Macon Sports Hall of Fame inductees
Julius Adams
The late Julius Adams played high school football at Ballard Hudson before going to college at Texas Southern, where he was a four-year starter. While at Texas Southern, he was an all-conference selection in 1968 and 1970. He was drafted in the second round of the 1971 NFL draft by the New England Patriots and played 16 years in that organization. He started as a rookie and was chosen to the UPI All-Rookie team in 1971.
During his NFL career, Adams played in 180 games with 151 starts. He had 75.5 career sacks and was the top tackler among the Patriots’ defensive linemen in 1983 with a total of 83 tackles. In 1980, he made his first and only Pro Bowl appearance, earning the honor with 52 tackles and seven assists.
Adams was chosen to the Patriots’ 35th and 50th anniversary teams, was a member of both the 1970 and 1980 all-decade teams and was a member of the Patriots’ team that played in the Super Bowl in 1986 against Chicago.
Jeff Battcher
Jeff Battcher was a two-sport standout at Stratford before going on to play both in college at Utah. At Stratford, he set passing records in football that stood for 35 years. He was a first-team all-state selection in 1978 and was selected as The Telegraph’s Middle Georgia Offensive Player of the Year. He led the Eagles to the state title game in his junior and senior seasons. He was a two-time all-region selection and one-time all-state pitcher for the Stratford baseball team. Battcher also played basketball for the Eagles helping lead his team to a state title as a junior.
He signed a football scholarship at Chattanooga but transferred after one season to Utah, where he played quarterback and was a pitcher for the Utes.
Battcher joins his wife, Janet, in the Macon Sports Hall of Fame. They become the first husband and wife team so honored.
Sybil Blalock
Sybil Blalock has been a mainstay in the Mercer athletics program for almost three decades, starting as a member of the women’s basketball program in 1972. She played for Mercer for four seasons and during that time helped lead the program to an 87-13 record. She scored 1,855 points during her career for an average of 18.9 points per game while earning WNIT All-America recognition in 1975.
Blalock was a member of the U.S. team that played in the World University games and also was on the U.S. Olympic Development team. She played professionally in Europe and Venezuela and with the New Orleans Pride in the Women’s Professional Basketball League.
Blalock went into coaching at New Orleans in the late 1980s and return to Mercer in 1993 as an assistant on Billy Holmes’ staff. In 1995, she took on the role of Mercer’s senior woman administrator and associate athletics director before being named deputy athletics director in 2015.
Richard L. (Dick) Frame
Dick Frame was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, but he moved to Macon in 1965. He graduated from Georgia Tech, where he ran varsity track, competing in the 110 meter hurdles, the 100- and 220-yard dash, the 4x100 and 4x440 relays and the long jump. His career highlight at Georgia Tech came in an SEC meet in the 100-yard dash when he defeated Heisman Trophy winner Billy Cannon.
Frame’s involvement in the track and field program at FPD is where he truly excelled. He began volunteer coaching FPD students in hurdles and the pole vault in 1979 and continues to assist with the program today. He has coached more than 20 state hurdles champions and more than 20 state runners-up.
He was the official starter of the GISA track meets from 1982 until 2010.
Wayne Johnson
Wayne Johnson was a standout football player at Willingham for head coach Billy Henderson back in the early 1960s. Johnson was a three-year letterwinner and captain of the 1964 team that finished with an 8-1-1 record, the best mark in the 12-year history of the program. During his varsity career, Willingham defeated perennial power Valdosta twice.
Johnson’s honors including being named all-state and honorable mention All-American by “Coach and Athlete Magazine” his senior season. He was selected by The Telegraph as Macon’s player of the year and was selected to play on the South team in the annual Georgia High School All Star game.
Johnson moved on to Florida State and lettered three seasons as an offensive tackle, helping the Seminoles to berths in the Gator Bowl and Peach Bowl.
Wayne has served his community over the years. He was a Big Brother volunteer in Tampa, Florida, and Macon, a member of the Macon Rotary Club and served as President of the Macon Touchdown Club in 1986. Today he resides in Roswell, Georgia.
Mike McCollum
Mike McCollum was the first quarterback at Southwest after Willingham and Ballard Hudson merged in the late 1960s, and he also was a member of the school’s varsity golf team in 1971 and 1972. That golf experience was the forerunner of his career path. After graduating from Georgia Southern, he became a golf professional and has worked as an assistant at Riverside Country Club in Macon, as well as serving as a head professional in Perry, Milledgeville, Warner Robins and Columbus.
In addition to his duties as a golf professional, he is an accomplished player, qualifying for the PGA National Golf Club Championships in 1982 and 1983. He holds the course record at Perry Country Club with a score of 61.
Don Robinson
Don Robinson played for the legendary Godfrey Steiner at Lanier in the late 1960s and was a member of the last Lanier team before it became Central in 1970. During his three-year varsity career, he helped lead the Poets to a record of 28-5-l and an undefeated regular season in 1969 before they lost to Valdosta in the State AAA playoffs.
Robinson lettered three years in track and football at Lanier and was chosen to play for the South team in the Georgia Athletic Coaches Association All-Star Game, which was held at Porter Stadium in August of 1970.
Robinson was a three-year letter winner at Georgia Tech. He was selected to the All Southern College team in 1973, his final season with the Yellow Jackets.
LeKevin Smith
LeKevin Smith is Stratford’s most acclaimed football player, leading the Eagles to two GISA titles as a defensive lineman. He was USA Today’s Georgia Player of the Year and was a rivals.com All-American. In addition to football, he lettered in track and field four times, winning four state titles in the discus and two in the shot put.
He signed a football scholarship at Nebraska and was a mainstay on defense for the Huskers. He finished his career with 36 tackles for loss, the second highest total for a defensive lineman in Nebraska history.
Following his collegiate career, Smith was chosen in the sixth round of the 2006 NFL draft by New England. He played for New England for three seasons, recording 18 tackles and one fumble recovery in the 31 games in which he played. He was on the New England roster for Super Bowl XLII and recorded a half-sack on New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning.
Smith was traded to Denver in 2009 and recorded 10 tackles and one sack that season.
Sharone Wright
Sharone Wright was an all-state performer at Southwest, where he averaged 24 points, 13 rebounds and six blocked shots as a senior. He played three seasons at Clemson, leading the ACC in blocked shots in 1992-93 and 1993-94. He was in the top 10 nationally in blocked shots and rebounds in 1993-94.
Wright was one of 20 nominees for the 1994 Naismith Award, the first Clemson player to be named as a finalist. He was a first-team freshman All-American at Clemson in 1991-92, as well as a two-time All-ACC selection and an AP honorable mention All-American in 1993-94, along with being a member of United States Gold Medal World University Games team of 1993.
Wright was drafted sixth in the NBA draft of 1994 by the Philadelphia 76ers, the highest selection by a Clemson basketball player. He played four years in the NBA with 76ers and the Toronto Raptor and was an NBA All Rookie second-team selection in 1995.
This story was originally published May 3, 2016 at 2:30 PM with the headline "Macon Sports Hall of Fame inductees."