VOLUME 11 ISSUE 4 | FEBRUARY 6-12, 2015 | YOUR SOURCE FOR SPORTS IN GEORGIA

Time to look great!

BRING THE NOISEThe Usos continue rise to WWE’s most popular duo. | Pg. 12

Living For The City | Pg. 7-10

Who’s Next | Pg. 4-5

Atlanta Sports Hall of Fame inducts its Class of 2015.

Georgia’s latest class of signees populates the college football landscape.

The place was trashed. It used to be a neighborhood, but you wouldn't even know it. So we cranked it into high gear, and after all the training, things just clicked.

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3Vol. 11 Iss. 4 | February 6-12, 2015

PUBLISHER/EDITOR I.J. Rosenberg

ART/CREATIVE DIRECTOR DJ Galbiati Blalock

MANAGING EDITOR Craig Sager II

MARKETING/ Lauren Goldstein

PARTNERSHIP DIRECTOR

BUSINESS MANAGER Marvin Botnick

BEAT WRITERS Ricky Dimon (Braves, Tech)

Brian Jones (KSU)

Dan Mathews (UGA)

Craig Sager II (Falcons)

Kyle Sandy (Hawks, GSU,

Gladiators)

STAFF WRITERS Jalisa Smith

Matthew Cason

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Copyright 2015 Score Atlanta Publishing, LLC. All rights reserved. Score Atlanta is published in print every other week on Fridays and a digital ver-sion is posted to ScoreAtl.com in-between print issues. Views expressed in Score Atlanta are not necessarily the opinion of Score Atlanta, its staff or advertisers. Score Atlanta does not knowingly accept false or mislead-ing editorial content or advertising nor is Score Atlanta responsible for the content or claims of any advertising or editorial in this publication. No content (articles, photographs, graphics) in Score Atlanta may be used for reproduction without written permission from the publisher.

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08 ATLANTA SPORTS HALL OF FAME04 12NATIONAL SIGNING

DAY COVERAGEINSIDE THE WWE

FOLLOW ALL OF THE NATIONAL SIGNING DAY COVERAGE

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4 SCORE ATLANTA | www.ScoreAtl.com

1. Johnathan Abram .....................S ....................................................East Marion (MS)2. Patrick Allen .............................OT.........................................................Franklin (MD)3. Chuks Amaechi ........................LB .............................. Arizona Western College (AZ)4. Deandre Baker .........................CB ................................................ Northwestern (FL)5. Michael Barnett ........................DE ......................................................Woodland (SC)6. Juwuan Briscoe ........................CB .............................................. Thomas Stone (MD)7. Kirby Choates ...........................S .................................................................Tri-Cities8. Michael Chigbu .........................WR ....................................................Holy Cross (LA)9. Tae Crowder ..............................WR .......................................................Harris County10. Terry Godwin ............................ATH .............................................................. Callaway11. Sage Hardin ..............................OT.....................................................................Marist12. Jackson Harris .........................TE ........................................... Columbia Central (TN)13. DaQuan Hawkins ......................DT ...............................................................Westlake14. Jonathan Ledbetter ..................DE ................................................................... Tucker15. Sam Madden .............................OT........................................................ Barnegat (NJ)16. Gary McCrae .............................LB ...................................................... Randolph Clay17. Rico McGraw ...........................CB ...........................................................Stephenson18. Natrez Patrick ...........................DE ..................................................................... Mays19. Rashad Roundtree ....................S ..................................................... Lakeside-Evans20. DeVondre Seymour ..................OT......................................................Hinds C.C. (MS)21. Jayson Stanley .........................WR ............................................................ Creekside22. Juwan Taylor .............................LB ..................................................... Hallandale (FL)23. Trent Thompson ........................DT ...............................................................Westover 24. D’Andre Walker ........................DE ................................................. Langston Hughes25. Jarvis Wilson ............................S .............................................................Tupelo (MS)26. Shaquery Wilson ......................ATH ..................................... Coral Gables Senior (FL)27. Justin Young .............................DT .................................................................Grayson

1. Kevin Ackerman .......................TE ................................................. Bolles School (FL)2. J.L. Banks .................................LB ........................................................North Oconee3. Jay Bowdry ...............................S ............................................................ Thomasville4. Jeremiah Culbreth ....................DT ................................................. Langston Hughes5. Lane Ecton ................................S ...................................................... Dutch Fork (SC)6. Wesley Fields ...........................RB ................................................ Americus-Sumter7. Obe Fortune ..............................ATH ...................................................................Milton8. D’Ondre Glenn ..........................WR ................................................... Douglas County9. Markeis Hallback .....................RB .................................................Moore Haven (FL)10. Malik Henry ..............................WR ............................................................Tift County11. Naquan Howard ........................WR .............................................. F.W. Buchholtz (FL)12. Logan Hunt ...............................DE .............................................. Washington County13. J.B. Kouassi ..............................DE ...............................................................Norcross14. Jessie Liptrot ............................ATH ...................................... Duncan U. Fletcher (FL)15. Max Magana .............................OT....................................Feather River College (CA)16. Christian Matthew ...................CB ..............................................................Hardaway17. Hampton McConnell .................QB .........................................................West Forsyth18. Eric Montgomery ......................RB ............................................................... Hillgrove19. Joshua Moon ............................S ............................................................... Creekside20. Curtis Rainey ............................OG .................................................Robert E. Lee (FL)21. Jeremiah Theus ........................OG ................................................ Bolles School (FL)

