Barren County High School’s gymnasium stands as one of the largest high school gymnasiums in the state of Kentucky.
(WCLU NEWS FILE PHOTO)
GLASGOW — Four individuals and one group of athletes will be inducted into the Barren County Athletic Hall of Fame on Dec. 2.
Warren Cunningham, athletic director at Barren County High, said in a news release that the school system will continue this year honoring former athletes, coaches, teams and contributors to Barren County athletics. These groups were either athletes at Barren County High or one of the “heritage schools,” which included Austin Tracy High School, Hiseville High School, Park City High School, and Temple Hill High School.
This year’s inductees include Jackie Matthews Clemmons, Mickey Lewis, Steve Metzger, Terry Reed and the Temple Hill State Champion Football team from 1961. These inductees will be recognized between the girls and boys basketball games with Elizabethtown on the evening of Dec. 2.
Jackie Matthews Clemmons
A 1971 graduate of Temple Hill High School, Jackie was known as a fierce competitor. Her mom was on the track team in the late 1940s, and along with her sisters, inspired her to participate and excel in sports.
Jackie won the state championship in the shot put in 1969 as a sophomore and repeated as champion in 1970 and 1971. She also excelled in discus, where she was a state runner-up in 1970 and a 3rd place finisher in 1971.
Jackie played softball and won various awards while playing in the city league as a member of the Temple Hill Templebelles. She was also a varsity cheerleader for four years.
She and her husband Tony have two sons who both played sports at Barren County High School and have grandchildren who currently play for BCHS.
Mickey Lewis
Mickey Lewis is a 1980 graduate of Barren County High School who excelled in multiple sports during his time playing for the Trojans. He received numerous awards as a football, basketball, & track athlete.
On the gridiron, Mickey was an all-state football player who was voted the Region 1, District 2, Class AAA player of the year in 1979. He was also on one of the most successful football teams in school history in 1980, when the Trojans went 10-1.
Mickey was a member of the first boys basketball district championship team in BCHS history in 1979, as well as being honorable mention all-state. Mickey also participated in track and earned an all-state honorable mention performer.
After graduating from BCHS, Mickey signed a football scholarship with Western Kentucky University, where he was a 4-year letter winner for the Hilltoppers playing for legendary coach Jimmy Feix.
Mickey later became a successful business owner and resides with his wife Jane in Franklin, Ky.
Steve Metzger
A 1982 graduate of Barren County High School, Steve Metzger was instrumental in building highly successful cross-country and track programs that could compete on the regional and state level.
Steve was a cross country state champion in 1981 and a track state champion in the 1600 meters and 3200 meters in 1982. He was chosen as First Team All-State Cross Country as both a junior and a senior and was All-State Track & Field as a senior.
Steve continued his athletic career at WKU, where he received athletic and academic scholarships. He was a four-year letter winner for the Hilltoppers.
Steve returned to his alma mater to teach math and coach in 1987. He coached track and field and cross-country from 1990-2012 and coached the BCHS swim team from 2004-2013. He was an outstanding teacher and highly successful coach before his retirement in 2019.
He and his wife Christy live in Glasgow, and Steve continues to run and competes in various triathlons.
Terry Reed
Terry Reed is a 1966 graduate of Hiseville High School. There he participated in track, basketball, and baseball.
He went on to attend Campbellsville College, later served in the U.S. Army, and began his teaching and coaching career at Hiseville High School in 1971. At Hiseville, he coached the first cross-country team in Barren County and also coached baseball, basketball, track, and football.
In 1977, he began teaching and coaching at Barren County High School and later became assistant principal. He has coached track and cross country for over 50 years in the Barren County School District. His 1990 boys cross country team were state champions, and he has coached several region champions and state qualifiers. He was named the 1990 Kentucky Cross Country Coach of the Year and was inducted into the Kentucky Track and Cross Country Coaches Hall of Fame in 2019. He is well known throughout the state for his coaching accomplishments and his positive and uplifting demeanor.
Reed and his wife Margie reside in Glasgow and have three children who are all BCHS graduates. He continues to coach cross country and track at BCHS and has a positive impact on everyone he comes in contact with.
1961 Temple Hill State Champion Football Team
The 1961 Temple Hill Bulldog football team helped put athletics in Barren County on the map by winning the eight-man state football championship. The Bulldogs defeated Eminence 12-7 on November 3, 1961, in Lebanon, Ky., to cap off an undefeated season (9-0-1).
Temple Hill was the champion of the Barren River Conference, while Eminence represented the Bluegrass Conference. This was a great accomplishment for a small school in Temple Hill, KY, and it brought great pride to the community.
Team members included Doug Depp, Junior Thompson, Carroll Walden, Dale Payne, Doug Goode, Ronnie Taylor, Bobby Richardson, Marvin Martin, James Clemmons, Bud Tarry, Paul Lee Nuckols, Levy Garmon, Leroy Payne, Terry Denham, Bill Bewley, Danny Joe Richardson, Phillip Garrett, Jimmy Poore, Joe Lewis, Larry Compton, Kenneth Evans, and Leslie Harlow.
The team was coached by Bob Pardue, Ray Burden, and Bob Driver. The managers were B.R. McGuire and Billy Reneau.
Each Hall of Fame class will consist of no more than five inductees who will be chosen by the hall of fame committee, and inductees will be recognized during basketball season. Nomination forms can be found at https://www.barren.kyschools.us/ahtletics/athletic-quick-links.
