Longtime South Meck, Providence Day coach Dave Price inducted into NCHSAA Hall
CHAPEL HILL—Former South Mecklenburg and Providence Day boys basketball coach Dave Price will be inducted into the N.C. High School Athletic Association Hall of Fame in October.
Price died last March at his home. He was 85.
Price held a master’s degree from Western Carolna and served four years in the U.S. Navy during the Korean War. He started teaching at South Meck in 1959 and became varsity basketball coach in 1964. The Sabres won four state championships and Price later won two more at Providence Day.
In a 32-year career, Price was 535-285.
At South Meck, Price coached future North Carolina and NBA stars Bobby Jones and Walter Davis, and he became the first N.C. 4A coach to win three straight state championships, beginning in 1970. Price also coached Lew Massey and Todd Crowley, who helped Charlotte’s 49ers reached the NCAA Final Four in 1977.
From 1970-72, South Meck was 52-1.
He is one of eight people being inducted into the NCHSAA Hall.
Gil Bowman of Fayetteville, Mac Cumbo of Hendersonville, Suzanne Grayson of King Mountain, Bill Harrison of Fayetteville, Sherry Norris of Chapel Hill, Dr. Tim Taft of Chapel Hill and Jimmy Tillman of Wilson have been named as the 29th group of inductees to join the prestigious hall. That brings to 171 the number enshrined.
The new inductees will be honored during special halftime ceremonies at a football game at Kenan Stadium on Saturday, October 17, when North Carolina takes on Wake Forest. The University of North Carolina has designated the day as the 31st annual NCHSAA Day. The new class will officially be inducted at the special Hall of Fame banquet next spring in Chapel Hill.
The NCHSAA Hall of Fame is supported in part by a special grant from GlaxoSmithKline.
"These individuals joining the Association Hall of Fame this year have had a tremendous impact on high school athletics across North Carolina," said NCHSAA interim commissioner Que Tucker. "Their accomplishments are impressive, but the character they exemplify and the lives they touched are truly representative of what the NCHSAA stands for. Their selection maintains the standards of excellence established by our previous inductees, and we are looking forward to honoring these deserving individuals."
Gil Bowman
Gil Bowman distinguished himself as an outstanding coach in a couple of different sports as well as a great German teacher during his 41-year career at Terry Sanford High School in Fayetteville.
Born in Stuart, Virginia, and a graduate of East Carolina, Bowman built Terry Sanford into both a women’s basketball power and a tennis power during his coaching tenure. His women’s varsity basketball record during his years with that sport was 463-278, with three trips to the NCHSA state championship game. He also coached cross country and assisted with football for several years.
He also developed tremendous programs in tennis, with a record at one point in men’s tennis of an amazing 532-40 and a mark of 339-36 in women’s tennis. He coached numerous state champions in both singles and doubles and at one point his women’s team earned four consecutive dual team state championships.
He has been inducted the Fayetteville Sports Club Hall of Fame and earned the Homer Thompson Eight Who Make A Difference Award for sportsmanship from the NCHSAA in 2001. He also helped to found the Fayetteville Area Tennis Association.
Mac Cumbo
Mac Cumbo compiled an impressive slate as a high school coach as well as an administrator.
Cumbo, a graduate of Thomasville High School and Western Carolina University, began his teaching and coaching career at Flat Rock Junior High and was very successful before moving to the high school ranks He was head football coach and athletic director, first at Edneyville and then at the new North Henderson school.
He guided teams to the football playoffs at both schools and also served in other capacities, including on the NCHSAA Realignment Committee and as president of two different conferences.
Cumbo served on the Board of Directors of the North Carolina Athletic Directors Association, including a term as president in 1997-98, as well as the Board of Directors of the North Carolina Coaches Association with a term as president. He also had a stint on the NCHSAA Board.
He was inducted into the North Carolina Athletic Directors Hall of Fame in 2004 and is an active member of Mud Creek Baptist Church.
