CLASS OF 1972
ALLINE BANKS SPROUSE
Alline Banks Sprouse was born in Manchester, Tennessee in 1921. She played her high school basketball in Murfreesboro because Manchester High did not have a girls team at the time. She was a four-year starter at Buchanan High and averaged 36 points a game as a senior. At a time when women’s college and professional basketball was nearly non-existent, she went on to become an 11 time All-American 9 time league MVP as an AAU player. She played on seven title teams. During her time with the Atlanta Blues in 1947 and 1948, she led the team to 98 victories out of 101 games played. She was inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in 2000.
JOEL EAVES
Joel H. Eaves was born in Copperhill, Tennessee, raised in Atlanta, and was a star athlete at Auburn University. After a brief coaching stop at Sewanee, Eaves found his way back to Auburn where he was the men’s basketball coach from 1949 to 1963. He became Auburn’s all-time winningest basketball coach. During his time at Auburn, he was assistant football coach, contributing to Auburn’s 1957 National Championship team. Eaves was the Athletic Director at the University of Georgia from 1963 to 1979. During his tenure as Georgia’s AD, he hired Vince Dooley, another Auburn alum, as head football coach. Dooley would eventually succeed Eaves as Georgia AD. Eaves is also a member of the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame.
JOE GUYON
Joe Guyon was born in White Earth, Minnesota. Guyon was of Indian descent and played football at the Carlisle Indian Industrial School with Jim Thorpe before transferring to Georgia Tech. At Tech, he was an All-Southern and All-American performer under Coach John Heisman. He was part of the 1917 Tech team that was crowned National Champions. He went on to play eight seasons of professional football, and helped lead the Giants to the 1927 NFL Championship. Guyon was an outstanding minor league baseball player and coach. He also coached high school and college football, and was Clemson’s baseball coach from 1928 to 1931. He is a member of the Georgia Tech Hall of Fame, College Football Hall of Fame, and the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
CARLTON LEWIS
Carlton Lewis grew up in Columbus and became a Georgia coaching legend. An outstanding athlete himself, he played baseball and basketball at Georgia Tech. He played baseball in the Georgia-Florida league and was an All-Star first baseman. As a coach, he led West Point High School to State Football Titles in 1948, 1950, and 1958 and was runners-up in 1951, 1962, and 1963. He had a 42 game winning streak from 1947 to 1952 and had a 185-71-4 record over his 24 year coaching career. He was named Atlanta Touchdown Club’s Coach of the Year in 1950, and was Region Coach of the Year on multiple occasions. He also coached West Point to State Baseball Championships in 1950 and 1952.
TOM NASH
Tom Nash was born in Lincoln County and grew up in nearby Washington, Georgia. He played football at The University of Georgia where he was an All-Southern performer and a consensus All-American as an end in 1927. He went on to play professionally and was an All-Pro for the Green Bay Packers in 1932. Nash was part of the Packers World Championship teams in 1929, 1930, and 1931. He finished his seven year pro football career with the Brooklyn Dodgers. He also played minor league baseball. After his professional sports career ended, Nash returned to his hometown of Washington, where he was a successful businessman, coach, and elementary school principal. He was an assistant coach at UGA form 1943 to 1945.
