By Michael A. Lough

The Sports Report

centralgasports@gmail.com

The Georgia Sports Hall of Fame Class of 2026 has three inductees connected to Central Georgia, the class covering gymnastics, football, girls basketball and track, golf, baseball, football, track, and Paralympics.

And that class will join the state’s greats in three weeks at the induction ceremony on Feb. 21 at the Macon City Auditorium.

The weekend begins with a golf tournament and the jacket ceremony on Feb. 20, with the Fan Fest autograph session Saturday afternoon followed by the induction.

For ticket information, call the hall at 478-752-1585.

Northeast High coaching legend Alvin Copeland headlines the Central Georgia connection. Copeland won state titles in girls basketball and track – he coached both girls and boys in track – with the Raiders.

Bunny Fuller Harris was part of the Taylor County girls basketball dynasty in the late 1960s and early 1970s, having a hand in the Lady Vikings’ 132-game winning streak.

Local golfers are familiar with Ray Cutright, one of the state’s top teaching pros who plied his wares for awhile at Idle H Hour.

Here are the resumes – info provided by the Hall, with editing – of this year’s class.

Dr. Leah Brown
A native Arizonan, Brown graduated from UGA a 14-time All-American for the GymDogs, winning NCAA titles in vault (1996) and floor exercise (1997). The first gymnast in NCAA history to score a perfect 10 in her first collegiate meet, Brown was also the first to score a perfect 10 in a single event all three days of NCAA championship competition. A two-time Academic All-SEC before joining the Navy and attending medical school, Brown served two tours in Iraq and Afghanistan and was awarded the Bronze Star for her humanitarian efforts. She was inducted into the UGA Circle of Honor in 2016 and received the UGA Arch Award in 2022.

Morgan Burnett
A standout athlete at North Clayton High, Burnett was named Class AAAA first-team All-State his senior year at safety. Morgan chose Georgia Tech and became one of the Yellow Jackets most decorated defensive backs. He was named first-team All-American, a second-team All-American, and a two-time second-team All-ACC in his three seasons with Tech. Second all-time in Tech history with 14 career interceptions, Burnett helped the Yellow Jackets to back-to-back ACC Coastal Division championships. He spent 10 seasons in the NFL, mostly with Green Bay, where he won Super Bowl XLV. He remains active in his community through the Burnett Family Foundation.

Alvin Copeland
Fort Valley State University graduate Alvin Copeland is one of Bibb County’s most decorated coaches. He won 881 girls basketball games while coaching at Northeast, including five state championships. Leading six girls’ teams and two boys to state championships in track and field and two state titles for boys. A regular Coach of the Year, Copeland was named Georgia Athletic Directors Association region AD of the year and state AD in 2007. He was inducted into the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Hall of Fame in 1997, the Macon Sports Hall of Fame in 2004, and the Georgia Athletic Coaches Association Hall in 2012.

Ray Cutright
The renowned PGA Master Professional is arguably one of the most influential figures in Georgia golf. He has been the head pro or director of golf at St. Simons Island Golf Club, Sea Island Golf Club, and Idle Hour Club in Macon. Cutright was the national PGA Golf Professional of the Year in 2014, inducted into the Georgia Golf Hall of Fame and the PGA National Hall of Fame in 2015. He also earned multiple Georgia PGA Professional of the Year and Teacher of the Year honors.

Danny Hall
Georgia Tech's most successful baseball coach, Hall began his career at his alma mater, Miami of Ohio. He started his stellar 32-year career at Georgia Tech in 1994, and seven ACC regular-season championships, five ACC Tournament titles, 24 NCAA Tournament berths and three College World Series appearances followed. He is a two-time Mid-American Coach of the Year and a five-time ACC Coach of the Year. He retired at the end of the 2025 season with a 1,452-793-1 record. He ranks ninth in NCAA history for career wins and is the winningest coach in Georgia Tech baseball history. Hall was inducted to the ABCA Hall of Fame in 2023.

Bunny Fuller Harris
Harris was instrumental in a basketball dynasty for the Lady Vikings of Taylor County High, scoring more than 2,200 points and averaging 22 points per game. She helped Taylor County to more than 100 straight wins and four state titles. She started her college career in junior college at Middle Georgia and advanced to Georgia. She led the Lady Dawgs in scoring her first season with 18.9 points a game, and won two letters. She has also written a book titled “There Was Once a Team", about the Lady Vikings and the state record 132 straight wins.

John Kasay
Playing football at Clarke Central, Kasay was an all-state selection with 37 career field goals, including a 54- yarder. He played at Georgia, and finished fifth on the career kick scoring list with 217 points, racking up second-team All-SEC in 1990. John was drafted in by the Seattle Seahawks, and led them in scoring for four seasons before signing with the Carolina Panthers in 1995. He was a Pro Bowler in 1996 and earned All-Pro honors, helping the Panthers to an NFC Championship in 2003. He retired in 2011 with 461 field goals made, an 81.9 percent accuracy rate, and 1,970 total points.

Chaunté Lowe
One of America's most skilled high jumpers, Chaunte attended Georgia Tech, where she won three NCAA titles, earned 13 All-ACC honors, and collected six All-American accolades. Lowe was the school’s first female track and field athlete to qualify for the Olympics, competing in the 2004, 2008, 2012, and 2016 events. Lowe established herself as one of the most dominant U.S. high jumpers of her era, and is the current American record holder in indoor and outdoor high jump. She was inducted into the Georgia Tech Athletic Hall of Fame in 2015. In 2019, Lowe was diagnosed with breast cancer, but continued training while undergoing treatment and becoming an advocate for breast cancer awareness.

Patsy Neal
One of the most accomplished women’s basketball players of her era, Neal averaged 40.7 points per game as a senior at Elberton High, with six 50-point games and a career-high of 60. A three-time AAU All-American, she won gold with the U.S. team at the 1959 Pan American games and captained the U.S. team at the 1964 World Championship in Lima, Peru. At Wayland Baptist College, Patsy won the national free-throw title by hitting 48 of 50. She was part of two AAU national titles, and served as the school’s first female student body president. She founded one of the first girls’ basketball camps, and has authored eight books. Patsy was inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in 2003.

Tim Willis
The first blind athlete to compete in NCAA Division I cross country, Willis attended Georgia Southern (1990–1994), where he excelled in track and field. In three world championships, Willis won gold in the 10,000 meters in 1994 and set two world records. At the 1996 Atlanta Paralympics, he earned silver in the 10,000 meters and bronze in the 1,500, 5,000, and 1,600 relay, followed by a bronze in the 10,000 at the 2000 Sydney Paralympics. Willis set 12 national records and served as a trailblazer for blind athletes. A graduate of the Mercer Law School, he advocates for disability rights, and worked in leadership roles with the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee, helping athletes nationwide.