Saturday at Hayward Field and also will join other Olympians who will be recognized throughout the trials.

“It’s exciting,” said Cheeseborough-Guice, who is director of TSU’s track and field program. “It’s going to be like a reunion.”

In 1975, at age 16, Cheeseborough-Guice won two gold medals in the Pan American Games, including setting an American record in the 200-meter dash. She went on to be named to three U.S. Olympic teams.

From 1967 to 1981, Mims won 10 national titles and set a number of American records. She participated in the 1968, 1972 and 1976 Olympics. At the 1968 games, she won a gold medal in the 800-meter race.

Midstate colleges represented at Olympic Trials

Joe Frye

Speaking of the Olympic Trials, former Belmont track All-American Joe Frye, now a Bruins assistant coach, learned this past week that he qualified and will compete Wednesday in the hammer throw.

Former Lipscomb All-American Madi Talbert also qualified for the trials in the 3000-meter steeplechase, which is Monday. She is the first Lipscomb athlete ever to qualify for the Olympic Trials.

Vanderbilt has two athletes in the Olympic Trials.

All-American triple jumper Simone Charley was invited to the trials and will go from Eugene, Ore., to San Salvador, El Salvador, to represent the United States at the North American, Central American and Caribbean Athletics Association Under-23 Championships.

And sprinter Jennifer Edobi, who is from Nigeria, will travel to Sapele, Nigeria, for the trials in the 400-meter dash.

Garretson nearly wins back-to-back in Chattanooga

Nashville golfer Nick Garretson came close to winning the Chattanooga Classic for the second consecutive year.

The former Franklin Road Academy and Tennessee Tech golfer shot a two-day total of 5-under-par 135 and finished just one stroke behind winner Casey Flenniken at Creeks Bend Golf Club in Hixson, Tenn.

West End alumni establishing athletics hall of fame

A West End High School Athletics Hall of Fame is being established by the school’s alumni association.

Five individuals who participated in athletics at the school, which was open from 1937-68, will be inducted in the inaugural class in August.

After that, subsequent classes will be added every two years with two inductees from the ’40s, ’50s and ’60s being selected by a vote of the alumni.

Coach Forum coming up at Vanderbilt

Shan Foster

The lineup of speakers for The Coach Forum at Vanderbilt includes former NFL player and author Joe Ehrmann, three-time Olympic gold medal-winning swimmer Josh Davis, former Vanderbilt basketball star Shan Foster, Christ Presbyterian Academy football coach Ingle Martin, former Titan David Ball, six-time national champion UCLA gymnastics coach Valorie Kondos, WSMV-4 anchor Rudy Kalis and Vanderbilt athletics director David Williams.

Vanderbilt and the Nashville Coaching Coalition are partnering for the forum, which is scheduled for 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m. July 21 at the Vanderbilt Student Life Center.

It is open to the public.

Issues that will be discussed include mental health, eating disorders, ending power-based violence, work-life balance for coaches, team trust and character development.

TSSAA officials will offer a rules meetings to football and soccer coaches who attend.

For more information or to register, visit thecoachforum.com.

TSU greats going into new hall of fame

TSU basketball greats Dick Barnett and John McLendon will be inducted in the inaugural class of the Small College Basketball Hall of Fame. Barnett is included among 11 players, and McLendon is one of three coaches.

Barnett led the Tigers to the NAIA national championships in 1957, 1958 and 1959. McLendon posted a record of 144-20 at TSU (1954-59).

The induction will be Nov. 17 at Ford Center in Evansville, Ind.

WKU’s Doughty receives C-USA’s top honor again

For the second-consecutive year, Western Kentucky claimed the top award in Conference USA with former Hilltopper quarterback Brandon Doughty being named the C-USA Male Athlete of the Year on Thursday.

Doughty broke every passing record in WKU’s program history. His three-year record as the Hilltoppers’ starting quarterback was 27-11. Doughety was drafted by the Miami Dolphins in the seventh round.

