by Cory Woodroof | Sep 30, 2013 | News Slider, Sports
By Sophie Kellerman and Aaron Schmelzer Memories filled Allen Arena on Sunday afternoon as the Lipscomb community celebrated the life of fan Chuck Ross. Ross passed away earlier this month at the age of 68, leaving behind a legacy of support for local sports. Through his fandom, Ross impacted the lives of the many, with a large group of local journalists, sporting figures and former Bisons lending their time to share a funny story and kind word about Ross. “Chuck was the roots that connected so many people and communities,” said Athletic Director Philip Hutcheson as he opened up the memorial. Orioles manager Buck Showalter, ESPN analyst Buster Olney and Voice for the Nashville Predators Pete Weber were among the multitude of people who recorded short anecdotes and well wishes that were shown throughout the service. Jonathan Seamon interviewed former Bisons basketball players Alan Banks, Richard Taylor, Chris Martello, Greg Glenn and Keith Edwards about their experiences with Ross. “I thought Chuck was somebody that we were doing something for,” Taylor said. “The reality is, as time passed, it was exactly the opposite. Chuck was such a role model for all of us.” “Describe Chuck in one word,” Seamon asked the former Bisons. None of them had to think about their answers very long. Laughter, compassion and unconditional love were just a few of the words that came to mind. Ross was not only a fan of the university sports. He also loved going to the Lipscomb Academy high school games and helping out any way he could. “For high school football games, Chuck’s job was to call and...
by Cory Woodroof | Sep 13, 2013 | News Slider, Sports
Nashville has lost an icon, and Lipscomb has lost its biggest fan. Chuck Ross has died at the age of 68. Ross passed away on Friday morning due to complications of diabetes and fluid on his lungs. He was receiving hospice treatment at the Lakeshore Heartland Nursing Home. For six decades, Ross was one of the campus’ most recognizable faces. He attended nearly every sporting event that Lipscomb had to offer, cheering on his beloved Bisons and Mustangs with the now-hallowed chant, “Beat’em, and beat’em bad!” Ross’ death comes in a year that saw the passing of another Lipscomb legend; former high school football coach Glenn McCadams passed away in March. Nashvillians will remember Ross for various reasons. Some may mention having received one of Ross’ infamous phone calls, possibly asking for a game’s score or the next day’s weather. Some may recall humorous encounters with the Bisons fan, with many stories likely ending with a rubbing of Ross’ noted Bison belt buckle. Former Lipscomb Academy head basketball coach and current Nashville Christian head coach Mike McPherson added to the memories of humorous phone messages, recounting a rather lengthy message Ross had left him. “He called and left me a voicemail one time, and at the end of the message, he started going through every sports team on campus,” McPherson said. “He said, ‘Go Mustangs, go Lady Mustangs, go Mustang soccer.” He then went on and started naming every team on the college campus. The voicemail last about 10 minutes of Chuck saying go every team on campus.” McPherson remembers Ross as a great motivator of teams, having brought...
by Michael Fox | Dec 26, 2012 | Sports
Men’s basketball assistant coach Shaun Senters is more than just a coach. He’s a true Bison at heart. Senters, a Knoxville native, played point guard for the Bisons from 1994-1998 under former head coach Don Meyer. During his four years with the Bisons, they compiled a record of 119-27, participated in three NAIA National Tournaments, won the TransSouth Conference Tournament and advanced to the NAIA Final Four during the 1995-96 season.“There were a lot of guys that were more talented than me at the university,” Senters said. “But my job was to bring energy, be passionate, and basically have passion to play the game of basketball.” Senters knew his role was to help the team succeed by bringing passion and energy to the court. “Being a role player is not the easiest thing,” Senters said. “You have to bring energy and you have to do the dirty jobs.” Senters graduated in 1998 with a Bachelor of Science degree in physical education. He spent a year coaching with Meyer as a graduate assistant where he got his inspiration to start his coaching career. “I think a lot of coaches have looked up to Coach Meyer, and it was because of him that I coach today,” Senters said. After his one year as a graduate assistant, he landed an assistant’s position at Shorter College in Rome, Ga., for the 1999-2000 season. Back at Lipscomb, the Bisons were making their transition to become a Division 1 NCAA program for the first time in history. New head coach of the Bisons Scott Sanderson needed a coaching staff, and Senters made the cut. Ever...
by Cory Woodroof | Oct 4, 2012 | News Slider, Sports
Former men’s basketball coach Don Meyer spoke to a crowd of students, faculty, staff and alumni in Allen Arena Thursday in Athlete Leadership Chapel. Meyer, the namesake for Lipscomb’s basketball court, is one of the winningest coaches in college basketball and is set to be the subject of a feature film, co-produced and co-starring Lipscomb graduate and former MLB player Casey Bond. Meyer spoke this morning on a multitude of topics, ranging from servant leadership to how to judge someone’s character. Associate Athletic Director for Spiritual Formation Brent High introduced Meyer to those in attendance. “This is one of the Mount Rushmore guys in my life,” he said. Talking about how to identify a person’s character, Meyer mentioned billionaire CEO Warren Buffet’s three key traits when looking to hire a new employee. According to Meyer, Buffet looks for someone with a strong work ethic, intelligence and character. To Buffet, a person who possesses the first two but lacks the third is not an ideal candidate. Meyer strongly believes in the necessity of character in an individual, offering different ways to judge someone’s character. “I’ve never met a selfish person that was happy, and I’ve never met an unselfish person that was sad,” he said. Meyer said he believes that you can “tell a lot about a person when they’re getting their butt kicked.” He also noted that people should look for how people treat those who can’t do anything for them or do anything to them, citing Mets’ pitcher R.A. Dickey’s efforts to help those in need. Meyer quoted Mark Twain in his third point about judging people’s character, saying, “Kindness is...
by Brianne Welch | Oct 4, 2012 | Sports
Greg Brown, former student coach under Don Meyer, came back to Lipscomb this year, only this time as a head coach. Brown was a graduate assistant and then assistant coach under Pat Summitt at the University of Tennessee and was then an assistant coach at the University of Central Florida before returning to his alma mater, Lipscomb. “The environment and the culture are the two biggest draws,” Brown said, talking about his return to Lipscomb. Brown said he strongly believes that Lipscomb and Nashville are a wonderful community that he is thankful to return to. He also mentioned how thankful he is to be able to send his two sons to a Christian school. Brown coached under Don Meyer, a legend not only to Lipscomb but to the basketball world, as well. Brown talked about the influence Meyer had on other legendary coaches. “As I went to Tennessee, I got to see his influence with Coach [Pat] Summitt and with Coach [Joi] Williams at UCF,” Brown said. Brown said he picked up many aspects of his coaching style from Coach Meyer. “Intensity and the team attitude, and the Greek word arete–that pursuit of excellence–is what I learned then [under Coach Meyer], and it starts to become more and more evident every day,” he said. One major thing Brown took away from coaching under Coach Summitt is “what it was like to compete at your highest level, individually, and then to compete at the highest level as in National Championships.” Brown said he is thankful for those experiences and said “that is what we are building Lipscomb towards.” Building the...
