The Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame has announced the trio of Bill Bates, Todd Helton and Reggie Johnson as inductees in its Class of 2021.
The announcement was made by “Voice of the Vols” Bob Kesling Monday during the statewide Vol Calls radio show on the Vol Network.
“We are excited to name this VFL trio to the 2021 Class of the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame,” Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame Executive Director Brad Willis said. “Their accomplishments across three different sports, both collegiately and professionally, are great stories of dedication and perseverance.”
A revered Tennessee football star, Bates’ career as a Vol spanned from 1979-82. Playing the safety position, the Knoxville native and Farragut High School alum was a four-year starter for the Volunteers and was named to the All-SEC team as a junior and senior.
Bates registered 255 total tackles over his collegiate career, with 86 of those coming in his senior year. He also totaled seven interceptions during his final two seasons on Rocky Top.
Bates would go on to be a three-time Super Bowl champion during his 15-year NFL career with the Dallas Cowboys. He logged 676 tackles and 14 interceptions in his professional career.
Helton, another Knoxville native and a graduate of Central High School, was a two-sport standout at Tennessee and followed his collegiate career with a 17-year MLB career with the Colorado Rockies.
While a member of Tennessee’s baseball team, Helton was named the 1995 National Collegiate Player of the Year. That season, he batted .407 and led the SEC in home runs (20), RBI (92), runs (86), doubles (27), hits (105), walks (61), slugging percentage (.775) and on-base percentage (.522). From the mound that same season, he led the conference with a 1.66 ERA.
As a quarterback with the Vols’ football program, Helton completed 54.5 percent of his passes, amassing 406 yards and two touchdowns as a sophomore in 1994.
After leaving Rocky Top, Helton went on to set Rockies’ franchise records for hits (2,519), home runs (369), doubles (592), walks (1,335), runs scored (1,401), RBI (1,406), games played (2,247) and total bases (4,292). The VFL was a five-time MLB All-Star, four-time Silver Slugger and three-time Gold Glove Award winner while with the Rockies.
Johnson completes the University of Tennessee’s trio of 2021 inductees. A member of the Tennessee men’s basketball team from 1976-80, Johnson twice earned first-team All-America honors and was named first-team All-SEC three times during his career (1978, 1979, 1980).
In 1977, Johnson was the SEC leader in field-goal percentage, connecting on 64.5 percent of his shots. With 2,103 career points, he finished his career ranked second on Tennessee’s all-time scoring list and currently ranks fifth on that list.
Following Johnson’s four-year career with the Big Orange, he entered the 1980 NBA Draft and was selected 15th overall by the San Antonio Spurs. He played for San Antonio, Cleveland, Kansas City, Philadelphia and New Jersey during his professional career and was a member of the 76ers 1983 championship team.
The full, 11-member Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame “Class of 2021” will be announced over the coming weeks.
Established in 1966, the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame honors figures from every sport including basketball, baseball, football, golf, soccer and track & field, along with coaches, teams, sports writers and others who made an impact. The Tennessee Department of Tourist Development oversees all operations at the Hall of Fame, along with the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame Board of Directors. Induction ceremonies take place each summer. The Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame is located in Bridgestone Arena at 501 Broadway in downtown Nashville.
-UT Athletics