If you have an item for Midstate Chatter, contact Mike Organ at 615-259-8021 and on Twitter @MikeOrganWriter.

SPORTS ON NASHVILLE TV

Top five local ratings for sporting event on television for June 20-26:
1. Gymnastics: U.S. Olympic Trials (June 26), 4.6 rating
2. NASCAR: Sonoma 350, 3.8 rating
3. Boxing: Showtime on CBS, 3.4 rating
4. Gymnastics: U.S Olympic Trials (June 24th), 3.3 rating
5. PGA: AT&T National (final round), 3.2 rating
Each rating point is equal to 9,902 Nashville homes.
Source: Mark Binda, WTVF-5 programming & research director

The Nolensville High football program will play its only varsity game this season on Sept. 2, hosting South Gibson. The rest of the games will be JV. The school boasts the only public school field with artificial turf in the Midstate.

When Nolensville High School opens for grades 9-10 in August, all of its athletic programs will compete at the varsity level, except for football.

Despite having to wait an extra year to participate at the varsity level, the Knights football program is already well on its way to a solid foundation, thanks to former Ravenwood and new Nolensville football coach Will Hester.

Hester, who is also the school’s athletic director, joined Nolensville in December, less than two weeks after leading Ravenwood to the Class 6A football title with a 26-17 upset of two-time defending champion Maryville.

After leading Ravenwood to its second football title in school history, Hester has embraced the challenge of building a new program.

“I think the atmosphere is going to be something awesome,” Hester said. “The Nolensville community prides itself on its small-town feel. We’re going to build a foundation at Nolensville High School on relationships and we’ll see where that will take us.”

Building from the bottom up

The high school will share a campus with Mill Creek Elementary and Mill Creek Middle School, and one relationship that will be key to Nolensville’s football foundation is the one between Hester and Mill Creek Middle coach Ron Aydelott, a veteran Midstate coach.

Aydelott spent 12 seasons at Hillsboro, winning the Class 4A state title in 2003 before moving to Riverdale, where he went 88-35 with eight trips to the playoffs in 10 seasons.

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Aydelott, who resigned from Riverdale in February, jumped at the opportunity to take over the Mill Creek job, reaching out to Hester about the opening.

“It was kind of a shock I guess for him for me to say, ‘Look man, I saw an opening here, what do you think?’” Aydelott said. “One of my objectives is to help Will and hopefully the kids will have a little bit more preparation when they come to him.”

He was the perfect fit for the program Hester is looking to establish.

“We are going to take the opportunity for my staff to work with his staff and coach the middle school and high school kids kind of together,” Hester said. “It’ll be two separate practices, but they’ll be happening on the same field and the coaches would be able to rotate back and forth between the kids.”

Strong showing

When the 2017 varsity season rolls around, Hester and the Knights expect to be placed in either the 3A or 4A classification.

“Classification-wise, on the 10th day of school when the state takes our numbers, if we’re between that 450-550 range we’re going to be right there at the 3A, 4A threshold in football,” Hester said. “Right now we are working out about 65 football players, so over 10 percent of the school is going to wear a football jersey on game night it sounds like.”

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And that’s exactly what Hester is looking for from his budding program.

“If you can do 30 a grade, you’d be right around that 100 number of varsity players, not including freshmen, and that’s kind of where you want your program to be,” he said. “Especially if you plan to get to the 5A, 6A level and expect to compete.”

While the Knights will play the 2016 football season at the junior varsity level, Nolensville will get a small taste of things to come, as the TSSAA has approved it to host one varsity game this season when South Gibson visits on Sept. 2.

“It’s very exciting for the community,” Hester said. “We’re going to have to make that our inaugural homecoming. Obviously there’s no one to come back and visit as far as graduates go, so it’s going to be kind of like an open-house for the community.”

The Nolensville High School basketball programs will play varsity schedules during the upcoming school year.

Staff in place

Nolensville’s facilities are still undergoing construction, but the football field, which has the Midstate’s only public-school artificial turf field, and the gymnasium are completed.

