Isaac Bruce

After attending West Los Angeles and Santa Monica Junior Colleges, perennial NFL Pro-Bowler Isaac Bruce transferred to Memphis State in 1992 where he amassed 113 receptions for 1,586 yards and 15 touchdowns. The last player drafted by the Los Angeles Rams, Bruce recently moved past Larry Centers to become 9th in all-time receptions with 833 catches. In 2006, Bruce eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark for the 10th time in his career and is one of the few players to achieve the goal of 12,000 yards receiving.

 

Josh Pastner

Pastner came to Memphis as an assistant coach in May 2008, and in only his first season as an assistant on the staff in 2008-09, he helped the Tigers continue their rarefied success. In 2009, Pastner was named head coach of the U of M Tigers.

Bob Caruthers

Born in Memphis, Caruthers was a right-handed pitcher for Major League Baseball's St. Louis Browns and Brooklyn Bridegrooms. The star pitcher on five league champions in a ten-year career, he was the top pitcher in the American Association, leading that league in wins and shutouts twice each, winning percentage three times and earned run average once. His 175 wins in the Association were the second most of any pitcher, and he was also the only pitcher to have 40-win seasons for two different Association teams.

 

John Daly

As the ninth and final alternate, Mid-South resident, John Daly emerged on the national sports landscape with his famous "zero to hero" performance at the '91 PGA Championship. Also known as "Long John" for his monstrous driving power, Daly is one of the most recognizable and popular golfers in America, and has since won a second major, the 1995 British Open.

 

Larry Finch

This Melrose High grad is perhaps most famous for leading the University of Memphis (then called Memphis State) Tigers to the NCAA men's basketball championship game in 1973 against the UCLA Bruins. But his local reputation began when he made the somewhat controversial decision to enter Memphis State and play basketball under coach Gene Bartow. Given the recent assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. and the resultant heightened strain on race relations in Memphis, few local African-American prep stars had been able to wear a Tiger uniform to that point. Finch graduated the all-time leading scorer in Memphis history, and is currently the second all-time leading scorer for the Memphis State Tigers. After a short stint in the ABA, Finch was made head coach of the University of Memphis in 1986, posted 10 out of 11 winning seasons and seven 20-plus win-seasons. He recruited and developed such players as Elliot Perry, Penny Hardaway, and Lorenzen Wright, and became the program's all-time winningest coach.

 

Zina Garrison

A former professional tennis player, Zina Garrison was a women's singles runner-up at Wimbledon in 1990 and the first African-American woman to reach a Grand Slam final since Althea Gibson 32 years earlier. A three-time Grand Slam mixed doubles champion, and a women's doubles Gold Medalist at the 1988 Olympic Games, Garrison now works as a television commentator and community activist.

 

Anfernee "Penny" Hardaway

One of Memphis' most favorite sons, "Penny" Hardaway attended Treadwell High where his nationally recognized ability won him numerous athletic scholarships. But instead of leaving the Mid-South, Hardaway chose home and the Memphis Tigers. After three impressive seasons at Memphis, where he brought the Tigers to the Elite Eight as a Sophomore, participated in the1992 USA Basketball Developmental Team, and achieved a 3.4 cumulative GPA, Penny elected to forgo his senior season and enter the NBA. Drafted by the Orlando Magic, Hardaway joined with Shaquille O'Neal and brought the upstart expansion team to the NBA finals in 1995.

 

Tim McCarver

Signed by the St. Louis Cardinals from Christian Brothers High School in Memphis, McCarver made his first mark with his Game-5 winning home run in the 1964 World Series. Member of two World Series championships with the Cardinals, McCarver fostered a relationship with young pitcher Steve Carlton that would keep him in the major leagues well into the '70s. However now most know McCarver as FOX's MLB broadcast color commentator.

 

Dr. Cary Middlecoff

Born in Halls, Tennessee, Cary Middlecoff abandoned dentistry to become one of the world's premier golfers. His impressive record includes four straight Tennessee State Amateur titles, the '49 and '56 US Open Championships, the '55 Masters, and three-time Ryder Cup member. After his retirement in 1963, he became a successful TV commentator and was inducted into the PGA World Golf Hall of Fame.

 

Shaun Micheel

A former Christian Brothers High School student, Shaun Micheel began his professional golfing career in 1992. Originally ranked 169th, Micheel is best known for his surprise victory in the PGA Championship in 2003. Micheel taught himself how to play golf when his parents bought a home on a golf course in Memphis.

 

Cindy Parlow

A native of Memphis, Tennessee, Parlow played college soccer at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she was a four-time All-American and member of three teams that won the NCAA Women's Soccer Championship. She won the Hermann Trophy as outstanding female collegiate soccer player twice, in 1997 and 1998, and the ACC Female Athlete of the Year in 1999. She began training with the U.S. Women's National Team in March 1995 and started all six games for the United States during their 1999 World Cup victory, scoring two goals. She was also a member of the 1996, 2000 and 2004 Olympic teams, as well as the 2003 Women's World Cup team.

 

Loren Roberts

Germantown's Boss of the Moss began his career in professional golf in 1975. Over the course of his professional career he can boast 16 total wins, a play-off in the 1994 US Open and a third place finish in the illustrious 2000 Masters. On the senior tour he took home the 1st place spot in the 2006 British Open. In an effort to give back to his community, Roberts has raised over $1 million for Le Bonheur Children's Medical Center.

 

Larry Porter

Former University of Memphis running back Larry Porter has returned to his alma mater after being named the school's 22nd head football coach on November 29, 2009. Porter played for the Tigers in the 1990s and received his degree in 1996. Former University of Memphis running back Larry Porter has returned to his alma mater after being named the school's 22nd head football coach on November 29, 2009. Porter played for the Tigers in the 1990s and received his degree in 1996.

 

Louis Williams

Born in Memphis, Williams' stellar high school career won him the Naismith Award, signifying the nation's top high school player. After flirting with the University of Georgia, Williams entered the NBA Draft and was selected in the second round by the Philadelphia 76ers. The eighth youngest player on an NBA roster, Williams was the first high school player taken by the Sixers since Darryl Dawkins in 1975, when the Philadelphia 76ers drafted him in the second round of the 2005 NBA Draft.

John Calipari

Early in his tenure as the University of Memphis men's basketball coach, John Calipariâ's Tigers won the 2002 NIT championship and earned two consecutive NCAA tournament appearances in 2003 and 2004. Over the 2006 and 2007 regular seasons, Calipari's Tigers posted a remarkable 60-6 record, reaching the Elite Eight in the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament both years. Calipari ended his tenure at the U of M after again reaching the Elite Eight in 2009.