John Adams of Knox News highlights 2023 Greater Knoxville Sports Hall of Fame induction class

John Adams, who has been a sports writer and columnist for Knox News since 1987, highlights the 2023 class for the Greater Knoxville Sports Hall of Fame.

Adams will be one of 10 inducted during the 42nd annual event on Aug. 31 at the Knoxville Convention Center.

Former Tennessee basketball player Grant Williams of the NBA's Boston Celtics is the guest speaker. Reception starts at 5 p.m. and program starts at 6:30.

Limited seating available. Tickets are $200 or you can purchase a table of 10 for $2,000. All ticket and auction proceeds benefit Boys & Girls Clubs of the Tennessee Valley, which serves over 7,200 youth and teens at 22 Club locations in Knox, Blount, Loudon, Anderson, and Claiborne counties.

Visit www.gkshof.org for tickets.

Here is who will be inducted along with Adams:

John Adams

Adams has been named the state of Tennessee's sports columnist of the year and sportswriter of the year eight times. He also earned sportswriter of the year awards in Mississippi and Louisiana.

Adams has been inducted into the Tennessee Sportswriters Association Hall of Fame and East Tennessee Writers Hall of Fame.

When combining all the positions Adams has held, he has been writing sports opinion pieces for 50 years.

Billy Arbo

Former Tennessee wide receiver Billy Arbo played for the Vols from 1976-78, playing 33 games with 664 receiving yards and three touchdowns in his career. He was a star player for Webb School.

Arbo eventually became the lead pastor at First Baptist Church in Jacksboro. At the church, he focuses on providing beds to children for families who may not be able to afford them. He has also served nine years worth of missionary trips in the southernmost part of Brazil.

Sarah Fekete Bailey

Sarah Fekete Bailey played a significant role in guiding Tennessee softball to its first two College World Series appearances in 2005 and 2006.

She played in 280 games with a .389 batting average and 85 stolen bases for the Lady Vols. In April of 2022, she became one of two Lady Vols to have their number retired by UT softball.

She has been a successful softball coach at Alcoa and also serves as an assistant principal.

Todd Burgan

Todd Burgan is a six-time Tennessee Golf Association champion and was the 2011 Player of the Year. He has five individual titles, four runner-up finishes and 19 finishes in the top five at the state level.

Burgan also played for the Vols from 1989-91 and was part of the 1990 SEC champion team.

Larry Cox

Larry Cox has been a coveted member of the Knoxville community for years and was city councilman from 1984-2003.

Cox also has been active within the sports community in his role with the Knoxville Falcons Youth Sports organization.

Nikki Caldwell Fargas

Nikki Caldwell Fargas' hometown roots run deep in the Knoxville area from growing up in Oak Ridge to playing basketball under legendary coach Pat Summit from 1990-94 at Tennessee.

Fargas racked up 128 3-point field goals made despite sustaining injuries for portions of two seasons over her career. She later became an assistant coach at Tennessee and Virginia before beginning her head coaching career at UCLA and most recently LSU from 2011-21.

In 2021, she was named as president of the WNBA's Las Vegas Aces.

John Fritts

John Fritts was part of the Tennessee men's tennis team from 1995-98 and played No. 2 singles and No. 1 doubles in the lineup while the team was ranked in the Top 25 for three of those years.

After coaching many tennis prospects after college, he began working in insurance in 2003 but continued to participate in competitive tennis.

Gerald Hodges

Gerald Hodges has served as a sports official since 1967, working his way up from high school sports to becoming an SEC video replay official.

Since 1989, Hodges has worked as an SEC official with 17 years of experience on the field and 17 years replay. He has participated in a number of bowl games and completed his career with the SEC in 2022.

Bill Parker

Bill Parker has been connected to high school cross country and tracj for many years as well as working in the Knoxville education system.

He produced 16 consecutive girls KIL Championships and 16 boys KIL Championships in 17 years. Farragut named the track in his honor.

Julia Stowers Dilworth

Julia Stowers Dilworth won a gold medal in the 2000 Olympics as a member in the preliminary heats for the 4x200-meter relay for the United States.

Stowers was a state champion at West and later swam for Tennessee. She continued her All-American career at Tennessee.

She works as an attorney but still has ties to swim as a volunteer assistant coach at Delta State in Cleveland, Mississippi.

Last year's lineup: Meet the 2022 inductees to Greater Knoxville Sports Hall of Fame, including Randy Sanders

This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Meet the inductees for the 2023 Greater Knoxville Sports Hall of Fame