Coaches are in place in all of the varsity sports. The most experienced of that bunch are boys/girls soccer coach Eric Shelton, a veteran coach from Siegel, and girls basketball coach Chris Ladd, who spent the previous five years leading the Summit program. Wrestling coach Josh Peck, like Hester, held the previous position at Ravenwood.

Reach Sam Brown at 615-259-8089 and on Twitter @SamBrownTN.

Nolensville head coaches

Football/Athletic Director – Will Hester

Boys basketball – Wes Lambert

Girls basketball – Chris Ladd

Boys/girls soccer – Eric Shelton

Volleyball – Ashley Sarmiento

Wrestling – Josh Peck

Cross county/track – Brooke Koblitz

Tennis – Brian Bass

Baseball – Zach Hudson 

Softball – Shelby Crawford

Golf – Johnny Bridgeman

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Footballs

Wilson Central’s Devon High has committed to play football at Navy.

“When I went up there, I wasn’t expecting it to be as great as it was,” said High, a 6-foot, 180-pound senior wide receiver and defensive back. “It blew me away. It got me to where I am (committing) right now.”

Junior Highlights

After playing his first two seasons at Watertown before transferring, High was a two-way starter for the Wildcats last season. He also was a kickoff and punt returner.

He also played basketball at Wilson Central  and competes in the 100-meter dash, 200-meter dash, long jump and high jump.

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High helped the Wildcats to a 6-7 record last season and the Class 6A quarterfinals, the program’s deepest postseason advancement since 2007.

He also had offers from Army and Lindsey Wilson (Ky.).

High is the second Wilson Central player to commit, joining Ray Coggins, a cornerback, who committed to Eastern Kentucky.

Reach Craig Harris at 615-259-8238 and on Twitter @CHTennessean. 

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Former Brentwood Academy Lady Eagle Jailen Murphy signed to play basketball for Cumberland University this week.

Former Brentwood Academy girls basketball product Jailen Murphy plans to play for Cumberland University next season after signing scholarship papers with the Phoenix this week.

Murphy signed with Kansas State out of high school, but never played a game for the Wildcats.

She played two seasons at Pennsylvania-based Lincoln University averaging 3.8 points and 1.8 rebounds in 9.2 minutes as a sophomore for the Lions.

Murphy averaged 15.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.0 steals and 2.0 blocks as a senior at Brentwood Academy, helping lead the Lady Eagles to a state runner-up finish in 2013, earning All-Region honors in the process.

She also played volleyball and softball for the Lady Eagles.

Reach Sam Brown at 615-259-8232 and on Twitter @SamBrownTN.

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The Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association announced the date and agenda for a special called Board of Control meeting to decide which system to use for the next four-year classification cycle.

TSSAA logo

The meeting, which will be held at TSSAA headquarters in Hermitage, is scheduled for July 27 at 9 a.m.

During last month’s study session, the TSSAA presented the board with as many as 45 potential classification systems.

“They don’t need to be meeting (July 27) and trying to decide on 45 things,” TSSAA executive director Matthew Gillespie said. “The study session that we had in conjunction with the June (board of control) meeting was to help narrow that down, which I think they have done, but there are still a lot of possibilities.”

Other items on the July 27 agenda include:

• The board will decide whether to use a multiplier for private schools that choose to participate in Division I.
• The board will decide whether it wants the TSSAA staff to set district/region alignments. If so, this process will be done at the board meeting in November.
• The board will decide whether it will require the TSSAA staff to continue re-evaluating each member school’s enrollment figures after the first two years of the four-year classification cycle.

TSWA renames award for Pat Summit: The Tennessee Sports Writers Association voted unanimously to rename its annual women’s basketball coach of the year award the Pat Summitt Coach of the Year award.

Summit, the winningest coach in Division I college basketball history, won TSWA coach of the year honors in 2007 and 2008 when she led the Lady Vols to back-to-back national championships.

