NASHVILLE, TN., -- The Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame today announced the names of eleven inductees to be enshrined at its annual banquet on February 19th at the Renaissance Hotel in Nashville and former Middle Tennessee baseball coach and athletic director John Stanford is among the elite.

Stanford joins Boots Donnelly, Jimmy Earle, Larry Gilbert, Dean Hayes, Charles "Bubber" Murphy, Reese Smith, and Kim Webb as other Blue Raiders in the TSHF.

"This year's banquet will feature an outstanding class of athletes," said Wayne McCreight, president of the state-wide organization. "We'll have a former NFL great, an NBA standout, a member of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and the first African-American professional golfer. I guarantee everyone who loves sports an exciting evening...an evening you'll never forget," McCreight concluded.

A native of Louisiana, Stanford, enrolled at Middle Tennessee in the early 1950s and quickly made his mark as one of the outstanding pitchers in the Ohio Valley Conference. Following graduation he spent two seasons with the Washington Senators. Following his professional career, Stanford returned to middle Tennessee where he first coached at Shelbyville Central High School and later at Motlow State Community College earning Coach of the Year honors three consecutive years.

In 1974 he took over the reigns at his alma mater and quickly developed one of the most respected diamond programs in college baseball. His MTSU record of 402-272-4 is second only to his hand picked successor, Steve Peterson. His teams won four OVC titles and five Southern Division crowns. His teams made repeated trips to the NCAA Tournament and he took multiple coach-of-the-year honors.

After being named Athletic Director at MTSU in 1987, Stanford spearheaded the fund-raising efforts to build one of the finest baseball facilities on a college campus. He also was responsible for upgrading the University's golf program and advocated the formation of the women's softball program.

The other 2010 Inductees are as follows:
E. J. Junior (Maplewood High School)
Ted Rhodes (Posthumous)
John R. Hall (Lifetime Achievement Inductee; Vanderbilt)
Dale Ellis (Tennessee)
Charlie Coffey (Tennessee)
Lin Dunn (Tennessee)
Rocky Felker (Brownsville High School; Mississippi State)
Bill Dupes (Tennessee Tech)
Norman "Turkey" Stearnes (Posthumous)
Harley "Skeeter" Swift (East Tennessee State)

Along with these inductees, several individual and team honorees will be recognized at the annual Banquet on February 19, 2010. Those recipients, to include the male and Female Amateur Athlete of the Year, the Professional Athletes of the Year will be announced in the near future.

Tickets for the awards banquet and induction ceremony are available form the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame for $125.00. For more information on attending the event call the TSHF office at (615) 242-4750 or e-mail tnsports@bellsouth.net.

The Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame is a statewide, non-profit organization founded to honor and preserve outstanding sports achievements in Tennessee.

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