1. Victor Alexander .......................LB .............................................Trinity Christian (FL)2. KirVonte Benson .......................RB ................................................................ Marietta3. Will Bryan .................................OG .................................................... Franklin County 4. Christian Campbell ...................ATH ................................................. Ponchatoula (LA)5. Tyler Cooksey ...........................LB ..................................... Greater Atlanta Christian6. Nathan Cottrell ..........................RB .............................................. Knoxville West (TN)7. David Curry ...............................S .....................................................................Buford8. Meiko Dotson ............................CB ....................................................... Mainland (FL)9. Brentavious Glanton .................DT ..................................................................Monroe10. A.J. Gray ...................................S ................................................ Washington County11. Kyle Henderson ........................DT .............................................................. Plant (FL)12. Harland Howell .........................WR ............................................................... Wheeler13. Omahri Jarrett ..........................RB .................................................. New Manchester14. Mikell Lands-Davis ..................RB ............................................................. Alexander15. Marcus Marshall ......................RB ...................................................... Millbrook (NC)16. TaQuon Marshall .......................RB ........................................................Harris County17. Brant Mitchell ..........................LB .................................................Webb School (TN)18. Brad Morgan .............................OG .................................................................. Etowah19. Scott Morgan ............................DT .................................................................. Etowah20. Christian Philpott ......................WR ................................ North Florida Christian (FL) 21. Jaylend Ratliffe .........................ATH .......................................... Scotland County (NC)22. Anree Saint-Amour ..................DE ..................................................... North Gwinnett23. Trent Sellers..............................DE ......................................................... Sandy Creek24. Brad Stewart .............................WR ......................................................... Benedictine25. Dorian Walker ...........................ATH ............................................................. Mt. Paran26. Quaide Wiemerskirch ..............RB ...............................................................Pace (FL)27. Dante Wigley .............................CB ..............................................................Carrollton

1. Tre Campbell .............................S ....................................................... Scottsdale (AZ)2. Ed Curney .................................LB ......................................................Carver-Atlanta3. Kendrick Dorn ..........................RB ..................................San Bernardino Valley (CA)4. Marquan Greene .......................WR .................................................... Colquitt County5. Penny Hart ................................ATH .........................................................King’s Ridge6. Melliek Jackson .......................S ......................................Champagnat Catholic (FL)7. Dequeszman Kelley ..................DT .....................................................Coffeyville (KS)8. Demarcus Kirk .........................RB ...............................................................Dora (AL)9. Julien Laurent...........................DT ....................................New Mexico Military (NM)10. Matlin Marshall .........................ATH ................................................................... Evans11. Chase Middleton .......................LB ........................................................... Brookwood12. Kameron Myers ........................WR ..........................................East Mississippi (MS)13. Charlie Patrick ..........................LB ..................................................................... Mays14. Kelvin Rainey ............................LB .................................................Iowa Western (IA)15. Kaleb Ringer .............................LB ............................................................ Butler (KS)16. Dom Roldan ..............................OG ....................................... Grossmont College (CA)17. Tyler Simonsen .........................OT...................................San Bernardino Valley (CA)18. Ari Werts ...................................TE ............................................................Stephenson19. Aaron Winchester .....................QB .............................................................Mt. Pisgah

1. Kyla Arrasmith ..........................TE ...........................................................Navarre (FL)

2. Auston Banks ...........................RB ................................................... Notre Dame (TN)

3. Chaston Bennett .......................RB .............................................................. Rusk (TX)

4. Raekwon Chatman ...................DB ......................................................... Ware County

5. Leigh Comfort ...........................OL ...............................Northeastern Oklahoma (OK)

6. Kingsley Ejike ...........................DL ..................................................................Newton

7. Derrick Farrow .........................DB .......................................... East Central C.C. (MS)

8. Matt Foster ................................DE ................................Middle Tennessee State (TN)

9. Darnell Holland .........................ATH ................................................................Bowdon

10. E.J. Hurley .................................OL ......................................................... Sandy Creek

11. Malik Letatau ............................OL ....................................College of San Mateo (CA)

12. Chase McNulty ..........................DB ..............................................Itawamba C.C. (MS)

13. Kyron Minter .............................LB ............................................ Navarro College (TX)

14. Dustyn Moore ...........................DE .................................................Heritage-Conyers

15. T.J. Reed ....................................RB ..........................................................Daphne (AL)

16. Zach Taisler ...............................LB .................................................... Houston County

1. Jake Brooks ..............................ATH .............................................................. Thomson2. Will Coneway ............................LB .............................................. Washington County3. Dawson Ellis .............................OL ..........................................................East Coweta4. Cole Fisher ................................K .....................................................................Archer5. Destin Guillen ...........................DE .............................................................Berea (SC)6. Stephen Houzah .......................DB ................................................... Lakeside-Evans7. Marquise Irvin ..........................WR ........................................... Madison County (AL) 8. Eric Jackson .............................DB ............................................................... Hillgrove9. Blake Jones ..............................DL ........................................................Harris County10. Dorian Kithcart .........................DL ...............................................................Norcross11. Mitch Mathes ............................OL .....................................................................Troup12. Donte Maxson ...........................RB .................................................Pinellas Park (FL)13. Chad Mitchell ............................OL ..........................Montgomery Bell Academy (TN)14. Truett Moss ...............................OL .................................................................Calhoun15. Steven Nixon .............................LS ................................................................Harrison16. Jake Peppers ............................TE ..............................................................Creekview17. Jimmie Robinson ......................ATH .......................................Flagler Palm Coast (FL)18. Matt Shiel ..................................P .................................................... Auburn/Australia19. Stanley Smith ...........................OL ..........................................................Opelika (AL)20. Jonathan Ward .........................LB ..................................................... Tattnall Sqaure21. Chase Westfall ..........................TE .....................................................................Dalton