Summit, who died June 28 in Knoxville, was diagnosed in with early onset Alzheimer’s disease in 2011. She retired in April 2012 with a record of 1,098-208 in her 38-year career, which included eight national titles and 18 NCAA Final Four appearances.

Shelbyville hires coach: After one season as football coach at Creek Wood, Justin Palmer has accepted the head coaching position at Shelbyville.

Palmer, who spent four years as an assistant at Shelbyville, replaces Jason Hardy, who resigned last month after coaching the Golden Eagles for the last 10 seasons.

“I was there for four years and had been in contact with them,” Palmer said. “I knew it was a possibility that coach Hardy could be stepping down to take a job back home. When he did, they called me and offered the job.”

Creek Wood athletic director Chuck Daniel was announced as the school’s interim coach.

Daniel served as Creek Wood’s coach for 11 years prior to the hiring of Palmer and went 57-72.

Gannett Tennessee’s Andy Simmons contributed to this report.

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Portland

Portland High didn’t waste much time finding a new head boys basketball coach.

Having ties to the community didn’t hurt Josh Epperson’s cause, as the 35-year-old has been hired to be the Panthers’ new coach.

“This is a move that is entirely family oriented,” Epperson said. “We have a 3-year-old and 1-year-old. When we took the job in Lenoir City, my parents were an hour and a half away. They now live in Kansas. My wife’s family is from Portland, parents and cousins and everybody. It’s about the support structure you need as a coach when you have a family.”

Epperson replaces Chris Carney, who left to take the opening at Wilson Central two weeks ago.

“I got on the horn pretty quick,” Portland High principal David Woods said. “I’ve got a lot of basketball contacts, so I had several people searching. But we had a pretty good short list for this time of year.”

ALSO READ:Gallatin all-stars still one win from state

Epperson spent the last four seasons at Lenoir City – the first two with the girls program and the past two years with the boys team. Lenoir City’s boys went 27-32 under Epperson, including a Region 2-AAA Tournament appearance in 2014-15.

Woods said Epperson has a long-term plan for bringing the Panther program forward.

“He knows District 9-AAA is a tough district for us and we’re having a hard time,” Woods said. “He’s talking about getting out and maybe start having some fourth- and fifth-grade teams in our elementary schools and let some of our guys coach them … Portland City Parks really doesn’t have much of a league, because it was taken over by Upward and there’s not a lot going on.”

Epperson is in the process of relocating to Portland. He is expected to meet with the team for the first time on Saturday at Corey Brewer’s annual basketball camp.

“He understands that it needs to be built from the ground up,” Woods said. “I just like the fact that he knows what he’s faced with. And he’s going to be here. He’s going to be vested in the community. He’s bringing his girls back and his wife’s coming back.”

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Portland finished 6-23 last season and lost three seniors to graduation – leading scorer Caelum Utley, small forward Jay Crutchfield and shooting guard Eric Kirk. The Panthers return three junior guards – Luke Jones, Bryce Keith and Dawson Simmons – who gained considerable experience, along with sophomore guard Austin Hicks and junior forward Grant Cook.

“This was not a basketball move first, but make no mistake, we’ll rebuild it from the ground up,” Epperson said. “This is going to be a long process, but that’s okay.”

The Knoxville News Sentinel’s Chris Thomas contributed to this report. Reach Chris Brooks at cbrooks@tennessean.com or at 615-575-7118. Follow him on Twitter @CB_SumnerSports.

Tim Tebow

Mike Fisher

Christ Presbyterian Academy coach Drew Maddux has spent the summer accepting trick shot challenges.

Christ Presbyterian Academy basketball coach Drew Madduxalways likes to see his players succeed with one exception — when they dare to challenge him in a game of H-O-R-S-E.

Maddux, a sharpshooting guard in his playing days at Goodpasture and Vanderbilt, vowed he always would be able to make more trick shots than his players when he transitioned into coaching.