Suzanne Grayson
Suzanne Grayson was an outstanding coach and athletic administrator during her career, primarily in the Cleveland County school system.
Grayson attended Shelby High School and then graduated from Western Carolina University before beginning her teaching and coaching career. After several years at the middle school level, she had an 18-year stint at Crest and then spent 10 years at Kings Mountain, the final four of which she served as athletic director.
She coached volleyball for a total of 24 years and rolled up a record of 417-21, with a state championship at Kings Mountain in 2001. Her overall career record in fast-pitch softball was 215-77, including two state titles in that sport at Kings Mountain in ’05 and again in ’06.
Grayson has previously been inducted into the Cleveland County Sports Hall of Fame and the Kings Mountain Hall of Fame. She has also served on the American Legion World Series Executive Committee, which helps bring that event to Cleveland County, since 2000.
Dr. Bill Harrison
Dr. Bill Harrison has been an outstanding school administrator and very involved as a leader in the NCHSAA.
Harrison has been involved with public education in the North Carolina since 1984 and is presently serving as interim superintendent of the Alamance-Burlington school system. Previously he has served as a teacher, principal and superintendent, including 12 years as superintendent of the Cumberland County schools. He also served as superintendent in the Hoke and Orange County systems. From 2009 through ’31, he was chairman of the State Board of Education and senior advisor to Governor Beverly Perdue for education transformation.
Bill served two different terms as president of the NCHSAA and was on the "100 to Remember" list of administrators as part of the NCHSAA Centennial Celebration.
He is a graduate of Methodist University, received a masters at East Carolina and his Ed.D degree at Vanderbilt.
Sherry Norris
Sherry Norris has been one of North Carolina’s top coaches in volleyball and women’s basketball for many years.
Born in Lumberton and a graduate of Bladenboro High and the University of North Carolina, Norris has enjoyed a great career at Chapel Hill High School, serving as women’s head basketball coach since 1977 and coaching volleyball there from 1977 to 2013. She was also head softball coach for six seasons.
She is the NCHSAA’s all-time leader in career volleyball victories with a brilliant 739-257 record, with state championships in 1994 and 2003 and a runner-up finish in 2000. In women’s basketball, her teams rolled up a record of 545-376 and won state titles in 1981 and 2014.
Norris was one of the 100 Coaches To Remember during the NCHSAA’s Centennial Celebration and also has earned the Toby Webb Award and the Doris Howard Coach of the Year honors from the NCHSAA.
She has been very active in her church and was also the Teacher of the Year at her school, Seawell Elementary, on four different occasions.
David Price
David Price, who passed away in March of this year, was a brilliant high school basketball coach during his career in Charlotte, although he coached many different sports over the years.
A graduate of Waynesville High School, Price went on to Western Carolina University and then embarked on a coaching career that spanned over 40 years. He helped build South Mecklenburg into a real hoops power, winning four NCHSAA state titles there in a 20-year span and earning 321 victories against 167 losses. He then spent 12 years at Providence Day where his teams won a couple of independent school state championships and an additional 217 victories.
Price also served on the Board of Directors of the NCHSAA and coached in the North Carolina Coaches Association East-West basketball game in 1972.
A Korean War veteran, Price was an active member of Pineville United Methodist Church for over 50 years.
Dr. Tim Taft
Dr. Tim Taft has made a unique contribution to the NCHSAA through his work in sports medicine.
A graduate of Kirkwood High in Missouri and Princeton University, Dr. Taft spent 35 years on the faculty of the School of Medicine at the University of North Carolina, but during that time was very involved in athletics. He was a varsity team physician and senior orthopedic surgeon for many teams at UNC, but also served as the medical director of the Special Olympics State Games for many years. He has been a team physician at the Olympic Games and for a number of USA teams in international competition in swimming and men’s and women’s basketball.
Through all of that, however, Dr. Taft stayed involved with the NCHSAA, first a sports medicine advisor to the executive director and then on the Sports Medicine Advisory Committee, and he also served as an on site physician for many NCHSAA state championships.
