I brought up Mr. Ivy Shiver from Sylvester, GA who played for the Dawgs in 1927 and went on to a stint in Major League Baseball. So, that got me thinking, who were the best athletes from my hometown? As we can see from the aforementioned Mr. Shiver, there may be some athletes from my hometown I’m not aware of but, I’ll mention the ones I am aware of…
When I was a kid, Worth County had a kid named Wiley Brown who was a football and basketball player. Athlete. He went to Louisville, was on the 1980 team. I remember watching that tourney, I was around 14 or 15. Wiley was born with part of a thumb missing, wore a special glove with a “thumb” in it. CBS did a segment on him because, his glove got thrown in the cafeteria trash and they had to go dumpster diving for it so he could play. Wiley went on to be drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles and spent several years playing behind Harold Carmichael.
After I graduated high school in 1983, we had a pretty good run of running back talent in the mid to late 80’s. Marion Butts went to FSU and then drafted by the Chargers where he had a few All-Pro years.
He was followed by Robert Toomer. Toomer finished up at Worth County in 1991 as the state’s all-time leading rusher (7,841 yards). That broke Herschel Walker’s record. Toomer’s 105 touchdowns also were a state record. He went to LSU (couldn’t qualify at UGA), sat behind Kevin Faulk and went into coaching after college.
QB Michael Proctor from Sylvester had a cup of coffee in NFL Europe back in the 90s.
I’m sure there are others that are not on my radar.
Okay, for a Friday time waster… who are the athletes that made it big from your hometown?
i remember Wiley and his teammate, Derek Smith, waving a mock front page they had printed up pregame on court after they won the final game. The fake headline said “DEREK AND WILEY WINS NCAAs!” The picture of the two of them made them look the the 2 happiest guys who ever lived.
Didn’t Wiley play in the NFL? Denny Crum sure had it going on at Louisville in the 80s.
Brian Sipe went to my high school
Makes you think that if Mr. Wiley Brown had the rest of his thumb Harold Carmichael might have might have been playing behind him
Don’t think the thumb was the issue, Mr. Carmichael is in the NFL Hall of Fame, I do believe.
Frank Thomas was a Senior at Columbus High School when I was a freshman. The Big Hurt.
Tom Hicks, line backer at Illinois and the Bears!
Many many years after I graduated Reggie Brown led the Carrollton Trojans to a state championship. Then he was a DGD under Mark Richt and later a Philadelphia Eagle (before it became the Dawgs’ pro team).
Dan Reeves, Kent Hill (LA Rams), Victor Green (NY Jets, NE Patriots), Leonard Pope (Arizona Cardinals), and I can’t remember where Tyler Clark went after he was done at Georgia.
Mike, John Chambliss was an All-State QB at Americus High immediately after Dan Reeves and he played QB at South Carolina on scholarship as well. Obviously not as famous, though.
Ten four. I thought it was just players who went on to the pros. If we are including college it’s a lot longer list.
Wasn’t criticizing your list. I just thought it was notable that 2 guys 1 year apart were All-State QBs leading their team to a State championship and then going on scholarship to the same university. Unusual story.
I know it. I didn’t take it like a criticism.
Dan Eckstein lead our high school to the Milk Bowl in 1965. Was later drafted by the Packers and was the last person cut. Wrote a book called “The 41st Packer” that’s still out there.
William Judson was a classmate who played in the Superbowl with the Dolphins. David Allen was the big stud on that team but I don’t think he made the NFL. He was a beast at RB and went to Tech, where Pepper Rogers tried to play him at nose guard.
Hines Ward, Clifford Grant, Corey Johnson, Justin Eboigbe all Forest Park Panthers, like me!
If life begins at conception, its Mecole Hardman.
If its where you went to HS, well they got #9 Bill Elliott!! He may be “wild bill from dawsonville” but he went Lumpkin County High, Class of 1974 (I think). If that doesn’t count… still waiting…. (I’d count Dale on general principle, btw). Lumpkin does have a qb getting a little attention for 2025, but he may choose basketball.
Jeff Malone, Blue Moon Odom, Kevin Brown and John Rocker come to mind.
I’ll add Jim Parker, Julius Adams, Norm Nixon, Dave Bristol, Bobby Bryant and Theron Sapp to your list.
Wasnt KB from Wilco?
Thank you for correcting me and I gladly take him off the list. He just lives here now and is a world class asshole.
One of my good friends is his cousin, has the same opinion of him.
He is despised by Wilkinson County people old enough to remember him.
James Brooks, Eddie Anderson, Kevin Porter, Ron Simmons, Ben Smith (all from Warner Robins High School)
If we care about which football players went to UGA from your High School (or at least got scholarships), here are the players from Warner Robins High School (in alphabetical order by last name): Steve Boswell, George Collins, Dwayne Grace, Mark Holmes, Kevin Jackson, Wayne McConnell, Greg McMichael, Gary Salter, Trey Sipe, Ben Smith, Marcus Smith, Greg Tremble, Jimmy Womack.
