Memphis Tigers Basketball
Calkins: The Tigers are No. 1 again! (But even better, they’re No. 5)
Maybe we shouldn’t have been surprised the Memphis Tigers are a No. 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament. They’ve certainly earned the respect.
Geoff Calkins
Columnist
Geoff Calkins has been chronicling Memphis and Memphis sports for more than two decades. He is host of "The Geoff Calkins Show" from 9-11 a.m. M-F on 92.9 FM. Calkins has been named the best sports columnist in the country five times by the Associated Press sports editors, but still figures his best columns are about the people who make Memphis what it is.
There are 1047 articles by Geoff Calkins :
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March 2025
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: How an 11-year-old girl helped inspire Hardaway’s greatest season
Penny Hardaway was named American Athletic Conference Coach of the Year Tuesday. Is that because an 11-year-old girl gave him an unexpected gift? OK, maybe not. But he did just ask her for two more.
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Memphis Tigers BasketballCalkins: ‘What a difference a year makes,’ says Penny Hardaway — as he cuts down the net
After seven years, Penny Hardaway was finally able to celebrate a regular-season title at Memphis Friday night. He was finally able to cut down a net in the city he loves so much.
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: How do you celebrate turning 50? If you’re Memphis Pom, you dance.
Memphis Pom is 50! Time flies when you’re having fun. So how is the group going to celebrate? With a reunion dance at Friday’s game, of course.
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: As Shadyac steps down, it’s a critical moment for St. Jude
Richard Shadyac Jr. helped transform St. Jude into the most trusted brand in the world. His departure after 16 years is a moment of celebration — and uncertainty, too.
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Calkins: Richard Shadyac Jr. on his legacy, the future, Memphis — and some sports stuff, too
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: Richard Shadyac Jr. on his legacy, the future, Memphis — and some sports stuff, too
Will Hoops for St. Jude be back? How does Shadyac want his tenure as CEO of ALSAC to be remembered? Some parting thoughts as Shadyac steps down after 16 years.
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February 2025
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: A birth, a death and an improbable reunion — after more than three decades
Kelli Collins was just 16 when she gave her baby up for adoption. Three months later, she died in a car crash. This is the story of how that baby found his way back to Memphis.
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Geoff Calkins Calkins: Nearly 60 years after he was killed, a hero finds a new home
Donald J. Reilly was the most decorated Marine in Vietnam when he was killed in 1965. After nearly six decades, he is finally getting the send-off he deserves — at Arlington National Cemetery.
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: A story of friendship and basketball — and why the Memphis Tigers mean so much
Ninety-four-year-old Thelma Scott gave up her season ticket this year. But give up on her Tigers? Not a chance. The university gave her a life she couldn’t have imagined. And it is still giving her friends.
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January 2025
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: Ed Scott aims to make Memphis ‘a Top 25 athletic program in America’ — believe it or not
Memphis athletic director Ed Scott has been on the job for a tumultuous, wrenching but ultimately triumphant six months. In that time, Scott has seen enough to believe Memphis can be “a Top 25 athletic program in America.” Now he needs others to believe it, too.
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Calkins: Ed Scott on realignment, Penny, the NCAA investigation, attendance and more
Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium will have reduced capacity, according to new plans
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Memphis Tigers Football Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium will have reduced capacity, according to new plans
Memphis athletic director Ed Scott said the new capacity for Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium will be 42,000-44,000 — not the 50,000 that was originally planned.
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Geoff Calkins Calkins: Ed Scott on realignment, Penny, the NCAA investigation, attendance and more
Memphis athletic director Ed Scott has been on the job for six months. Here’s what he has to say about realignment, the ongoing NCAA investigation, Ryan Silverfield, Penny Hardaway and the university’s plans for paying players.
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: Leaving Memphis makes Nick Walker ‘tear up.’ Here’s why.
Nick Walker, the Memphis parks director, is leaving for North Carolina. He has some thoughts before he goes about why he loves the city, what bothers him about Memphians and what he’d like to see change.
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: He just turned 102! And he’s got stories you might not believe.
T.K. Tanner just turned 102. He’s got stories you won’t believe. And, yes, I asked him the secret to a long life. It’s not what you might think.
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: Want to feel better about MSCS? I give you Ollie Liddell and his fabulous band.
Hundreds of high school jazz bands audition from all over the world to be invited to the Essentially Ellington contest in May. Only 30 bands make it — and guess where one of them is from.
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: How did it end for Feagins? In chaos, of course.
“The decision to fire Memphis-Shelby County Schools Superintendent Marie Feagins was chaotic but predictable. It felt like the fix was always in.”
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Marie Feagins ousted as MSCS superintendent
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: Five board members want to oust Feagins. They’re making her a martyr instead.
Geoff Calkins: Whatever you think of the job Feagins has done, it can’t possibly be as bad as the job the board has done in trying to fire her. Instead of persuading the community that Feagins has to go, they have rallied the community to her side.
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: Sure, Taylor Jenkins screwed up. But that’s not what you should worry about.
Taylor Jenkins took the blame for the loss. It was nice of him to say. But the Grizzlies real problem may be their inability to handle the best in the West.
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: The one thing Memphians must resolve to do in 2025 (and it’s not lose weight)
Hey, Memphians. It’s time to resolve to have fun again in 2025. Go to a Tigers game. Go to a Grizzlies game. Get off your couch and do something.
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December 2024
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Memphis Tigers BasketballCalkins: Memphis smashes Ole Miss to wind up 2024. (And 2025 could be fun.)
After the Memphis Tigers smashed Ole Miss Saturday, Penny Hardaway called this the “most satisfying” nonconference season of his coaching career. Who are we to disagree?
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: The jolliest place in Memphis this season? It might be this UPS Store.
He may not be Santa, but Thermon Knighten runs the jolliest packing and shipping store this side of the North Pole. Not only that, he does weddings. At The UPS Store. How jolly is that?
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: Feagins survives for now. But what an embarrassing mess.
Grant Wells, a teacher, joined hundreds of others in support of Memphis-Shelby County Schools Superintendent Marie Feagins Tuesday night. His explanation for the entire fiasco? “This is Memphis stuff,” he said.
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Geoff Calkins Calkins: The St. Jude Memphis Marathon isn’t just a race. It’s a lesson for us all.
Some 22,500 people will be running through Downtown Memphis on Saturday. How did it happen? That’s a story worth telling all your friends.
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Hope ahead: St. Jude kicks off Marathon Weekend in Downtown Memphis
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: Enjoy this moment in Memphis sports. It’s never happened before.
The basketball Tigers are ranked. The football Tigers are ranked at the same time. When has that happened during a Grizzlies playoff season? Never. These are heady times.
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November 2024
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: 901 FC is gone. Could the Redbirds be next?
If Memphis doesn’t find the money to make needed repairs, Geoff Calkins says, there could be an empty ballpark at B.B. King Boulevard and Union Avenue before long.
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