COMMITMENTS TO INSTATE COLLEGESGEORGIA

GEORGIA SOUTHERN

GEORGIA TECH

GEORGIA STATE

KENNESAW STATE

MERCER UNIVERSITY

5Vol. 11 Iss. 4 | February 6-12, 2015

National Signing Day 2015 was bigger than ever this year as national and local me-

dia broadcasted the final college decisions of thousands of athletes from every corner of the country. In our own backyard, the Peach State once again took center stage as the nation’s top programs battled for Georgia’s deep list of prospects. The amount of talent and the number of big names in this year’s class rivals Georgia’s star-studded Class of 2013 that 247sports considered the most talented class of recruits in the nation that year. That year lit the fuse at both ends as Georgia transformed from being considered one of the most talented states in the nation to a mandatory stop on every top program’s radar. Within Georgia’s borders, we saw Georgia Tech put together a recruiting class this year that is considered to be the best in head coach Paul Johnson’s tenure. The Yellow Jackets used 17 instate players to build its 27 player class, the most Georgia prospects to go to any school in the nation this year. Defensive end Anree St. Amour is one of the headliners in the class and the North Gwinnett standout was one of the hundreds of signees to come through the sec-ond annual Signing Day Frenzy celebration at Stars and Strikes. The event started with record-setting Pickens running back Shannon Brooks signing to Minnesota and continued with plenty of excitement as 92.9 The Game broadcasted live. Lakeside DeKalb brought Army signee Kel-lyen Walker and highly-touted defensive line-man Michael Horton. Horton informed the lis-tens and fans in attendance that he was flipping from Florida to sign with Auburn.

CHAMPIONSHIP TALENT… Georgia once again built a top 10 recruit-ing class, but the attention was shifted towards Georgia Tech’s incoming class significantly more than previous years. One of the main aspects creating the excitement is the level of success and championship experience within the list of signees. Class AAAA state cham-pion Buford sent safety David Curry to Georgia Tech on Wednesday, one week removed from Curry’s decision to flip from Virginia. Class AA state champion Benedictine sent wide receiver Brad Stewart (AJC Class AA Player of the Year) to the Jackets in this year’s class and Class A state champion running back Dorian Walker joined Tech’s Class of 2015 after a breakout season for Mt. Paran. Linebacker Tyler Cook-sey (Greater Atlanta Christian) and safety A.J. Gray (Washington County) both made the fi-

nals this past season in their respective clas-sifications and brothers Scott and Brad Mor-gan manned the trenches this past season for Etowah and helped the Eagles reach the state semifinals for the first time in school history.

THE GEORGIA WAY… The Georgia Bulldogs brought in 13 instate prospects this year and there is still a chance for Macon County safety Roquan Smith. Smith committed to UCLA on National Signing Day but has not yet signed his letter of intent and could ultimately land on the Dawgs. Callaway receiver Terry Godwin was a late pickup on Na-tional Signing Day as he signed with the Dawgs live on Fox Sports South Wednesday at 6:20 pm. Godwin picked Georgia over his other fi-nalists Auburn and Alabama.

ELITE JUNIORS… In December of 2013, the inaugural Elite Junior Classic took the field at McEachern High School. Many watching the junior all-stars share the spotlight wondered how that group would do when National Signing Day came 14 months later. By the end of National Signing Day, 53 of the first Elite Junior Classic participants were signed to play college foot-ball this fall at 38 different schools. Wide receivers T.J. Rahming (McEach-ern) and Keyston Fuller (Griffin) both signed to Duke, while defensive back Khalil Brooks (Mays) and offensive lineman Josh Fannin will be teammates at Middle Tennessee State to-gether this fall. Auburn plucked five prospects from the Elite Junior Classic in its No. 9 nationally ranked in-coming class. Kicker Ian Shannon (Marietta), lineman Kaleb Kim (Mill Creek), Darius Slay-ton (Greater Atlanta Christian), Jordan Colbert (Griffin) and linebacker Robert Muschamp (Darlington) are all Tiger-bound. Wide receiv-er Daniel Imatorbhebhe (North Gwinnett) and lineman Brandon Sandifer (Northside-Warner Robins) are future Florida Gators teammates and Tyler Camp (Mary Persons) and Hunter Holland (Buford) are both headed to Western Kentucky. UGA grabbed safety Rashad Roundtree (Lakeside-Evans) from the group, while Geor-gia Tech signed previously-mentioned Curry, Stewart and St.-Amour along with running back KirVonte Benson (Marietta).

NATIONAL SIGNING DAY

BY CRAIG SAGER II | CSAGER@SCOREATL.COM

GEORGIA TECH LOADS UP ON INSTATE TALENT

INAUGURAL ELITE JR. CLASSIC CLASS

KirVonte Benson ................ Georgia Tech Josh Bettistea .................Gardner-Webb Khalil Brooks ....Middle Tennessee StateAlmonzo Brown ...................... Minnesota Kawon Bryant ..Georgia Military College Andrew Butcher ..................... Tennessee Chris Calhoun ..................... Wake Forest Tyler Camp .................Western Kentucky Jordan Colbert .............................Auburn Lewis Cousins III ...................Delta State Levi Cribb ...................Jacksonville State David Curry ........................ Georgia Tech Daniel David ...............Appalachian State Gordon Dudley ........................ Reinhardt Chuma Edoga ....................................USC Josh Fannin .......Middle Tennessee State Daniel Fennell ................. South Carolina Blake Ferguson ................................. LSU Julian Fraser .....................................Yale Christopher Frederick ............. Syracuse Keyston Fuller ................................. Duke Taj Griffin ......................................Oregon Quintin Hampton ............................... UCF Hunter Holland ...........Western Kentucky Stephen Houzah ...........................Mercer Logan Hunt ..................Georgia Southern Mitch Hyatt ................................ Clemson Daniel Imatorbhebhe ................... Florida Quentez Johnson .....................N.C. State

