Robert Stanley Little

As a student in 1961-63, Robert Stanley (Stan) Little was a valuable member of the Freed-Hardeman athletic program. He was active in both basketball and baseball, although basketball seemed to be his forte. He started at guard for two years on the basketball team and played third base in baseball. As a sophomore, he was named captain and most valuable player of the basketball team and was voted Freed-Hardeman's most athletic student.

Little continued his basketball and baseball careers at Union University with baseball now being his main interest. For two years, he was All-Volunteer State Athletic Conference as an outfielder and in 1965, he helped Union to an undefeated regular season. He led the team with 11 home runs, third in the NCAA and a school record 41 RBI's, second in the NCAA.

After receiving his undergraduate degree from Union, Little played professional baseball in the San Francisco Giants Organization from 1965-66. Once he ended his playing career, he switched places and began coaching. At age 23, he was named head basketball coach at Humboldt High School and during his first year led his team to the state tournament with a 25-6 record.

During his ten years at Humboldt, his team was a frequent contender for the state championship. He was named District and Region Coach of the Year on several occasions and in 1976, was nominated by the state of Tennessee for National Coach of the Year. His ten-year record was on impressive 225 wins and 78 losses.

As a baseball coach, Little had ten consecutive winning seasons, including several district championships and regional tournament appearances. In 1975, his team won the district, region and sub-state tournament and advanced to the state tournament in Nashville.