He has previously received a Distinguished Service Award and the Elton Hawley Award for sports medicine from the NCHSAA.
.
Jimmy Tillman
Jimmy Tillman touched a number of bases during his career as a teacher, coach, athletic director and principal at a variety of high schools.
Born in Mount Olive, Tillman is a graduate of Southern Wayne High School and UNC-Wilmington. During his career he served as a teacher and coach at Rosewood, Lucama, Beddingfield and SouthWest Edgecombe, adding the duties of athletic director during his time at SouthWest.
He earned Coach of the Year honors in three different sports (football, baseball and softball) and coached in both the Shrine Bowl of the Carolinas and East-West all-star football game.
He also served at Wilson Fike, including four years as an assistant principal and eight as principal.
Tillman also enjoyed an excellent career as a game official, calling high school basketball and softball for almost 20 years and working the 1984 NCHSAA state 4-A softball championship.
His contributions to the NCHSAA were huge, including serving several terms on the challenging Realignment Committee as well as the Nominating Committee.
THE NCHSAA HALL OF FAME
Class of 1987 (Charter Members)
Bob Jamieson, Greensboro
Leon Brogden, Wilmington
Dave Harris, Charlotte
Class of 1988
Tony Simeon, High Point
Wilburn C. Clary, Winston-Salem
L.J. "Hap" Perry, Chapel Hill
Class of 1989
Russell Blunt, Durham
Lee Stone, Asheboro
Class of 1990
Bill Eutsler, Rockingham
Harvey Reid, Wilson
Jay Robinson, Chapel Hill
Simon Terrell, Chapel Hill
Class of 1991
Thell Overman, Wallace
Frank Mock, Kinston*
Raymond Rhodes, Raleigh*
Richard "Bud" Phillips, Greenville
Class of 1992
Everette L. "Shu" Carlton, Gastonia
George J. Cushwa, Jr., Thomasville
Norma Harbin, Winston-Salem
James G. "Choppy" Wagner, Washington*
Modeal Walsh, Robbinsville*
Everett L. "Shorty" Waters, Jacksonville
Henry Thomas "Toby" Webb, Albemarle
John W. "Jack" Young, Ahoskie*
Class of 1993
Frank Barger, Hickory*
Donald Bonner, Lumberton
George Whitfield, Hamlet
Class of 1994
George "Buck" Hardee, Wilmington
Doris Howard, Fayetteville
Bruce Peterson, Asheville
Homer Thompson, Winston-Salem
Class of 1995
Willie Bradshaw, Durham
Robert P. Colvin, Robbinsville
Joe Paul Eblen, Asheville
Augustus B. "Gus" Purcell, Charlotte
George W. Wingfield, Reidsville*
Class of 1996
Paul Gay, Sanford
John W. "Honey" Johnson, Elizabeth City*
Glenn Nixon, Clayton
Robert R. Sawyer, Greensboro
Class of 1997
Dr. Wiley "Army" Armstrong, Rocky Mount*
Chuck Clements, Gastonia*
David Lash, Winston-Salem*
Larry Lindsay, Wake Forest
Class of 1998
Gerald "Pearlie" Allen, Shelby
Norris "Pee Wee" Jones, Asheville
Bill Mayhew, Troutman
Dr. Craig Phillips, Raleigh
Mary Garber, Winston-Salem
Marvin "Red" Hoffman, Wilkesboro
Dr. Andy Miller, Asheville
Class of 1999
Charles "Babe" Howell, Webster
Paul Jones, Kinston
Jerry McGee, Elizabeth City
Jim Mills, Garner
Joe Mills, Raleigh
