University of Tennessee Athletics
Brown, Coleman Honored By Tennessee Sports HOF
June 19, 2016 | Track & Field
NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame honored UT sprinters Felicia Brown and Christian Coleman, Tennessee track legend Missy Kane and seven Vol football greats at its 50th Anniversary Induction Banquet on Saturday at the Omni Nashville.
Brown received the Female Amateur Athlete of the Year award. Coleman received the Male Amateur Athlete of the Year award.
Kane (formerly Missy Alston), Whit Canale, Frank Canale, George Canale, Conrad Graham and Lester McClain were inducted into the hall of fame in recognition of their outstanding careers at the University of Tennessee.
Eric Berry, who was the 2015 NFL Comeback Player of the Year after, received Male Professional Athlete of the Year. Berry was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma in late 2014, but battled back to lead his team to an 11-5 regular-season record and the Divisional round of the NFL playoffs.
Former Tennessee football coach and athletics director Doug Dickey received the 2016 Pat Summitt Lifetime Achievement Award for his major contributions in establishing the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame in its current format
Earlier on Saturday, Tennessee legend and VFL Peyton Manning received the 2016 Tennessean of the Year award at the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame annual Champion Within Luncheon.
Brown, the 2016 USTFCCCA South Region Women's Track Athlete of the Year for both the indoor and outdoor seasons, enjoyed an outstanding senior year, emerging as one of the nation's elite sprinters. She earned 2016 USTFCCCA Indoor Track & Field First Team All-American honors for the 200m and the 4x400m relay and Second Team All-American recognition for the 60m. She was the 2016 NCAA national champion and SEC Champion in the women's 200m. Brown also ran the anchor leg of UT's SEC Indoor Champion 4x400m relay. She was the 2016 SEC Women's Outdoor Runner of the Year and the SEC Outdoor champion in the 200 meters. Brown earned 2016 USTFCCCA Outdoor Track & Field First Team All-American honors with a sixth-place finish at the national championships. She ran a Tennessee-record 22.26 in the 200 meters at SEC Championships to tie for the second-fastest time in the world and qualified for both the 100 meters and the 200 meters in next month's U.S. Olympic Trials.
Coleman enjoyed a spectacular sophomore season. He was named a 2016 USTFCCCA Indoor Track & Field First Team All-American for the 60m, 200m, and 4x400m relay and captured the 200m national title. He was also the 2016 SEC Indoor Champion in the 60m. Colman was the 2016 SEC Men's Indoor Runner of the Year and USTFCCCA South Regional Athlete of the Year. He garnered USTFCCCA Outdoor Track & Field First Team All-American honors this month after taking second place in both the 100 meters and 200 meters at the 2016 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships. He set a new Tennessee record with a 10.03 in the 100-meter semifinals at NCAAs, breaking Justin Gatlin's 2002 school mark of 10.05. Coleman qualified for both the 100 meters and the 200 meters in next month's U.S. Olympic Trials.
UT's 2016 Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame Inductees:
Conrad Graham- Football
Conrad Graham was a three-year starter in Tennessee's secondary during a time which the Vols boasted one of the best pass-coverage defenses in history. Three of the defensive backfield members earned All-America status, including Graham his senior year of 1972. Graham left Tennessee third on the career pass interceptions list with 15. He collected 293 return yards in his three years and scored three touchdowns off turnovers. He led the Vols his junior and senior years in interceptions. His All-America year of 1972 saw him pick off seven passes, ranking him fifth on the season pass interceptions list when his career was over. As a sophomore, Graham was part of a secondary that intercepted a school record 36 passes. He was drafted in the eighth round by the Chicago Bears.
Missy Kane (formerly Alston) - Track
Missy Kane is a Nashville native and graduated from The University of Tennessee in 1977 as a captain of the nationally-ranked women's track team. She started as a walk-on but quickly rose as a leader for her team helping lead the team to a fourth-place finish at the 1977 AIAW Championships and a fourth-place 3200 relay finish. Kane taught and coached at Knoxville's Central High School, before returning for grad school at Tennessee. Like a true competitor, she continued running, placing third at the U.S. Championships and qualifying for international meets. At the 1984 U.S. Olympic Trials, she ran her best time of 4:06 and qualified for the U.S. Olympic Team. Kane competed in the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles and fell just short of the finals. After receiving national attention, she returned as a UT cross country coach, was named SEC Coach of the Year in 1990 and led the team to an SEC title.
Lester McClain - Football
Lester McClain was born in Nashville and attended Haynes High School and Antioch High School in Antioch, Tenn. He later became the first African American to ever play in an SEC varsity football game for Tennessee when they played Georgia on Sept. 14th, 1968, under head coach Doug Dickey. In his three years at Rocky Top (freshmen were ineligible to play varsity prior to the 1970's), the Nashville native caught 70 passes for 1,003 yards and 10 touchdowns, while rushing 10 times for 123 yards and two scores. In 1970, McClain led the Big Orange in kickoff return yards, bringing eight kicks back a total of 168 yards. He was selected in the ninth round of the 1971 NFL draft by the Chicago Bears. McClain currently owns a State Farm insurance agency in Nashville.
Canale Brothers - Football
If college or professional football fans remember Whitfield "Whit" Canale or his brother Justin Canale, they probably live in the area surrounding Memphis, Tenn. Even as pro players, Whit briefly with the Dolphins and Patriots and Justin in a longer career with the Patriots, Bengals, and in the CFL and WFL, they were not stars, nor "name players," yet held the respect of their teammates and those who knew them. From a family of athletes, the Canales have maintained a place in the history of Tennessee athletics that is enviable and extensive. With three brothers who played football for the University of Tennessee (Whit, Frank and George) and three more that played for Mississippi State (Justin, Billy and Conn) there is a strong case to support the comment that "They are the greatest football family that ever came out of Memphis."
