1995 HALL OF FAME INDUCTEE | ARCHIE GRANT
The late Archie Grant of Fort Myers, Florida, will be inducted into the Milligan College Athletics Hall of Fame on October 28. The hall of fame was established several years ago to honor outstanding athletes, coaches and other significant participants in the athletics program of Milligan College.
Raised on Mowbray Mountain in Hamilton County, Tennessee, Grant played championship basketball in high school with his two brothers, Jake and Percy. All three boys went on to play varsity basketball at Milligan College.
In 1930, his senior year, Grant served as captain and coach of the Milligan basketball team. The 1930 Buffaloes won the Smoky Mountain Conference Tournament basketball title for the first time ever, validating the ability of the student-player coach. They defeated several tough teams that year, including the then-undefeated University of Chattanooga team. During his last three years on the team, the Buffaloes did not lose a single game on the home floor.
In addition to his athletic prowess, Grant had a good academic record. He was president of his junior class and senior class, was named "Best All-Around Junior," and was a member of the American Literary Society and Student Council.
Following graduation, Grant served as basketball coach at Wartrace High School in Wartrace, Tennessee, taking the team to the state tournament. He coached at Ashland City in the mid-1930s, was mentor at Howard High School in 1942 and started with the West High Blues in 1943. Grant even served as an assistant football coach at Vanderbilt University for a short time during World War II.
Grant found time to play professional baseball, including part of one season with the Nashville Vols under manager Charlie Dressen who was later a famous manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers. Earning a master's degree at Peabody College in Nashville, Grant taught for several years, ending his teaching career at Nashville's East High School.