Jimmy Poulas and Devonte Wyatt Both came out of Towers High School in Decatur….
jimmy played at towers with one of my older cousins, so I was a fan by proxy. Actually met him in the late 80s; he was refereeing church league bball games. Saw him retrieve his wallet and watch from the scorer’s table and noticed it was a Peach Bowl UGA watch. “Did you play football at UGA?” He smiles, shrugs and says “a long time ago.” It then hit me. “OMG ARE YOU JIMMY POULOS?” I was shocked at how little was. Solid, fit, but not taller than me (5’9″). THIS was the dude who made all those plays? Pretty good referee, really nice, unassuming guy.
The Greek Streak
Where did you go to HS?
81Dog
Shamrock (only HS I know named for a strip shopping center),class of 74!
Butts made me realize as an 8th grader when he was a freshman that football was no longer going to be part of my future. He ran over me in a scrimmage, and I wanted to quit that day. My dad said no way. I made it through the season but wasn’t missed the next spring.
Brown was an excellent basketball player, but he could have been a Leonard Pope or Big 0 type of tight end with today’s training. Just a large human being.
Otis, on the women’s side in Slytown, Barbara Ann Murray was one of the best women’s high school athletes I’ve ever seen. She ended up as a starter at Georgia in the early Landers’s days at small forward. She played center field and batted 3rd/4th for the Tifton Tomboys when they were winning national slow pitch championships (no doubt she would have been just as good in fast pitch).
Scott Woerner or Steve Lundquist from Jonesboro. Harry and Toney Douglas are high on the list as well. The Douglas brothers wanted to come to UGA as a package deal but Richt didn’t think Harry was good enough……
buddy of mine coached the Douglas brothers in HS. He told me once Pitino called him about Harry as a possible Louisville basketball player, but he thought Harry made the right choice with football.
I played as a sophomore at FP when Woerner was a senior at Boro. They were our biggest rival and we beat them on a last minute score. Leonard Turnipseed was a bad mofo on that team.
We’ve had a couple of NFL players come out of Aiken, SC, and one sort of current PGA tour golfer.
Most notorious would have to be William “The Refrigerator” Perry, start d lineman from my alma mater, Aiken High School (GO Hornets!)
His brother, Michael Dean Perry, went to the hated cross town rival South Aiken, but I’d say he was more accomplished in the NFL. William won a Super Bowl, Michael Dean didn’t, for what that’s worth.
The golfer is Kevin Kisner, a member of the 2005 national champion Bulldogs golf team. Kisner also attended South Aiken, but he gets a pass because he chose the right college, and he and his wife, also UGA grad, do a ton of good around Aiken for kids with their foundation.
Jamal Reynolds is also from Aiken, he played at FSU and for the Packers for a little while. (Also, South Aiken, I guess they’ve had a good run with pro level talent.)
Kiz, like most of the UGA Tour members, is a DGD.
I don’t think my hometown has ever produced an athlete. But I moved to the hometown of Pulpwood Smith and Tyreek Hill.
This isn’t my hometown but I’ve lived in Desoto County, MS for the last 22 years. Austin Riley grew up here. A few weeks after they won the WS he was spotted at my favorite Mexican restaurant here.
Also, Nakobe Dean. Cool story about him. His HS team won something big his sr year, state or something. Kirby Smart was the only coach recruiting him that went to their banquet.
ABC, Kirby, ABC.
Kris Benson who went on to pitch for Clemson, the US Olympic team, and the Pirates was one of the kids in our group of neighborhoods. Saw him pitching in his driveway many a night. Parents went to church with his father.
Dad went to high school and I believe hiked the ball to Pete Rajecki which was UGA’s 1st soccer style kicker.
The first High School Football game I remember seeing was going to Marietta to watch Zeier. My Mother had to go back to her school to see what all the talk was about. It was clear he was getting signed by a big school.
A friend’s sister went to High School with Tripp Chandler, who evidently wasn’t always the 6’5″ TE. He was I guess teased a bit for being small. Lucky for us, he had a growth spurt.
Larry Nelson was at Marietta the same time my mother was.
Sorry I’m wrong about mother and high school the same time as Larry but he was in Marietta. I need to verify the exacts on that one now.
Fran Tarkington and Andy Johnson went to what was then Athens High School. I grew up with Terri Moody Luckhurst who was in the LPGA for several years.
Tom Zibikowski went to my high school in Arlington Heights, IL a couple of years after me. Also, grew up and played soccer with Jarrett Payton before he played football. His Dad Walter would come to games and he was the most kind and humble man I’ve ever met.
From Allbenny:
Alice Coachman Davis, 1948 Olympic gold medalist in the high jump.
Ray Knight, 1986 World Series MVP
Deion Branch, two-time Super Bowl champ with New England and MVP of Super Bowl XXXIX
For what-could-have-been: Dontonio Wingfield. As a ninth-grader at AAA Westover in 1990, he was the best basketball player in the state. Then he got better. Best high school player I and many others ever saw. Played at Cincinnati for Bob Huggins, then to the NBA. Flamed out due to some poor personal choices, but wow, he was something else.