Chandler Jones ........................Louisville

Willie Jordan ..........Northeast Oklahoma

Max Kemper ..............................Air Force

Kaleb Kim .....................................Auburn

Cal King .............................. Presbyterian

J.B. Kouassi ................Georgia Southern

Nekyle Lundie ..........................Nebraska

Malik Mackey ............................Hampton

Hampton McConnell ...Georgia Southern

Chase Middleton ............... Georgia State

Robert Muschamp .......................Auburn

D’Andre Plantin .................. Virginia Tech

T.J. Rahming .................................... Duke

Connor Redmond ............ South Carolina

Rashad Roundtree ......................Georgia

Brandon Sandifer ........................ Florida

Ian Shannon .................................Auburn

Darius Slayton ..............................Auburn

Luis Sobh ............................West Florida

Anree St-Amour ................ Georgia Tech

Brad Stewart ...................... Georgia Tech

Cordarro Stoute .................West Georgia

Jalen Wilkerson ................................ FSU

Daylan Williams .................Morgan State

Nick Wilson ............................... Stanford

Steven Wright .............................Virginia

The following are the players that signed college scholarships as of Thursday morning from the inaugural Elite Junior Classic in 2013. For more information on this class, go to EliteJuniorClassic.com.

6 SCORE ATLANTA | www.ScoreAtl.com

OUR TWO CENTSOur email newsletter is something we take a lot of pride in at Score. If you aren’t familiar with it, it is a high school sports-heavy publication that we produce each day to fill in our readers on the latest happenings in Georgia prep sports. We send it out Monday through Friday throughout the year and Monday through Saturday during the fall.

Not only do we cover popular sports like football, basketball and baseball, we also cover every other varsity sport the GHSA fields. If you like Georgia high school sports at all, sign up for our email newsletter by visiting www.tinyurl.com/scorenewsletter and enter your email address(es) that you’d like added to the distribution list.

WH

O’S

HOT

WH

O’S

NOT

National Signing Day

Pete CarrollUndrafted

Free Agents29 percentDan Quinn Kennesaw State

On Wednesday some of Geor-gia’s best and brightest high school football players signed on the dotted line to further advance their careers to the collegiate level. Some may go on to be the best players in the nation, while others may choose to focus on their stud-ies, but one thing will remain a constant: None of them will forget their days under the Friday night lights.

By now, I’m sure you have heard this storyline a million times. On the precipice of winning back-to-back Super Bowls, Carroll and offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell decided to throw the ball on the one-yard line instead of run it with Marshawn Lynch. Pundits everywhere have called it the worst call they have ever seen. Yikes.

Did you guys watch the Super Bowl on Sunday? Well if you are a part of the 114 million who did, you would have seen that it was Malcolm Butler (West Alabama) and Chris Mat-thews (Kentucky) who stole the show for their respective teams. It just goes to show that the most unheralded players can make the biggest impact when you least expect it.

The 29 percent that did not watch the Super Bowl on Sun-day did themselves a great disservice. The game had everything you could want: unlikely heroes and great sto-rylines galore. Super Bowl XLIX will go down as one of the best championships the sport has ever seen and thank goodness it replaces our memories from last years’ blowout.

The former Seattle Seahawks defensive coordinator has cashed in and will become the new head coach for the Atlanta Falcons. The 44-year old Quinn inked a five-year deal on Monday morning to become the 16th head coach in franchise history. He will look to replicate his ‘Legion of Boom’ defense in Atlanta.

The Owls had to rally at home to beat Division-II Paine Col-lege. It has been another woe-ful year thus far for the Owls. They are now 8-16, but just 2-5 in the dwindling A-Sun which has seen an exodus of talented programs leave the conference. It’s time for KSU to become a contender and not a push over.

SCORE LISTBy Brian Jones

NUMBERSBy Kyle Sandy

FALCONS ARE QUINNINGIt’s official. Former Seattle Seahawks defensive coordinator Dan Quinn is the new head coach of the Falcons. He was formally introduced to the media on Tuesday and he promises the Falcons will be more physical than they were in the past. Welcome to Atlanta Coach Quinn. We are looking forward to you turning the team around.

The Hawks win-streak ended at 19 games when they lost to the New Orleans Pelicans on Monday. It was bound to happen sooner or later, especially with the injuries that were nagging the team. But the Hawks have made believers out of the fans, and it makes for an exciting second half to the season.

WHAT A RUN

BIG NIGHT AT PHILIPSSpeaking of the Hawks, they have a huge game on Friday when they take on the Golden State Warriors. Both teams are in first place in their respective conferences, and both teams have provided a ton of excitement this season. Philips has been packed all season long, but Friday night could break records in terms of attendance.

EMBARRASSED BLANKFalcons owner Arthur Blank addressed the media on Tuesday to not only talk about his new head coach, but to also addressed the fact that his team was investigated for pumping crowd noise in the Georgia Dome. Blank said he was embarrassed and angered by the entire situation. I hope the NFL found nothing wrong for the Falcons, but when there’s smoke…

ATLANTA SPORTS HOFIf you have some free time on Friday night, head on over to the Buckhead Theatre to check out the Atlanta Sports Hall of Fame Induction and Award Ceremony. The inductees this year are Dale Ellis, Leeman Bennett, Al Mead, George Morris and Charlie Yates. Tickets are only $25, so come on out and support legends of Atlanta sports.

? “

ANSWER ON PAGE 14 - New Falcons head coach Dan Quinn.

TRIVIA QUESTION

SANITY AT LAST

HOW MANY FORMER ELITE JUNIOR CLASSIC PLAYERS DID AUBURN SIGN IN ITS

2015 RECRUITING CLASS?

“One of our goals here is that we’re going to be

the best fundamental team in football. Those are going to be some of

the core tenants that we’ll talk about.”

By

Ky

le S

an

dy

19

15

8

8

5

1,000

16

$6million

Game winning streak for the Hawks was snapped on Monday.

Buford Division-I football signees this year.

Hawks lead over Toronto for the No. 1 seed.

