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Junior Collins - 1971

Junior Collins was a starting guard for three years in basketball and three years in baseball as an outfielder and pitcher for the Lenoir City High School Panthers. As a sophomore he was All District and All Region in basketball. As a junior, he repeated All District in basketball. As a senior, he was elected captain of the basketball team and was All District, All Region, All Tri-State (players from Tennessee, Georgia, and Alabama) and MVP. He was the recipient of the Cecil Thomas Outstanding Athlete Award. He scored forty-one points in two quarters and three minutes, which was a modern day scoring record. This record was not broken for twenty years. He compiled a 19.1 points per game average. He left LCHS as the all-time leading scorer with 1,286 points in three years of play. He was chosen by his peers as Mr. LCHS and Most Athletic. He received a scholarship to Cleveland State Junior College where he started two years in basketball, averaging 12.4 points per game. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2007.

9

Gene Conner - 1931
 

Conner was a starting guard for the 1930 State Championship Basketball team and played outstanding ball. He was named to the second team All State in a time when only 5 players were named to the first team. Lenoir City again had a great team in 1931 and again played for the championship but lost to Chester County with Conner making the first team All State. He was a spark plug who would never give up or give in. He was elected as a charter member to the Hall of Fame in 1970.

6

JERRY CONNER --1950
 

In football, he could run and pass with the very best. After moving here in his sophomore year, he played football for three years, being voted Most Outstanding Player his last two. For the undefeated team of 1949, he scored 123 points and personally accounted for 43 points in the 45-14 rout of Clinton. As a senior, he was selected to the All East Tennessee second team after scoring 20 touchdowns, a record that stood for 25 years. In basketball, he was selected All District his last 2 years and was Most Outstanding Player as he served as Captain his senior year. He was a 3 year letterman in baseball and played American Legion ball n the summer. He was recruited heavily and signed a scholarship to Carson Newman College where he earned seven letters playing football and baseball. He led the baseball team in batting average three seasons. He received the Master of Divinity Degree from Columbia Theological Seminary and served in the Presbytarian Church for a half century. He was elected as a charter member to the Hall of Fame in 1970.

63

Tommy Cook - 1973
 

He was a 3 year starter in baseball and football and would be a worthy candidate for either sport but his fame really came with his play in baseball. He led the team as a sophomore in hitting (.453) and made All District. The next year he again led the team in hitting (.443) and added team bests in RBI's (29), SB's (18), HR's (4) and posted a 6-3 won/loss record as a pitcher and again made All District. Senior year records are missing but he again made All District. This led to his being drafted in the 12th Round by the St. Louis Cardinals. As a quarterback in football he made the All East Tennessee 2nd Team in 1973 as well as the All Loudon County Team. He signed a full football scholarship to play at Northeast Louisiana University after turning down a baseball signing bonus with the Cardinals. He ended his football career because of injuries and transferred to The University of Tennessee on a full baseball scholarship where his hitting and first base play led to him making the All SEC East team in 1978. He was Honorable Mention, All SEC Academic his last 2 years. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2006.

TRAVIS COZART - 1993  

Travis played basketball and football for the Lenoir City Panthers.  He excelled in both sports.  His sophomore year he was named MVP in the district basketball tournament.  His junior year he and the Panthers went to the Sub-State with a 30-3 record, with Travis averaging 18 points and 8 rebounds per game.  He was selected for the All District Team and All Region Team.  This same year he was named All East Tennessee, District Champs in football, had 1,100 yards rushing and scored 10 touchdowns.  His senior year Travis was named to the All District team in basketball.  He received several awards for football, including All State Team; East Tennessee Player of the Year; Lawrenceburg Player of the Year; Kentucky-Tennessee All-Star Game MVP; Voted #2 Player in State by Knoxville News Sentinel; Super-Prep Magazine All-American; Blue Chip Magazine All-American; named #1 Free Safety in the Nation; named #3 Running Back in the Nation; and named #1 Running Back in the South.  He ran 1467 yards and scored 24 touchdowns.  Travis was a University of Tennessee signee and a JuCo All-American.  He played 2 years in the CFL for the Calgary Stampedes and the Shreveport Pirates.  In 1997 he was a Free Agent Signee of the St. Louis Rams. He was inducted into the Sports Hall of Fame in 2016.  He was inducted into the Sports Hall of Fame in 2016.