Donna Norman, High Point
Robert Paroli, Fayetteville
Class of 2000
Marion Kirby, Greensboro
Don Patrick, Newton
Hilda Worthington, Greenville
Charles England, Lexington*
Class of 2001
Jack Groce, Boone
Tom Northington, Greensboro
Walter Rogers, Roxboro
Wally Shelton, Mount Airy
John Swofford, Greensboro
Morris Walker, West Jefferson
Herb Young, Cary
Class of 2002
Cliff Brookshire, Brevard
Andrea Cozart, High Point
Bill Friday, Chapel Hill
Herman Hines, Reidsville
Bob Lee, Southern Pines
Ray Oxendine, Pembroke
Class of 2003
Gerald Austin, Greensboro
Pat Harrell, Hertford
Hoy Isaacs, Reidsville*
Raymond "Buddy" Luper, Fayetteville*
David Maynard, Burlington
Clarence Moore, Asheville*
Pres Mull, Lexington
Tom Pryor, Edneyville
Stuart Tripp, Ayden
Class of 2004
Mike Brown, Wilmington
John Clougherty, Raleigh
James "Rabbit" Fulghum, Snow Hill
Ed Peeler, Shelby
Ned Sampson, Pembroke
Dave Smith, Washington
Kathy Stefanou, Raleigh
Carroll Wright, Clyde
Class of 2005
Tim Brayboy, Cary
Jim Burch, Cary
Dick Knox, Chapel Hill
Tom McQuaid, Beaufort*
Mike Raybon, Jamestown
Class of 2006
Al Black, Spring Lake
Pat Gainey, Taylorsville
Charlie Gregory, Randleman
Tommy Hunt, Durham
Joan Riggs, Swansboro
Don Saine, Gastonia
Class of 2007
Stuart Allen, Charlotte
Daryl Barnes, Lexington
Bob Brooks, Elizabeth City
Bill Carver, Fayetteville
Elton Hawley, Charlotte
Fred Lanford, Hudson
Bill Rucker, Black Mountain
Ronald Scott, Bear Creek
Class of 2008
Charlie Adams, Chapel Hill
Bill Bost. Catawba*
Ken Browning, Durham
Richard Hicks, Durham
Mac Morris, Greensboro
Jan Stanley, Hendersonville
Tim Stevens, Raleigh
Billy Widgeon, Morehead City
Class of 2009
Brad Faircloth, Greensboro
Gilbert Ferrell, Wilson
Bruce Hardin, Charlotte
Jim Maxwell, Durham
Vicki Peoples, Raleigh
Pete Stout, Salisbury
Carolyn Shannonhouse, Cary
Class of 2010
Harvey Brooks, Trenton
Tunney Brooks, Lumberton
Tom Brown, Maiden
Bob Catapano, Raleigh
Joe Hunt, Hendersonville *
Carolyn Rogers, Hertford
Que Tucker, Morrisville
Class of 2011
Rosalie Bardin, Wilson
Sheila Boles, Wilmington
Jimmy Fleming, Creedmoor
John Frye, Vass
Jerry Johnson, Goldsboro
Mike Matheson, Newton*
John Morris, High Point*
Tom Suiter, Raleigh
Class of 2012
Donnie Baxter, Asheboro
Ronnie Chavis, Pembroke
Lawrence Dunn, Raleigh
Doug Henderson, Greensboro
Lindsay Page, Yanceyville
Larry Rhodes, Gastonia
Robert Steele, Salisbury
Jim Taylor, Shelby
Class of 2013
Bobby Guthrie, Raleigh
Jack Huss, Rutherfordton
Lindsey Linker, Chapel Hill
Shelly Marsh, Smithfield
Dave Odom, Winston-Salem
Cindi Simmons, Webster
Sam Story, Burlington
Ron Vincent, Greenville
Class of 2014
Jack Holley, Teachey*
Ralph Holloway, Morehead City
Joe Miller, Wilmington*
Chris Norman, Shelby
Moyer Smith, Chapel Hill
Rick Strunk, Carrboro
Jerry Winterton, Cary
*posthumous induction
This story was originally published August 18, 2015 at 7:47 PM with the headline "Longtime South Meck, Providence Day coach Dave Price inducted into NCHSAA Hall."