The Pascagoula Athletic Hall of Fame was created in 2015 with the intent of honoring the highest achieving athletes and coaches who have passed through the playing fields and courts of Pascagoula High School and Carver High School throughout the years. The latest class, number six, was inducted at a gala event that took place at the Hilton Garden Inn ballroom on the night of June 14.
This Class of 2025, 13 strong, proves once again that the depth of Pascagoula sports prowess is quite amazing. I was privileged once again to be the master of ceremonies for the event, and I marveled as I watched the inductees take the stage in front of an appreciative crowd of some 200 family members, friends, and local sports enthusiasts. Let’s meet the class first, then add some more observations.
PRE-1950
Margaret Moore Hollister Wolfe (PHS 1940)
Wolfe was a three year letter winner in both basketball and track at PHS. She was the leading scorer and MVP of the basketball team every year she played. In her senior year, she was chosen as the Outstanding Athlete at Pascagoula High, the first female to ever win the award, and she was also a cheerleader throughout her school years. She had a long, distinguished career in Civil Service, residing in Pascagoula for most of her life, and passed away in 2019 at the age of 96.
1950-1959
Gene Dubuisson (PHS 1952)
Dubuisson was a three year letterman in football at PHS, and also played basketball. He helped lead the Panthers to a 7-3-1 record in 1951, and was named All-Big Eight as a center. He went on to Ole Miss, where he starred three years as a center and linebacker, and made All-SEC. He helped the Rebels to a 26-5-1 record while playing, including two SEC titles and appearances in the Sugar and Cotton Bowls, and was inducted into the Ole Miss hall of Fame. A local businessman tin Pascagoula for many years, he passed away in 2010.
1960-1969
James Mike Nelson (PHS 1961)
Nelson was a three year letterman in football at PHS, playing guard on offense and linebacker on defense. He helped lead the Panthers to a 9-1 record a number 3 state ranking his senior year, when he was selected to the All-Big Eight team. At Ole Miss he lettered three years as a linebacker, helping lead the Rebels to an SEC title and bowl appearances in the Sugar, Bluebonnet, and Liberty. After Ole Miss, he went on to a splendid coaching career, including Stone High School (compiled a 46-15-1 record and two conference championships), Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, and Pearl River Community College. He passed away in 2018.
Bill Knight, Sr. (CHS)
Knight graduated from Rowan High in Hattiesburg, where he was a star quarterback. He went on to Mississippi Valley State University, again quarterbacking the football team and playing baseball. He is a member of the Sports Halls of Fame at MVSU and the Southwest Athletic Conference (SWAC). He was at Carver High School from 1964-1968, where he was head basketball coach, assistant football coach, and head of the mathematics department. He is currently in his second term as Mayor of Moss Point.
1970-1979
Larry Rodgers (CHS 1970)
Rodgers was a three year letterman at quarterback for Carver, and was team captain his senior year, when he threw 26 touchdown passes, plus was selected to the All- Conference team. He went on to Alcorn State, where he played quarterback for four seasons and played in the 1970 National Black College Championship game. He went on to a successful career in the trucking and motor freight industry, and is now retired and living in Pascagoula.
Gerald (Book) Thomas (CHS, PHS 1971)
Thomas is the first athlete inducted into the PAHOF who played at both Carver High and Pascagoula High. At CHS, he was a three year letterman in football, basketball, baseball, and track, and compiled over 2,000 yards rushing as a running back. He was also a star running back at PHS his senior year, recording numerous 100-yard rushing games. He went on to MGCCC, where he helped Perk to the 1971 Junior College Championship, and was named All-State. After college, he worked 39 years for the Henkel & McCoy Power Line Construction Company, and now is retired, living in Pascagoula.
Don Law (PHS 1971)
Law was a three year letterman at PHS in football (wide receiver/defensive back), baseball (infielder), and track (sprinter). In football, he was named All- Big Eight, and caught the winning touchdown pass in the final minute against Moss Point in 1971. In baseball, he led the Panthers to two district titles. Going on to the University of Southern Mississippi, he was an outstanding defensive back for four years. He has had a long run in the timber industry, and now lives in Waynesboro.