Eight of Georgia Tech’s nine conference losses have been by single digits.

Years in Dan Quinn’s contract.

Ryan Harrow scored his 1,000th point as a Georgia State Panther

Georgia State and Georgia Southern are a combined 16-5 in the Sun Belt.

Dian Toscano’s new four-year deal with the Braves

2015 Atlanta Sports Hall of Fame Induction CeremonyFriday, Feb.6, 2015 | Buckhead Theater | 7:15 p.m.

Welcome Larry Winter - President, Atlanta Sports Hall of Fame

Kickoff Kasim Reed, Mayor City of Atlanta

Parade of Hall of Famers Presentation of Hall of Famers - Zach Klein, WSB TV-Channel 2

In Memory Salute to Lou Hudson and Pete Van Wieren - Zach Klein, WSB TV-Channel 2

State of the Hall Larry Winter - President, Atlanta Sports Hall of Fame

2015 ASHOF Star of Year Presentation Star or Year Winner - Chase Elliott, Q&A on stage with Zach Klein WSB TV-Channel 2

2015 Atlanta Sports Hall of Fame Induction

1. Leeman Bennett (presented by Dr Homer Rice - Member of ASHOF)

2. Dale Ellis (presented by Coach Hood, Marietta High School Basketball Coach)

3. Al Mead (presented by Andy Fleming - Atlanta Paralympic Organizing Committee)

4. George Morris (presented by Lee Baker, Executive Director - Touchdown Club of Atlanta)

5. Charlie Yates (presented by Bob Jones IV - grandson of golfer Bobby Jones)

Wrap-up and Thank You Larry Winter - President, Atlanta Sports Hall of Fame

ORDER OF EVENTS

MISSION STATEMENT THANKS TO OUR TABLE SPONSORS

THANKS TO OUR SILENT AUCTION SPONSORS

2015 ATLANTA SPORTS HALL OF FAME ARTWORK PROGRAM

LIST OF CURRENT ATLANTA SPORTS HALL OF FAMERS

WHO IS ELIGIBLE AND HOW IS THE VOTING DONE FOR THE

ATLANTA SPORTS HALL OF FAME?

The Atlanta Sports Hall of Fame is dedicated to honoring Atlanta’s sports heroes, remembering great moments in Atlanta’s sports history and preserving the past from which future generations can learn and take pride.

Atlanta Falcons Charlie Yates Family Chick-fil-A Chick-fil-A BowlEast Lake Foundation George Morris Family

Greater Atlanta Christian Leeman Bennett FamilyNew Hope Baptist Church North Atlanta Church of ChristSmith Family

Atlanta FalconsAtlanta HawksAtlanta Motor Speedway

NAPATour Championship680 The Fan

Under the direction of art teacher Laura LaQuaglia, six Kell High School Advanced Placement studio art students researched the 2015 Star of the Year and five inductees. The students then cre-ated artwork celebrating the athletic achievements and contri-butions of each individual. The artwork is displayed tonight in the lobby of the Buckhead Theatre.The six students and the pieces they created are:Antonio Nichols ..........................................................Chase ElliottMichala Settle ..................................................... Leeman BennettFerris Halemeh ...............................................................Dale EllisRachel Cheek ....................................................................Al MeadAvery Silva ............................................................. George MorrisKennedy O’Connor ................................................... Charlie Yates

Hank AaronTommy BarnesGayle BarronSteve BartkowskiFurman BisherJackie BradfordRon BradleyCindy BrogdonSkip CarayBobby CoxBobby CreminsBill CurryBobby DoddEdith McGuire DuvallBill ElliottWalt FrazierTom GlavineBuck GodfreyBill HartmanJohn HeismanEvander HolyfieldLou HudsonClaude HumphreyErnie Johnson, Sr.Bobby JonesCalvin “Monk” JonesRoger KaiserCorky Kell

Steve LundquistEarl MannDr. Phil McCraryAntonio McKayJames “Red” MooreEdwin MosesDale MurphyLarry NelsonPhil NiekroTommy NobisMelvin Pender, Jr.Mark PriceRandy RhinoDr. Homer RiceGeorge RogersDeion SandersJohn SchuerholzJohn SmoltzDr. Tim SingletonLouise SuggsJessie TuggleTed TurnerWyomia TyusJeff Van NotePete Van WierenDominique Wilkins

1. To be eligible for the Atlanta Sports Hall of Fame a nom-ination must be for an individual or team in the Greater Atlanta Area as defined by the US Census MSA (Met-ropolitan Statistical Area). This is a 28 county area.

2. A nominee must have been born in Greater Atlanta or resided in the Greater Atlanta area long enough to have attended high school, and/or participated in a sports activity in Greater Atlanta for at least four years.

3. Participated in their sport or activity for at least 20 years, or have been retired for 3 years, or in the event of a death an individual or team is immediately eligible.

4. Must be present at the Induction Ceremony to be in-ducted.

5. All nominees will go through a multi-tiered screening process. The final vote is done by the Honors Court.

www.AtlantaSportsHallofFame.org

/AtlantaSportsHallofFame

@ATLSportsHallofFame

CLASS OF 2015 INDUCTEES

LEEMAN BENNETT

DALE ELLIS

CHARLIE YATES

AL MEAD

GEORGE MORRIS

• Leeman Bennett has left his imprint on both college and profes-sional football in the city of Atlanta.

• Bennett is one of the Atlanta Falcons’ most successful head coach-es. During the 1977 season, Bennett’s defense — nicknamed the “Gritz Blitz” — set an all-time NFL record for allowing only 129 points in a 14-game season, a record that will never fall, as the NFL then moved to a 16-game season.

• He was named coach of the year by several organizations following the 1977, 1978, and 1980 seasons.

• Bennett led the Falcons to the first playoffs and division champion-ships in team history. He was the Falcons first head coach to leave with a winning record.