“I have a stable of trick shots I can go to in order to win Horse games,” Maddux said. “I never could let any of my players at CPA beat me in Horse. Anytime I have to go into my bag of tricks for shots, I can make it.”

That bag of trick shots has gotten much bigger this summer.

It began when Maddux made a shot while jumping off a diving board into a pool on June 23 and hasn’t stopped.

Maddux posted that shot on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, and it was a big hit. He received so many positive comments that he decided to come up with another trick shot to post the next day.

The encouragement continued. Maddux got on a roll and now has made a different trick shot each day for more than three weeks with no plans to stop anytime soon.

“By the third or fourth day, people started sending me texts and direct messages,” Maddux said. “You wouldn’t believe the comments and creative ideas I’ve gotten. I’ve gotten well over 100 ideas since we started these shots.”

The shot that has received the most attention, Maddux said, was one he made through the window of his daughter’s second-story bedroom.

The most difficult are those he’s made with his back to the basket and over his head. That included falling backward — a Nestea plunge — into the pool and a 70-foot one-hander he made Wednesday during a Nike Elite camp at Currey Ingram Academy.

On Thursday, Maddux came back by hiking the ball through his legs for a basket from mid-court at the camp.

Maddux’s shots even have gotten attention from some notable sports figures.

“John Jenkins (former Vanderbilt player now with the Phoenix Suns) gave me the idea for a long-range shot from outside the fence I made at the pool,” Maddux said. “Coach (Kevin) Stallings gave me the creative idea to make the around-the-back shot off the diving board. Dan Cage (former Vanderbilt player now on Stallings’ staff at Pittsburgh) gave me the idea to make the long shot backwards. And (Daily News Journal sports writer) Tom Kreager suggested the Nestea plunge shot.”

Some of Maddux’s ideas have come from “The Dude Perfect Show” on CMT. On that show, six buddies, who started out making insane shots in their backyard, push the limits when it comes to extreme stunts.

“Obviously I’m not going to get on skyscrapers or on the top of football stadiums like they do, but I do get ideas from them,” Maddux said.

Since July 1, Maddux’s shots have received a total of about 10,000 views on his different social media platforms.

Maddux has made some of the shots on his first try, but some take a bit longer.

“The most frequent question I get is, ‘How many tries did it take?'” Maddux said. “I have made a couple on the first try. Most of them, if they’re around the pool, I can usually make in single digits. The more difficult ones backwards and in the gym take me double-figure times to make.”

Some shots have had to be made more than once.

“The hike between the legs on Wednesday I made before the whole camp, but the video didn’t take,” Maddux said. “Then it took me several more tries to make it again. That’s happened a few times.”

Vandy baseball assistant now head coach at Tulane

Vanderbilt associate head baseball coach Travis Jewett is the new coach at Tulane.

Jewett replaced David Pierce, who became the Texas head coach in late June. Tulane was 41-21 and advanced to the regionals of the NCAA Tournament this past season

Jewett, a native of Tacoma, Wash., spent four seasons at Vanderbilt, where his primary duties were as hitting coach and recruiting coordinator.

Preds-Sharks playoff game named NHL’s best

The Predators’ triple overtime playoff win over the Sharks was the No. 1 game in the NHL this past season, according to researchers and producers from the NHL Network, who selected their top 10 games.

It was Game 4 of the second-round series at Bridgestone Arena and was the longest game in the NHL this past season.

Mike Fisher’s second goal of the game gave the Predators the 4-3 win and evened the best-of-seven series 2-2. The Predators lost the series in seven games.

Another Page hopes to help Hillwood 

Hale Page

Kurt Page was one of the top high school quarterbacks in Nashville at Father Ryan before moving on to Vanderbilt, where he set numerous passing records and made the UPI All-SEC First Team in 1984.

Hale Page, a sophomore, hopes to follow in his father’s footsteps.

Hale, who attended Franklin last year for the ninth grade, has decided to play high school ball for his father, who is headed into his second season as the coach at Hillwood.