Stacy Carmichael (PHS 1977)
Carmichael was a two year letterman in football and three year letterman in baseball at PHS. In baseball, as a hard-hitting first/third baseman, he helped lead the Panthers to two district titles and the Big Eight championship. In football, he was an All-Big Eight defensive lineman/punter, and helped lead PHS to a 12-0 season and the state championship. He went on to Mississippi College, where he was a four year letterman in baseball, including being named team MVP and All- Conference. He has had a long, distinguished career as an educator, and now resides in Ocean Springs.
1980-1989
Dale Brown (PHS 1988)
Brown was a two year letterman in basketball at PHS, helping lead the Panthers to a 30-7 record and the South State championship in 1988. He averaged 19.5 points per game, and was named All-State. He went on to star at MGCCC and at the University of Kentucky. At UK, he helped lead the Wildcats to the 1992 and 1993 SEC championships and the 1992 Final Four. He was twice named SEC Defensive Player of the Year. After four years playing in European professional basketball, he has since carved out a solid coaching career at both the high school and college levels. He now resides in Lexington, Kentucky.
Antonio Harvey (PHS 1988)
Harvey was a three year letterman in basketball at PHS, and helped lead the 1988 Panthers to the district and South State championships, averaging 13.0 ppg. He went on to play collegiate ball at Southern Illinois, Conners State College, Georgia, and Pfeiffer University. At Pheiffer, he was selected as a CIAC All-American. He played a total of nine years in the NBA, and was a member of the Portland Blazers radio broadcast team for 11 years. He is now a businessman in Canby, Oregon.
Elbert Rogers (PHS 1988)
Rogers was a three year letterman in basketball at PHS, and in his senior year helped lead the Panthers to a 30-7 record plus district and South State championships. He averaged 16.0 ppg, and was named All-State, All-American, and chosen to play in the Mississippi All-Star Game. He went on to the University of Alabama-Birmingham (UAB), where he starred for four years. As a senior, he was the leading scorer (20.9), and rebounder (6.8) in the Great Midwest Conference, and was named All-Conference. He played professional basketball overseas for 10 years, and now resides in Biloxi.
1990-1999
Melinda Mitchell (PHS)
Mitchell was a graduate of Wood Junior College and Mississippi State University. She taught physical education and coached girls’ basketball at Gautier Junior High and the PHS for over 25 years. She was District Coach of the Year twice, and was PHS Teacher of the Year in 2010. The PHS field house bears her name along with that of fellow PAHOF inductee Dr. Kenneth Seay. She was married to former PHS coach Randy Mitchell, and both of their children, Cal and Kaylie, were PHS athletes. She passed away in 2014.
Quite an impressive group, eh? Counting this stellar Class of 2025, the Pascagoula Athletic Hall of Fame now boasts 84 members. As this latest cadre of inductees shows, we may never run out of deserving recipients of this signal honor.
What struck me Saturday night, as it always does at these PAHOF events, is the emotional response of the inductees and their family members. There were many tears at both the podium and in the crowd as the parade of former athletes and coaches were honored throughout the evening. You can tell just how much the Pascagoula Athletic Hall of Fame means to those who are brought in, their loved ones, and the community as a whole.
I, seriously, cannot tell you how many times over the years I’ve had inductees tell me—or proclaim during their speech—something along the lines of “this is the best thing that’s ever happened to me” or “this is the highest honor I have received in my life”. Powerful words, to be sure.
So, and we’ve posed this question before, what makes Pascagoula so unique in its ability to produce such great athletes, coaches, and teams? Strong youth programs? The city’s hard-working mentality? A sports-minded mentality? Good genes? Something in the water? Probably all of the above, plus a few more factors.
We should all appreciate the Pascagoula Athletic Foundation for originally creating the PAHOF. From the two gentlemen who put the idea in motion—Joe Davis and Dr. Donnis Harrison- to my selection committee co-cair, Gary Stevens, to current PAF leaders like Stacy Inlow and Jerry Jackson, a lot of work has always gone into the Hall of fame’s success. Since the PAHOF’s beginning 10 years ago, four other school systems in Jackson County have followed suit with halls of fame of their own, two ow which we assisted in getting up and running. Gotta feel good about that.
Like I said in my concluding remarks that Saturday evening, “Pascagoulans have always known how to play ball. The Pascagoula Athletic Hall of Fame is living, breathing proof of the culture of Pascagoula as a sports town”. Onward to the Class of 2027!
*Photos courtesy of SouthCoast. photos
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