• After coaching 15 years in the NFL, Bennett returned to Atlanta and became a prominent leader of a struggling college bowl game. With his active participation, the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl is now part of the nation’s Bowl Championship Series.

• Bennett also had a successful business career in Atlanta, and served on numerous boards of directors.

• Dale Ellis collected 1,710 points and 989 rebounds as an All-Amer-ican in basketball at Marietta High School in the 1970s. He then went on to University of Tennessee where he was named All-SEC three times.

• Ellis was the ninth overall pick of the 1983 NBA draft by the Dal-las Mavericks. He was traded to Seattle in 1986, where his playing time increased significantly. He was awarded the NBA Most Im-proved Player in 1987.

• Ellis set the National Basketball Association’s record for most min-utes played in a single game. Ellis set the record on Nov. 9, 1989, when he scored 53 points in 69 minutes, out of a possible 73, for the Seattle Supersonics in a 155-154 quintuple-overtime loss to the Milwaukee Bucks.

• Ellis set a franchise record in the 1988-89 season, where he scored 2,253 points, which stood until 2009.

• After Seattle, Ellis played for the Milwaukee Bucks, San Antonio Spurs, Denver Nuggets, Orlando Magic, Charlotte Hornets, and Miami Heat.

• His 1,719 career made three-pointers ranked third in NBA history at the time of his retirement in 2000.

• One of Atlanta’s most distinguished golfers ever. During the 1930s, few golfing amateurs in the country were better known or more widely celebrated.

• A graduate of Boys’ High School in Atlanta, Charlie Yates learned the game of golf at the Atlanta Athletic Club’s East Lake Golf Course. He was mentored by Bob Jones, one of the Atlanta Sports Hall of Fame’s original inductees.

• Yates enjoyed a distinguished amateur career, winning the Georgia Amateur in 1931 and 1932, the NCAA individual title in 1934, while an honor student at Georgia Tech, and the Western Amateur in 1935. His most notable victory came in the 1938 Amateur at Royal Troon in Scotland.

• He played in the Masters eleven times, including the first-ever Masters in 1934, and was low amateur five times. In 1936 and 1938, he played on the U.S. Walker Cup Team. In 1953, he was captain of the Walker Cup Team, and was named honorary captain in 1985.

• In 1980, Mr. Yates was presented with the Bob Jones Award by the United States Golf Association, which is given in recognition of distinguished sportsmanship in golf.

• Yates had a long and successful career in business. He served tire-lessly on numerous civic causes in the city of Atlanta, including the Woodruff Arts Center, the Metro Atlanta YMCA, and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra.

• Al Mead overcame obstacles and challenges to become one of the greatest Paralympians in history.

• Out of Morehouse College, Mead dominated the 1988 Seoul Para-lympic Games, winning the gold medal and setting a world record in the long jump.

• He then captured the long jump silver medal in the 1992 Barcelona Paralympics, a year in which he co-captained the team.

• Mead was the world record holder in the 100-meters from 1982 to 1987.

• He is also the former national record holder in the long and high• jump; a seven-time national 100-meter champion; a winner in the

national high and long jump titles 14 times; and a former world re-corder holder in the 100, 200 and 400 meters.

• In 1983, Mead set world records in the 100 and 200 meters at the NHS Canadian meet.

• Mead was the first Paralympian to be inducted in the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame. He is also a member of both the U.SA. Track & Field of Georgia and the U.S. Amputee Athletic Association Halls of Fame.

• George Morris was part of Georgia Tech’s golden era of football dur-ing the early 1950s.

• Morris played offense and defense for Bobby Dodd’s Ramblin’ Wreck squad that tore off 23 straight victories.

• The 1951 campaign produced an 11-0-1 record, which included a regular-season 14-14 tie with Duke and a 17-14 victory over Baylor in the Orange Bowl.

• The Yellow Jackets were 12-0 in 1952, including a 24-7 victory over Mississippi in the Sugar Bowl, and were picked as national champion by several media services.

• During Morris’ junior and senior seasons, only two opponents man-aged to score more than one touchdown against Tech.

• Morris made 114 unassisted tackles over the 1952 season and earned All-America and academic All-America recognition. Of the 21 All-America football players coached by Dodd, he said none was greater than center-linebacker George Morris.

• Morris worked 30 years as a football official with the SEC. He was also involved in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, the Touchdown Club of Atlanta, and the National Football Foundation.

IN MEMORY OF PETE VAN WIEREN (OCT 07, 1944 - AUG 02, 2014)

IN MEMORY OF LOU HUDSON(JUL 11, 1944 - APR 11, 2014)

• Pete was the Atlanta Braves play-by-play broadcaster for 33 years. “The professor” was known for his in-depth knowledge of the game and thorough preparation before broadcasts.

• “Sweet” Lou Hudson was the smooth-shooting Hawks star who averaged more than 20 points during 13 NBA sea-sons. Lou was known for his big smile and great jump shot.

