WHITFIELD HALL OF FAME: BIOS

By Rudy Coggins
Published in Sports on January 18, 2016 1:49 PM

• Print
• Email

Here are some notes about the 44th class of inductees enshrined into the George Whitfield Hall of Fame:

Dr. Lee Adams

* Adams earned a degree in optometry from the Pennsylvania College of Optometry in 1953 and returned to his native Goldsboro to begin his career. In 1990, Dr. Lee was one of five Goldsboro Y members who established the Relay For Life For Cancer. He is a member of the N.C. Hall of Fame for Relay For Life.

Wiley Barrett

* An athlete, coach, educator and referee, Barrett officiated more than 5,000 games during his 47-year career that included a game played in Moscow's Olympic Stadium. He received the Golden Whistle Award for officiating, and either chaired or served on numerous civic and education boards.

Alton Britt Jr.

* One most the most-recognized voices in eastern North Carolina, Britt is "Wilson County Sports." The Atlantic Christian College (now Barton) alum has been involved in numerous sports on many age levels for nearly four decades. He is a member of three Hall of Fames -- Wilson Boys & Girls Club, Fike High School and Salvation Army Boys and Girls Club.

Philip Michael Brown

* Spent more than a decade coaching that included stops at High Point Central, Charlotte Garinger, East Durham Junior High, Carr Junior High, Durham Senior High, Sanford Central High and Wilmington New Hanover. Brown was the director of the inaugural NCHSAA Chemical Awareness Conference, which started in 1989. Brown has received several accommodations from numerous organizations, including the NCHSAA which recognized him as one of the Association's "Top 100" administrators to remember during the NCHSAA's 100-year anniversary celebration.

Donald Clark

* Turned Greene Central High School into a tennis factory. During his tenure as the Rams' head coach -- girls and boys -- Clark's teams won a combined 31 regular-season and tournament championships. He took nine girls teams to the dual-team state finals and won two state titles. Clark has been president of the N.C. High School Tennis Coaches Association since 2007.

Dennis Craddock

* Undoubtedly one of the most successful track coaches, Craddock won an eye-popping 45 Atlantic Coast Conference championships at the University of Virginia. His program churned out 25 athletes who combined for 38 individual national championships. Craddock coached a total of 19 Olympians who combined to win five gold and two bronze medals.

Enid Drake

* The 1954 Wake Forest graduate taught at Middlesex High School and compiled a total of 444 wins in boys' basketball, girls' basketball and baseball. Drake moved on to Louisburg College and during his 41-year tenure on the bench, the Hurricanes won 694 games and advanced to the NJCAA tournament on one occasion. He is a member of the inaugural class inducted into the Louisburg Sports Hall of Fame in 2007.

Nora Lynn Finch

* A member of the Western Carolina University and Peace College Hall of Fames, Finch received the prestigious Order of the Longleaf Pine in 1988. She serves on the NCAA Women's Basketball Oversight Committee. Finch is also the color analyst for ESPN, ACC and N.C. State women's basketball telecasts for the past decade.

Phil Ford

* The Rocky Mount native helped lead Team USA to a gold medal in the 1976 Games. He was the NBA Rookie-of-the-Year with Kansas City in 1979 and spent 12 years as an assistant with the Tar Heels. UNC won 99 games with Ford in a uniform.

Harry Frye

* A N.C. Baseball Coaches Association and Catawba County Sports Hall of Fame member, Frye won a combined 18 championships while coaching high school and Senior Legion baseball teams. He won three consecutive state titles from 1971-73 at St. Stephens High School and the baseball field is named in his honor.

Cliff Godwin

* A 1992 graduate of Greene Central, Godwin played at East Carolina from 1996-2001. He was part of three Pirate teams that participated in three regionals and one super regional. Before becoming ECU's head coach last year, Godwin had stops at Kinston High School, UNC Wilmington, Vanderbilt, Notre Dame, LSU, Central Florida and Ole Miss. He mentored Ole Miss grad Stuart Turner, who won the 2013 Johnny Bench Award.

Larry Honeycutt

* One of eastern North Carolina's well-known officials, Honeycutt has been assigned to numerous conference, sectional, regional -- including nine state championships -- during his career that's spanned nearly five decades. He received the Golden Whistle Award from the NCHSAA last May. Honeycutt served as an elder, deacon and choir member at Little Chapel on the Boardwalk in Wrightsville Beach.

Mike Kennedy

* Guided Elon University to 17 winning campaigns in 19 seasons and 629 victories overall. Seven of his teams advanced to the NCAA tournament and his 1990 squad concluded the year ranked No. 24 nationally by Baseball America. Kennedy won 26 games against top-25 teams and sent 49 players to the pro ranks.

Chris Norman

* A recent inductee into the NCHSAA Hall of Fame, Norman spent his most of his coaching career at Shelby High School and guided three differerent sports to a combined 29 conference championships. He was named the Associated Press Coach-of-the-Year in 2006 after his squad won the state football title in perfect fashion (16-0). Norman has received recognition for his commitment to the Shrine Bowl and was an assistant coach for the NCCA East-West All-Star game in 2004.

Sherry Norris

* An NCHSAA Hall-of-Famer and listed among the "top 100" coaches to remember, Norris compiled more 1,307 wins as the head varsity girls' volleyball and varsity girls' basketball coach. Norris' last three basketball teams have appeared in the eastern regional. She has won four state titles -- two each in volleyball and basketball. Seven of her teams have competed in the state finals. The Bladenboro HS grad is an active member of Cross Roads Baptist Church in Hillsborough.

Ray Price

* Price recently passed away after experiencing one of the most successful careers as a competitor in motorcycle racing. The Johnston County native won 46 national motorcycle races and set 51 records. He retired as a driver after the 2007 season and designed the first wheelie bar for motorcyle drag racing. Price is called the "Father of the Funny Bike." He is a member of six Hall of Fames, including the N.C. Sports Hall of Fame in Raleigh.

Lenox Rawlings

* One of the state's most-gifted and talented writers, Rawlings spent the last two-plus decades at the Winston-Salem Journal. The University of North Carolina graduate covered 33 Masters, 31 NCAA Final Fours, 17 World Series and was there when Hammerin' Hank Aaron and Barry Bonds set career home run records. Rawlings was inducted into the N.C. Sports Hall of Fame in 2015.

Si Seymour

* Seymour has spent nearly two decades as the basketball analyst for East Carolina University alongside Jeff Charles (the 'voice of the Pirates') courtside at Williams Arena inside Minges Coliseum. Seymour guided Craven Community College to 11 consecutive 20-win seasons and three Region X titles -- all achieved without and on-site facility for practice and games. The Camden native is chairman of the College of Health and Human Performance Advisory Board at ECU.

Wade Smith

* Smith earned all-conference accolades on three occasions, played in the Shrine Bowl and was co-captain in the NCCA East-West All-Star game during his career at Albemarle High School. He hung up his cleats to become one of North Carolina's well-known lawyers and has been listed as one of North Carolina's "top 10 lawyers" every year since 2009. He received the 2015 John J. Parker Award -- which recognizes N.C.'s best lawyer.

Dexter Miller

* The former Clinton Junior College and Virginia Union standout has toured 15 countries with five teams -- Athletes in Action, Sports Ambassadors, Spirit Express, Harlem Globetrotters Legends and served as Chaplain for the Legends Team. He currently performs and has given inspirational speeches to more than 800,000 youth. He was the head varsity boys' basketball coach at Croatan HS from 2009-12.