By Shannon Fagan, WEIS Sports Director
CENTRE – Four legendary athletes and a coaching great highlight the Cherokee County Sports Hall of Fame Class of 2026. The latest class was officially announced and introduced to the public during Saturday’s Cherokee County Basketball Tournament varsity championship games at Richard Lindsey Arena in Centre.
The Class of 2026 is comprised of Harry Richardson, Tyrone Moore, Lauren Millsaps Coursey, Sam Fife, and Ricky Austin.
The 2026 class will formally be inducted at a banquet in their honor on Saturday, June 6 at the arena. Below is a brief synopsis of each Class of 2026 inductee’s career.
The Cherokee County Sports Hall of Fame also recognized five high school teams of distinction during the county tournament on Friday evening. Those football teams honored were the 1959 Cedar Bluff football state champions (10-0), the 1967 Cherokee County Warriors (9-1-1, first AHSAA all-classification playoffs), and the 1975 Gaylesville Trojans (11-1),.
Also honored were boys basketball squads from Sand Rock (1965-66 first Final Four team) and Spring Garden (1978-79 state runner-up).
Harry Richardson
Richardson was a multi-sport athlete at Cherokee County High School in the 1960s who excelled in football, basketball and baseball. He accepted a basketball scholarship to Southern Union, but then transitioned to Samford, where he received a full scholarship to play football.
As a tailback with the Bulldogs for three years, Richardson etched his name into the record books and earned an opportunity to play in the NFL with the Cincinnati Bengals. He turned down that offer in order to stay home and raise his family in Cherokee County.
Tyrone Moore
Cedar Bluff’s Moore was known as one of the humblest and most dedicated individuals to ever don the red and white. From 1994-97, Moore was a force in football, baseball, basketball, weightlifting, and track and field.
In football, Moore amassed 5,000 yards during his career and recorded nearly 600 tackles. Although injuries cut his sports career short, Moore went on to graduate from the University of Alabama. He now resides in Hoover.
Lauren Millsaps Coursey
Known mainly for her softball skills, Millsaps Coursey had a brilliant athletic career at Cherokee County High School from 2007-11. She etched her name throughout the Alabama High School Athletic Association softball record book, including 38 career no-hitters, 1,294 strikeouts, 81 shutouts, six perfect games, and a 0.73 ERA.
She was also a career .355 hitter with 150 RBIs and 209 runs scored.
Millsaps Coursey went on to play softball at Shorter University and was part of the NAIA National Championship team as well as the NCCAA Division I runner-up volleyball squad.
Her high school softball jersey No. 5 was officially retired in 2012.
Sam Fife
Fife’s strength on the football field was legendary. Part of his conditioning included tying a tree trunk to his waist and pulling it around the yard. It helped earn him several all-state honors, including Class 3A Back of the Year, as well as the Cherokee County Warriors’ only All-American honoree. He was also a force on the other side of the football as a defensive guard.
Fife’s football skills were coveted by many SEC schools, but he ultimately chose to sign with the Georgia Bulldogs.
After being a dominating force on the football field, Fife was called to become a pastor. He passed away in 2018.
Ricky Austin
One of the most illustrious high school basketball coaches in the state of Alabama is Spring Garden’s Austin. He took over the girls basketball program in 1996 and has compiled almost 800 wins, along with over 200 victories on the boys side. Austin also has accumulated 688 victories in volleyball.
Through the years, Austin’s teams have collected 23 area and 17 county championships, made 17 Final Fours, and 12 state final appearances. He’s led Spring Garden to nine state titles in basketball and three more in volleyball. Austin has also been honored as the Alabama Sports Writers Association Coach of the Year eight times.
The court at Dale Welsh Gymnasium in Spring Garden was named in Austin’s honor in April of 2018.
