By Thomas Sellers Jr. & Mark Healy
This Friday night during the Munford Cougars vs. Millington Trojan basketball games, Millington Central Middle High School will recognize the Athletic Hall of Fame Class for 2020-21.
Starting back in 2013, the school has inducted Millington sports legends, icons and contributors in the categories of athlete, coach, team and contributors. This year’s Class includes Curt Harper, Katelyn Dagen, Katilyn Dupree, Larry Silvey, Mike Stevens and Brett Williams.
The newest members of the Hall of Fame will be presented Friday night during halftime of the girls’ game with tipoff at 6 p.m.
Curt Harper
Curt Harper had one goal in mind as he competed in the TSSAA state wrestling championships in 1984 and that was to come back to Millington with the gold medal. Curt was wrestling in the 105 lb weight class and he accomplished just that and did so in dominating fashion. He won 14-5 in the opening round, pinned his opponent in the quarterfinals and won 12-3 in the semifinals before getting his hand raised as state champion with a 6-4 victory and led the Trojans to a 4th place team finish
Katelyn Dagen
Like her brothers Ryan and Brett, Katelyn Dagen was the valedictorian of Millington Central High School. Katelyn’s achievement came in 2011 while her big bros took home the honor in 2004 and 2006 respectively.
All the Dagen children played soccer but the baby sister’s achievements on the pitch blew her brothers’ out the water. In her four years with the Lady Trojans, the youngest Dagen set a school record for career assists with 41. Her foot was also busy tallying up goals with 54 shots netted from 2007-10.
Dagen was the elder member of the Lady Trojans’ K-2 Attack with Katilyn Dupree. The duo shared the field for two seasons scoring a combined 21 goals with 11 assists in 2009. Then in 2010 the Lady Trojan team tallied 69 goals, with K-2 responsible for 49 of those.
Dagen racked up almost every academic award while at Millington including the 2011 Shelby-Metro Scholar Athlete of the Year.
Katlyn Dupree
The greatest goal scorer in Millington Soccer history is Katlyn Dupree. In her four years with the Lady Trojans, Dupree tallied 87 goals with a single-season record of 31 her senior campaign in 2012. Dupree’s accomplishments in varsity soccer started her eighth-grade year at Tipton-Rosemark Academy allowing her to score more than 100 goals in her varsity career.
Dupree is among the top 10 in Lady Trojans for career assists with 22. A proven total athlete, Dupree also played softball and basketball for the black and gold. But the sport that made her a legend was on the pitch. Dupree was named MVP, offensive MVP, all-district, all-tournament, and Best of the Preps multiple times during her soccer career.
Off the field, Dupree was an award winner as a member of the National Honors Society and was on the Principal’s Honor Roll. She was named the 2013 Shelby-Metro Scholarship Athlete of the Year.
Larry Silvey
Larry Silvey was one of those people who, just by knowing him, made you a better person and made you want to do things to help others. His selfless generosity to his community is something that will always be remembered in Millington. No matter the task, be it large or small, Larry would find a way to get it done and get others involved, whether it was athletics, academics, or anything else. We would like to thank his family for sharing him with us for all of these years.
Mike Stevens
By the time his senior year came around in 1968, Mike Stevens had already been to the state track and field championships the previous two years and had finished 4th each time but he was hungry for more. Stevens unleashed a throw of 155 ft 5 inches and that was good enough to win the state championship in the discus. Mike was an All-Shelby County selection in football, selected to play in the TN East-West All Star Game and went to the University of Cincinnati on a football scholarship.
Brett Williams
Brett Williams was an All-Shelby Metro selection for his senior football season in 1975 as someone who would dominate a game from both sides of the line of scrimmage. He really took it to the next level in college as he would become 1st Team All American at Austin Peay and was the recipient of the Joy Award as the athletics department most valuable senior athlete. In 1983, Brett joined the Birmingham Stallions of the USFL to begin his pro career and in 1984 & 1985 played alongside Reggie White with the Memphis Showboats. From 1986 to 1994, Brett played in the Canadian Football League where he was a 3 time all star and named the outstanding defensive player in 1986. It was in the CFL where he also played on offense in short yardage situations that he earned the nickname “The Toaster” for his ability to “burn you on both sides of the ball”
