By Steve Williams Gus Manning, the legendary UT athletic administrator, was once the quarterback at Rule High and an older teammate of DM Miller on the Golden Bears’ football team. Miller passed away at 94 on April 15, but made his mark on Rule High and was well known...

By Steve Williams Won-loss records don’t always tell the whole story when it comes to the impact a high school football coach has on his players, program and community. Bill Young was a good example of that at Bearden. Young had compiled an overall record of 98-94 in...

By Mike Steely Senior Writer steelym@knoxfocus.com Next Step Initiative was founded by two sisters, Addie Arbach and Rebecca Parr, who believed that through compassion, hope and love, they could have an impact on the lives of those living with issues of generational...

By Ken Lay The coronavirus pandemic forced Braden Gaston to take a bit of a leap of faith. And that has landed him on the track team at Tennessee Wesleyan University. Gaston, a senior at Central High School, signed his National Letter of Intent to run hurdles and...

  By Steve Williams Phil Garner grew up in the small town of Rutledge in Grainger County and with the high school there not having a football program in the mid-1960s; his dad moved the family to Knoxville to improve his son’s chances of earning a college...

  By Mike Steely Senior Writer steelym@knoxfocus.com He was Santa during the holidays and is wife, Kathy, was Mrs. Claus. He was ideal for the part with his long white hair and beard. Last week David Keck fell going down the stairs of his house and was rushed to...