“I think it’s going to be a really neat experience,” Kurt said. “We won the 7-on-7 Fellowship of Christian Athletes Tournament championship at Tennessee Tech this past week, and the kids on the team really embraced Hale. He’s going to be a really good fit. We had a senior starter in Terron Smith last year, and having a guy like Hale ready to step in and fill his shoes is really nice.”

Hale threw a total of 48 touchdowns to six receivers and had just six interceptions in the 7-on-7 tournament. He led the Hilltoppers to an 8-2-1 record, including seven straight wins at the end.

The Hilltoppers have two of their top three receivers — Kenneth Redd and Alton Troutman — back from last season.

Kurt, who led the Hilltoppers to the playoffs last year for the first time since 2004, is having a fundraiser golf scramble for the program July 25 at Hillwood Country Club. Cost is $100. To play, contact him at 615-403-1337 or coachpagetraining@gmail.com by Thursday.

The Hilltoppers also are having a car wash 9 a.m.-4 p.m. July 30 at the corner of Old Hickory Boulevard and Highway 70 South.

Former TSU star signs pro hoops deal in Italy

Keron DeShields

Tennessee State’s leading scorer from last season, Keron DeShields, signed a contract Friday to play professionally with Latina Basket in Italy.

DeShields, a guard, averaged 16.5 points and helped the Tigers match their best season as an NCAA Division I program with 20 wins.

He scored 1,100 points in his collegiate career, which included three seasons at Montana.

DeShields made the All-OVC First Team and All-Newcomer Team.

He will report to camp in Italy on Aug. 22 to prepare for the start of the season on Oct. 2.

Tebow coming to town for men’s conference

Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow will be in town Friday and Saturday to speak at The Main Event Lifeway Conference For Men.

Tebow, who played for the Philadelphia Eagles last season, is among 10 speakers for the conference at Municipal Auditorium.

For more information, call 800-254-2022 or visit lifeway.com.

Beach volleyball pro to speak at Hillsboro

Brooke Sweat

Pro beach volleyball player Brooke Sweat will be at Hillsboro on Monday to speak to the school’s athletes and coaches.

Sweat, a two-time AVP defensive player of the year, will tell the group about her career as a pro athlete, hopes of qualifying for the 2016 Summer Olympics and how athletes can stay hydrated and healthy when performing.

Goodlettsville alumni golf tourney coming up

The second annual Goodlettsville High School Alumni Golf Tournament is set for Aug. 6 at Country Hills Golf Course in Hendersonville.

The cost is $90. Proceeds go to the Goodlettsville High School Alumni Scholarship Fund.

For more information, call David Darnell at 615-424-5833 or visit ghsalumni.com.

Former Belmont assistant takes over at Valdosta St.

Carley Kuhns

Former Belmont women’s basketball assistant coach Carley Kuhns is the new head coach at Valdosta State.

Kuhns played at Valdosta State (2005-08) and was inducted into the school’s hall of fame in 2015. She spent six seasons at Belmont.

DuPont High Sports Hall of Fame inductees announced

The inaugural class of inductees for the DuPont High School All Sports Hall of Fame was announced Friday.

It includes: 1950s — Billy Gaines, Bobby Gaines, Buddy Gaines; 1960s — Judy Eller; 1970s — Greg Gaines; 1980s — Kim May, Chris Gaines..

The class will be inducted Aug. 6 at the DuPont All Classes (1928-86) Reunion at Old Hickory Country Club.

Anyone interested in attending should visit dupontalumni.org.

Bodie offering hockey camp at Ford Ice Center

Former NHL player Troy Bodie will offer the Beebe Hockey Camp on July 25-29 at Ford Ice Center.

Bodie played parts of five seasons in the NHL for Anaheim, Carolina and Toronto.

The camp is for ages 7-14. Cost is $400 for skaters and $300 for goalies.

For more information, email troybodie@hotmail.com.

If you have an item for Midstate Chatter, contact Mike Organ at 615-259-8021 and on Twitter @MikeOrganWriter.