Barbara Holloway – Contributor
As you can see the photo below is of Thomas “Tommy” Runyon. He was the 1957 all-time Golden Gloves Winner known for his 2 seconds TKO. He was born and raised in Marion County, where he played football at Marion County High School and graduated in 1959. He received a full scholarship to play football at the University of Georgia and graduated in 1963.
Thomas coached at Sequatchie county High School from 1964 until 1968, Red Bank High School from 1968 until 1971, Central high School from 1971 until 1976, and completed his coaching at Red Bank High School from 1976 until 1986. he served as Assistant Principal at Ooltewah high School from 1986 until 1990 and Red Bank High School from 1990 until his retirement in 1995. He also coached at Signal Mountain Middle School for two seasons, 1995 and 1996. He volunteered at Ganns Middle Valley Elementary School 2003 until 2007. Thomas Winfred Runyon passed away on Sunday, May 19th, 2013. He left behind quite the legacy. Tommy was the son of Bill and Marie Runyon of Jasper, Tennessee. In addition to the sports mentioned, Tommy was a member of the University of Georgia’s wrestling team. His knock outs were so swift that they called him “Tommy Gun”.
The Marion Tribune – November 16, 2023
