The North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame just announced its 2022 class of inductees. Included on the list is one of the most beloved Carolina Panthers of all time. The class will be officially enshrined in a banquet that will be held Friday, April 22nd at the Raleigh Convention Center.
The newest members will be enshrined during the 58th annual induction banquet on the evening of Friday, April 22, at the Raleigh Convention Center. A news conference will take place that day at noon at the North Carolina Museum of History.
Artifacts of many of N.C. Sports Hall of Fame members, along with a recognition of notable accomplishment, are showcased in a 3,000-square foot museum on the third floor of the N.C. Museum of History in Raleigh. The museum’s address is 5 East Edenton Street, and it is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday and from noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday. Admission is free.
“This year’s class includes a wide variety of athletic achievement, including professional, collegiate, high school, Olympic sports, and media, with some special contributions,” said Dr. Jerry McGee, president of the Hall’s Board of Directors in a press release. “This class of inductees and their outstanding accomplishments continue to build on the rich sports heritage of North Carolina. We look forward to celebrating these outstanding individuals in our state’s sports history.”
Information on tickets to the event will be available in the coming weeks.
The inductees for the 2022 class and biographies (courtesy of a press release from the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame) are below. Inductees are listed in alphabetical order.
Luke Appling
One of seven native North Carolinians in the Baseball Hall of Fame, Appling played 20 years in the major leagues, all with the Chicago White Sox, from 1930 to 1950. Born in High Point, the shortstop was a seven-time American League all-star and twice was the AL batting champ, compiling a sizzling .388 mark in 1936. Appling hit better than .300 15 times during his MLB career. He was also a successful minor league manager and major league coach for many years after retiring as an active player.
1986: Former Chicago White Sox player Luke Appling ’30-’50, looks on during the 1986 season.
Henry Bibby
A native of Franklinton, Bibby was the starting point guard on UCLA men’s basketball teams that won three straight NCAA championships in the early 1970’s, averaging 14.4 points per game for his career and earning first-team all-American honors. He played nine NBA seasons, winning a title with the New York Knicks. As a coach at Southern California, he led three teams to the NCAA tournament, including an Elite Eight trip in 2001. Bibby had various coaching roles in pro basketball, including head coach for star Lisa Leslie and the L.A. Sparks in the WNBA and as an assistant with Memphis and Detroit in the NBA.
Henry Bibby, Head Coach for the University of Southern California USC Trojans makes a signal to his players during the NCAA Pac-10 Conference college basketball game against the Arizona State Sun Devils on 15th February 2001 at the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena in Los Angeles, California, United States, United States. The USC Trojans won the game 80 – 68.
Torry Holt
This football star had an amazing NFL career, primarily with the St. Louis Rams, winning a Super Bowl and going to seven Pro Bowls as part of the “Greatest Show on Turf.” Holt led the league in receiving yards twice and was selected to the NFL’s All-Decade Team of the 2000s. At NC State, Holt was a standout student-athlete who set numerous school records, earned first-team All-American honors and was the ACC Player of the Year in 1998. He is currently sixth on the ACC’s career receiving yards list with 3,379. The sixth overall pick in the 1999 NFL Draft, Holt grew up in Gibsonville and was a star high school athlete at Eastern Guilford.
Torry Holt #81 of the St. Louis Rams carries the ball during the game against the San Francisco 49ers at the Edward Jones Dome on December 21, 2008 in St. Louis, Missouri. The 49ers won 17-16.
Sam Mills
This diminutive 5-foot-9 linebacker played 12 seasons in the NFL, including his final three with the Carolina Panthers, where he became a beloved star, and his NFL career occurred after several standout seasons in the USFL. A three-time conference defensive player of the year in college at Montclair State, Mills played in five Pro Bowls and led the Panthers in tackles twice. He is a member of the Carolina Panthers Hall of Honor, had his Panthers number 51 retired by the team, and is enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame and two other state sports halls.
Linebacker Sam Mills of the Carolina Panthers carries the football after a turnover during the Panthers 24-0 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Ericsson Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina.
