A former Casey County player and his coach and three men with ties to Harrodsburg are in this year’s class of the 12th Region Boys Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame.
The Casey Countians are Phil Williams, who played for the Rebels and is now an assistant coach, and Bob Payne, who coached Williams at Casey and also coached at Russell County.
Williams said last week that he was thrilled to be selected and that it means even more to him because he’s being honored at the same time as Payne.
The Harrodsburg honorees are Chris Huff, who starred for the Pioneers in the 1980s; Greg Edwards, who coached the 1996 team that won a regional championship and remains the last area team to win a game at the Boys Sweet Sixteen; and David Collier, a fixture for years at the scorer’s table at Aggie Sale Gymnasium.
A total of 19 men were selected for the fourth class of this hall of fame, which is open to those affiliated with 12th Region schools past and present. They will be honored at halftime of Tuesday’s boys 12th Region Tournament championship in Stanford.
Here’s the full list of honorees:
Players: Paul Andrews, Hazel Green; Ray Blevins, Wayne County; Darryl Dunagan, Monticello; Forrest Dunagan, Wayne County; Jeff Hoover, Russell County; Chris Huff, Harrodsburg; Don Parsons, Lily; Bobby Taylor, Lily; Phil Williams, Casey County; Charles Wood, Pine Knot.
Coaches: Greg Edwards, Harrodsburg/Mercer County/Boyle County; Donn Marston, Danville; Bob Payne, Casey County/Russell County; Jerry Stephens, McCreary Central.
Contributors: Sam Brown, Wayne County; Jack Bruner, London; David Collier, Harrodsburg; Jimmy Durham, Laurel County/North Laurel; Ben Reeves, Garrard County.
thanks for all involved in making this work. As a coach Nicholas Co and Lily, I know how busy a coach can be. Later I was an assistant at Laurel Co. My time in sports as a player in high school and college and my service as a coach remain as one of the highs of my life. Thank God for the opportunity.
Congratulations to you and all the others on this honor. I know those responsible put quite a bit of time and thought into the selections each year.