Wingfield was incredible at Westover.
Westover knocked my HS out of the playoffs in ’88 and I swore Wingfield was on that team. Clearly my memory is not what I thought it was.
The former Lee County Sheriff, Harold Breeden played in MLB and the Japan pro league for about 7 years. Here’s another fun fact, he is related to my family by marriage on my paternal grandmother’s side. Ray Knight is related to my family on my paternal grandfather’s side. I, on the other hand, never had enough size or talent to excel at anything sports related!
Wasn’t Lionel “Freight Train” James also from Albany? Also a kid named Brown who played line for New England?
yes, James was from Albany. I remember Brown with the Pats, too. But, as a Dolphins fan, I really hate them!
Clayton County kid here, so Steve Lundquist was one, including Andre Hastings and Hines Ward in there, too. I currently live in Henry County and our most famous one at the moment is Michael Harris II and Jason Hayward, though Will Anderson came out of Dutchtown High here. We also were the producers of Brenton Cox, out of Stockbridge High, though that’s more infamous than famous. I coached Charles Wiley in middle school and he went on to play at Ole Miss and now is on the Ravens roster. Good kid who was 6’2” at age 10 and was just a man amongst boys.
Lundquist lived 4 houses over from my college girlfriend on Lake Spivey. Pretty cool dude.
From Washington County HS, Sandersville, GA –
Takeo Spikes (Auburn, Bengals, 49ers), Robert Edwards (UGA, Patriots, CFL), Terrance Edwards (UGA, Falcons, CFL), Greg Minor (Louisville, Celtics), Demetro Stephens (FSU), Jeremy Brett (FSU), Felton Tucker (GT, grades got him), Jesse Miller (UGA, grades got him), Derek Sanders (Bama), Terry Jones (Bama, Packers) and many others at went to smaller schools. I know we had a couple of guys that ended up at Tennessee, South Carolina, and Arkansas, but can’t remember who they were.
Robert used to play basketball at WACO, and in my backyard, with my youngest brother.
From Covington Dale Carter, Jake Reed, Eric Stokes, Stephon Castle
Donnie Anderson was in my BN in basis in 66.
Depends on what ‘hometown’ means. If it’s where you were born then for me that is St. Augustine and it would have to be Tim Tebow.😡
If it’s where you spent most of your youth then it is various parts of Atlanta. So many to choose from, but I lived up the street from Jeff Lewis. He was only a baby when I lived there but all of us played with his older brothers – the whole family was very athletic. And Jeff was pretty good at UGA.
I suppose, thinking about it, it’s more noticeable to small town folks when someone makes it big than it would be for someone growing up in a large metro area.
i knew Jeff in law school. A really interesting guy. Very smart, as well as a talented LB. Kind of a marches to his own drummer guy, but everyone liked him. A sic vos non vobis kind of guy. 🪝👌
Jeff Lewis was All-American pretty good.
Milledgeville’s list is sad considering who the small towns around it have produced:
John Thomas
Earnest Byner
Javon ‘TKO’ Bullard
Tasha Butts
Aaron Yates
Nite, nite.
Wally Butts is from Baldwin County and did pretty well 8n that football business. Maurice Hurt, Sulecio Sanford and LeRoy Hill played in the NFL. J.T. Wall earned paychecks from the Pittsburgh Steelers but has no NFL stats. Larry Turner played with the Los Angeles Lakers.
A Milledgeville man founded the football program at UGA. Dr. Charles Herty was from Milledgeville.
A lot of GMC junior college football players are in the NFL, but that doesn’t fit the topic.
Yes, but the original questions was regarding athletes from a town, not people related to athletics in a town.
In 1980, the second best running back in the state of South Carolina won the Heisman. The best one, the so aptly-named Lyvonia “Stump” Mitchell, is from my neck of the woods. High school classmate.
Camden has also produced Kenny Ellis (Green Bay), Brian Crum (FTMF), Travis Taylor (FTMF), and that poor kid who got whalloped in the ‘Bama game in 2015 (ain’t namin’ names).
Lee County is basically a suburb of Albany. We had Buster Posey. We have a senior running back (Khomari?—probably misspelled) who has offers from Georgia and everyone else.
Jahmyr Gibbs -Dalton
Ladd McConkey -Chatsworth
Ladds daddy played at Dalton which is just 15 miles away.
dalton
Eric Bishop – Chatsworth
UNC 1996 outdoor and 1997 indoor NCAA high jump Champion.
the guy was fin to watch play basketball. He was offered a round ball at UNC as well, but wanted to get to the Olympics I believe and stayed track. He finished 4th in Olympic trials in two different Olympics, bout actually had better jumps at NCAA’s. His personal best is listed at 7’6”.
he did a halftime dunk show for the Hawks one year; secretly placed in audience and picked as a random guy to shoot .
and Bishop is a stand up guy. Good dude.
Thomson, GA