ATTEND THE 2015 ATLANTA GLAZIER CLINICS

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The Atlanta 150 ClinicThe Westin Buckhead Atlanta

February 27- Mar 1, 2015

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Register at:GlazierClinics.com

2014/2015 ATLANTA SPORTS HALL OF FAME HONORS COURTJon Babul ............................................Atlanta Hawks-Event MarketingRohan Backfisch ..........................................................Fox Sports SouthLee Baker .....................................................Touchdown Club of AtlantaJames Barker ...................................... Morehouse Alumni AssociationJackie Bradford .............................................................Member ASHOFSoloman Brannan ............................................NFL Players AssociationAmy Bryant ............................................ Emory Women’s Tennis CoachMike Cammuck .........................................Shiloh High School-AtheticsDennis Caniglia .............................. Atl Chapter-College FB FoundationAndy Carr ...................................................................Atlanta Track Club Dan Corso ............................................................Atlanta Sports CouncilKim Cox .......................................................... Ga State Golf AssociationSteven Craft ...................................................... Fulton County AthleticsSam Crenshaw ......................................................92.9 The Game RadioTim Darnell ...................................................... Sports Author/Journalist

George Olney....................................... Kennesaw State-Dir Major GiftsJim Owen ............................................. Oglethorpe University AthleticsScott Pederson................................................. Positive Athlete GeorgiaMel Pender .....................................................................Member ASHOFMike Perry ........................................................Alpharetta Parks & RecKen Rodriguez..................................................................... Fox 5 SportsLarry Smith .................................................... Channel 46, CBS- SportsMike Stamus .......................................................Georgia Tech AthleticsChristian Sutttle .................................. Hillgrove High School-PrincipalCharlie Taylor ..........................................Ga State Univ Ath AssociationJeff Van Note ..................................................................Member ASHOFSharman White .............................. Miller Grove High School-AthleticsCarter Wilson .............................................................. Decatur Athletics

Chris Dimino ............................................................. 680 The Fan RadioHorace Dunson ....................................Dekalb County Athletic DirectorMike Emery .......................................Gwinnett County Athletic DirectorJohn Farina .................................. Emory Athletics-Sports InformationBuck Godfrey .................................................................Member ASHOFBill Hartman ...................................................................Member ASHOFBob Hope ..........................................................................Atlanta BravesBrandon Hutchison ......................................... Atlanta Motor SpeedwaySteve Jones .............................................Cobb County Athletic DirectorRoger Kaiser ..................................................................Member ASHOFFrank Kleha .......................................Atlanta Falcons- Media RelationsRalph Kytan ................................................Retired Coca Cola CompanyDewey McClain ................................................NFL Players AssociationDr Phil McCrary .............................................................Member ASHOFScott McFarlane ........................................................ 680 The Fan Radio

2015 ATLANTA SPORTS HALL OF FAME ADVISORY COMMITTEE AND BOARD

Joel AltermanLee BakerMargaret Billingsley-Events ChairmanCheryl Glisson-SecretaryMargaret Kleiman-Volunteer ChairmanTony McIntyre

Jim Riley

Carolyn Serra

Greg White

Larry Winter-President

Selina Winter-Marketing & Public Relations

The Georgia State Golf Association congratulates Charlie Yates on his induction into the Atlanta Sports Hall of Fame

11Vol. 11 Iss. 4 | February 6-12, 2015

12 SCORE ATLANTA | www.ScoreAtl.com

Tag teams in the WWE have always been popular. During the WWE’s rise in the

1980s and 1990s, teams like the Legion of Doom, Demolition and the Hart Foundation made headlines all with their wrestling skills and unique in-ring presences. At the turn of the 21st century, the two teams that drew ratings for the WWE were the Hardy Boyz and Edge and Christian. From their on-mic performances to their in-ring abilities, those two teams had fans on the edge of their seats. Now, there’s a new team that’s starting to gain more and more traction after a strong 2014 and looks to do even bigger things in 2015. Jimmy and Jey Uso, better known as the Usos, are the current WWE Tag Team Cham-pions, and they are looking to make waves in their young careers. The Usos won the tag team titles twice last year, and because of that they won the Slammy Award for Tag Team of the Year. So this past year was big for the Usos going for-ward, and with another successful title defense at the Royal Rumble last month, it looks like the Usos are here to stay.

Since Brookwood’s state championship dy-nasty from 2008-2010, Georgia’s high-

est classification has seen four different teams fight to win the state title. In the Class AAAAAA 2014 state championships, Walton edged runner-up Chattahoochee in a come-from-behind second place finish in the last event (400 freestyle relay) to end the 14-year streak in which a Gwinnett County school had taken home the boys state championship. Walton has returned this season with the depth, speed and determination to make a run at their second straight state title. The Cobb County meet last month saw the defending state champions dominate their Cobb County opponents, racking up 601 points to win their fourth straight county title. Lassiter finished runner-up with 454 points, followed by Wheel-er (364.5), Pope (280) and Hillgrove (254). However, the 2015 state championship will be no cakewalk for the Raiders. Gwin-

ALL IN THE FAMILY… So how did two twin brothers from Florida get involved in the WWE? That’s an easy ques-tion to answer because Jimmy and Jey come from a family enriched in the business. Their father, Rikishi Fatu, was one of the more popu-lar Superstars in the 90s and 2000s. The Usos are also nephews of the late WWE superstar Umaga, and they are cousins to current WWE superstar Roam Reigns and one of the most fa-mous WWE Superstars of all-time, the Rock. “We grew up around this business,” Jim-my said. “It was something that was branded in our brain that WWE would be home for me and my brother sometime in the future.” Umaga and WWE Hall of Famer Booker T trained Jimmy and Jey and the training process was challenging to say the least. “It got frustrating,” Jimmy said talking about training for the WWE. “You start from the bottom and work your way up. It was easy for us to get the hang of it, and it was easy for us to learn.” Even though their dad did not train his two

nett County is bringing the heat this season in hopes of taking back what had been theirs from 2000 to 2013. Returning for the Collins Hill team is South Carolina commit Cody Beke-meyer and junior Taylor Delk. The Eagles tow-ered over rivals with 1,006 points to Parkview’s 885 points, then North Gwinnett taking third (775) and Brookwood fourth (732).

