Ricky Black is a high school football coach who won 377 games and was named the national coach of year in 2017. Rockey Felker from Mississippi State, one of the Bulldogs most beloved quarterbacks and football legends. Cissye Galagher is the state’s most successful amateur golfer. Wilbert Montgomery was an NFL player who scored 57 touchdowns over a nine-year career. He was awarded All-Pro twice and inducted into the Philadelphia Eagles Hall of Fame. Roy Oswalt was elected as a minor league baseball pitcher in his first year. Finally, there’s Richard “Possum”, who Johnny Vaught once described as “the greatest linebacker I ever saw or coached.” The announcement was made at the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum on Thursday. They will be inducted on August 3, 2019. It’s been my pleasure to report on the achievements of everyone except Price, who was a student at Ole Miss. I have heard enough about Possum to know that he should have been inducted 25-30 years ago. Here are my personal memories: * Ricky Black. When Jackie Sherrill was named head coach of Mississippi State, he called me from The Clarion-Ledger. He wanted to hire the best high-school coach in Mississippi. I gave him three names. Black, Mike Justice, and Mac Barnes were my three choices. They are all great winners who are highly respected. Black was hired by Sherrill and he stayed at State seven seasons. He would have won more than 400 high-school games if it weren’t for this. He has won in both public and private schools, large cities and small. He won the sixth consecutive state championship at Jackson Prep last year. His record overall – 371-74) is amazing. * Rockey Felker – Felker was the best quarterback I’ve ever seen. He ran the Veer option offense. He was named SEC Player of Year in 1974, his senior season. In addition to leading the SEC with total offense, Felker led State to nine wins. He was 33 years old when he became the head coach of State. Although he lasted for five seasons, anyone who was there at the time will confirm that he left the program much more talented than he found it. It took courage to run the Veer, those who are familiar with it will tell you. Bob Tyler had told Felker when he changed to the Veer. Felker said, “Coach told us that we would run the option to one or two sides and whichever way it is, you’re going the have the ball. We’re deliberately not going to block any defensive players on that side.” Felker did a lot of clever licks, but it worked. * Cissye Galagher: I first saw her as Cissye Meeks. Her father Ed was playing in the State Am at Northwood Country Club, Meridian. She was seven years old. Mike Taylor, a 10-time State Am winner and future Mississippi Sports Hall of Famer was practicing at the driving range late one afternoon. He had, as always, drawn a large crowd. Cissye began hitting balls at the opposite end of the driving range. With a slight right-to-left draw, every shot she hit was straight in the middle. We all moved from being there to Taylor’s little pony-tailed, blonde-haired girl. Now, she is the proud mother of three children and has won 12 Mississippi State Amateur titles. Two of these titles were won while she was pregnant. Next month, she will be playing in the USGA Senior Women’s Amateur. * Wilbert Montomery: Montgomery is a Greenville native who has been inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame for his achievements at Abilene Christian. He deserves to be considered for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. So, now you might ask: How could Mississippi let such an extraordinary talent go? Montgomery signed initially with Jackson State, and arrived on campus to discover a strong running back team that included sophomore Walter Payton. Montgomery calculated the numbers: There were several outstanding running backs, one of which was the greatest, and only one football. He chose to go to Abilene Christian because he was certain he would get the ball. In his first season, he set a new record of 37 touchdowns. He was a leader in rushing for the Philadelphia Eagles six times, and All-Pro twice. * Roy Oswalt is one of my favourite stories about Mississippi sports. Oswalt was able to throw the ball at Weir High School. Weir High School is a perennial football power. The rest is history. They built a baseball field quickly. He moved from Weir, where his football team won the state championship, to Holmes Community College where he was spotted by pro baseball scouts for the first-time. He was drafted in the 23rd round of the Houston Astros. He quickly rose up the minor league ladder, becoming a three-time All-Star with a 163-102 record and 20 complete games. He finished sixth in the Cy Young balloting. He was also awarded the Olympic gold medal in Sydney, Australia. He is an eligible candidate for Cooperstown’s Baseball Hall of Fame. Oswalt was retired for five years, so this year is his first year eligible for induction into the MSHOF. * Richard Price. Possum Price should have been elected into the MSHOF years ago. He was so good as a guard and linebacker for some of Vaught’s most prestigious Ole Miss teams. Price was a teammate with Billy Shaw, a Pro Football Hall of Famer who played at Carr Central High School in Vicksburg. Shaw once said to me that he is almost ashamed that Richard Price is in the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame. He was the best I have ever seen. “I wanted to be like his.” Ole Miss won 29 games during Price’s three varsity seasons, losing three and tieting one. As you can see, Price was a favorite of Vaught’s. Vaught was often told by assistant coaches that Price was using cigarettes. This is a violation to team rules. Vaught asked them, “What should I do?” Vaught responded, “Don’t capture him.” Price was confronted by Bruiser Kinard (one of Vaught’s assistants). Kinard asked Price, “Possum. Are you smoking?” Price replied, “Yes,” Kinard asked. “Well quit,” Kinard said. Coach, I cannot. Price stated, “Coach, I can’t quit smoking for as long as my memory allows me to.” Kinard said, “Well, at least cut back some,”