CLASS A-AAAAA… Much like Class AAAAAA, there has not been one school to take charge since West-minster’s six consecutive titles from 2003 to 2008. Marist won the trophy in 2009 and Greater Atlanta Christian in 2010. Wesleyan claimed the state title back-to-back in 2011 and 2012. The 2013 season saw the establish-ment of a new classification, combining the smaller classifications, and a new state cham-pion, Dalton. Last season, St. Pius X edged runner-up Marist 199 points to 191 to seize the

WWE

SWIMMING & DIVING STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS

BY BRIAN JONES | BJONES@SCOREATL.COM

BY LAUREN GOLDSTEIN | LGOLDSTEIN@SCOREATL.COM

TAG TEAM CHAMPION THE USOS HAVE EMERGED AS THE MOST POPULAR DUO IN THE WWE

WALTON, ST. PIUS AIM FOR RARE BACK-TO-BACK TITLES

sons, that didn’t mean he was not involved in their careers. “If we had any questions, we would give him a call,” Jimmy said. “We had really good help.” But before the Usos were banging heads on the mats, they were banging heads on the football field as they were standout players at Escambia High School in Pensacola, Fla. And because both players were so good at the high school level, they were able to take their talents to the University of West Alabama where they played for a few seasons. “I think [playing football] helps a lot,” Jim-my said. “If you’re an athlete prior to becoming a WWE Superstar, it helps in a lot of ways.” Once football was done for the Usos they started training to become part of the WWE. They would make their debut in Florida Cham-pionship Wrestling, which is WWE’s develop-mental organization in 2007, and they would win the Tag Team titles in 2010. They would make their WWE television debut that same year, and they have been active since then. The reason the Usos have been able to continue to be a part of the roster for nearly five years is their unique style. One of the things that stand out with the Usos is a Samoan chant they do, and it has been very popular with fans. “It comes from our ancestors,” Jimmy said. “We would do this crazy war dance before war. It means we’re ready for anything. I got my brother, I got my team and here we go.”

WAVE OF THE FUTURE… The Usos have established themselves as the top tag team in the WWE because of their combination of size, speed and athleticism. And their rise could not come at a better time

A-AAAAA state title but has lost now UGA swimmer, Gunnar Bentz. Dalton boys return to the Georgia Tech Aquatic Center with vengeance after a seventh place finish at last year’s state meet. The Cata-mounts dominated at the North Georgia Region-als last month where they boasted 208 points topping Rome (172), Cambridge (140), Blessed Trinity (103) and Jefferson (93). Dalton boys are led by record setting junior Ethan Young who looks to replicate his incredible run at state last year. Young broke a 14-year old state record in 100-backstroke on the second day of the state championships. The final day, he broke his one-day state record with a 47.26 finish.

GIRLS… Since the installment of Class AAAAAA, there has been some consistency in Geor-gia’s top class. Lambert girls have become the swimming powerhouse winning the state title the past two seasons. They took home their second straight state title last season out scor-ing second-place John’s Creek 279 points to 246.5. Prior to the Longhorn’s winning streak beginning in 2013, there had been five differ-ent champions since 2004. Lassiter earned the title for four consecutive years from 2008 to 2011 until Brookwood triumphed in 2012. Lambert is coming off their sixth Fo-rysth County title finishing with 788.5 points, far ahead of the second-place South girls (603). The Lady Longhorns placed first in the

because the division was missing great teams the last few years.But with the Usos along with some of the younger teams that are coming along, the divi-sion is starting to be a force in the WWE. “The tag team division came back hot when the Shield came in along with us and the Wy-att’s,” Jimmy said. “We have The Ascension com-ing in and more tag teams down in NXT that have to get ready. We love the tag team division.” With the Usos on top of the division means more media time, and that was the case when both brothers made appearance on the realty show Total Divas on the E network. Jimmy had a little more airtime than Jey, but that had to do with his wife, WWE Superstar Naomi, being part of the main cast. “I had to get adjusted to it because it’s something new,” Jimmy said about being on the show. “I’m used to going into the ring with the lights on and the cameras on. But when I’m out of the ring the lights are off but the cameras are still on. It was weird, but it was cool.” Naomi is also into music, so she and Jimmy spend a lot of time in Atlanta. And with the brothers being from Pensacola which is four hours away, they are very familiar with the city. “I used to make trips here back-and-forth to see my cousin Roman Reigns at Georgia Tech,” Jimmy said. “The WWE universe in Atlanta has always been with us. ATL is a second home.” When the Jimmy and Jey come to Atlanta on February 24 for Smackdown, Philips Arena will be loud when they hit the ring. The Usos are a big reason WWE is the most watch program on cable television and the Samoan brothers from Pensaco-la show no signs of slowing down anytime soon. Photo courtesy of WWE.

200-medley, 200-freestyle and 400-free-style. Caroline Aikins won the 200-IM and the 100-backstoke, Katherine Aikins the 50-free-style and Nicole Raicik the 100-butterfly.

CLASS A-AAAAA… After the smaller classifications saw back-and-forth state champions in Westmin-ster’s six straight titles beginning in 2001, Marist’s five consecutive from 2007 to 2011, then the Wildcats return in 2012 and 2013, Woodward Academy took home the title last season but lot record setter and Virginia swimmer Caitlin Cooper. In the 45th Metro Swimming and Diving Championships last month the Marist relay team dominated in the pool. The foursomes of Kendall Nelson, Anna Cote, Gracie Crump and Marlaina Schwab and Nelson, Tori Lauterbach, Leona Harper and Lizzy Walls placed first in both the 200-medley relay (1:52.40) and the 200-freestlye relay (1:38.55) respectively. Lady War Eagle sophomore Elizabeth Bailey finished on top in a pair of individual events, the 200-IM (2:05. 30) and the 100-butterfly (56.48), after finishing in fourth and fifth place, respectively, at the state meet last year. Senior Katie Christy leads the Westminster squad finishing second place in the 200-freestlye (1:55.63) and 100-breastroke (1:07.73) at the Metro swim meet. Photo courtesy of River Oak Photography.

13Vol. 11 Iss. 4 | February 6-12, 2015

14 SCORE ATLANTA | www.ScoreAtl.com

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