Columnist
Geoff Calkins has been chronicling Memphis and Memphis sports for more than two decades. 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 1095 articles by Geoff Calkins :
As questions again swirl about the future of Penny Hardaway, athletic director Ed Scott had every chance to address them Wednesday. He chose to stay silent. What could that mean?
Professional tennis is returning to the city. That isn’t some accident. It’s because Memphis did something very, very well. Related content:
Ja Morant is on the way out. Penny Hardaway is teetering. It’s the worst basketball season in the city’s history, featuring the fall of two Memphis icons.
Henry Griffith is the basketball manager at Houston High. He had never played in a game before. But after he hit a buzzer-beater Friday night, he was carried off the court.
Garrett Hines was a football star at Bartlett High. Now he’s in Italy coaching bobsled for the last runs in what has been a remarkable Olympic career.
Mayor Paul Young was heckled during his State of the City address. But here’s the thing about Young and those hecklers: They want the same thing.
Mark Schonwetter spent years hiding from the Nazis as a boy. He came to Memphis this week to talk about the journey of survival, the persistence of hate — and a lesson his mother taught him about joy.
Grizzlies GM Zach Kleiman was asked if Ja Morant will play for Memphis again this year. He gave an answer — which you can read for yourself.
The Grizzlies stunned the city by dealing Jaren Jackson Jr. Yes, it’s disappointing. But it’s time to start fresh.Related content:
Well, darn. The Central High band won’t be going back to New York this year to defend its title in the Essentially Ellington jazz contest. But after a year of triumph and tragedy, that won’t stop director Ollie Liddell from teaching “with (his) hair on fire.”
What is keeping the Grizzlies in Memphis? Robert Pera. And that’s it. He’s still the best chance the city has to keep the team.Related content:
No pep band. No anthem singer, either. But lots of brave fans got free tickets to watch the Memphis Tigers win a basketball game Thursday. How better to defeat the snowbound blues?
So many tulips! A truckload of tulips! The Dixon Gallery & Gardens is celebrating its 50th anniversary with 650,000 tulips — more than double what it’s ever had before.
How bad could this storm be? Even Ja Morant was asking about it. (And he’s in a storm of his own).
Andrew Goldberg, the new executive director of Ballet Memphis, has more ticket stubs to Michael Jordan games than anyone in the world.
Sally Jones Heinz is retiring as executive director of MIFA. “There isn’t an organization like this anywhere in the country,” she said. “It’s the best.”
Sunday may have been Ja Morant’s last appearance at FedExForum as a Grizzly. If so, it was a fittingly disappointing end.
She broke off their engagement so he could serve his country. More than seven decades later, Bill Moore has a vivid memory of the moment he asked Martha McClanahan to marry him.
Lane Kiffin has done the impossible. He has caused Memphis fans, Tennessee fans — and fans of all things good and decent — to pull for Ole Miss. Ole Miss, Miami set up College Football Playoff game like no otherRelated content:
Todd Richardson, the CEO of Crosstown, was about to die from a heart attack in his apartment. But Adrian Garcia — the head of maintenance at the building — showed up to save the day.
The year 2025 was a bummer in Memphis sports — and not just because of the results on the field. But yes, there’s a solution. We asked someone who knows.
Charles Huff knows the assignment at Memphis. It’s to win championships and, by doing that, to help change the trajectory of the community. Charles Huff looks to ‘close the gap’ as Memphis football coachRelated content:
“There’s no way to know if Charles Huff will win championships at Memphis. But the guy has every possible credential you could want.”
Is Ed Scott about to make the most important hire of the Memphis athletic program? And who should he pick? Ryan Silverfield posts goodbye message to Memphis Is Memphis football the best non-power conference job on the market?Related content:
“Ryan Silverfield is off to Arkansas? That’s hog heaven for Memphis fans.” Ryan Silverfield leaving Memphis for Arkansas Memphis football names interim head coach The carousel spins: Potential Memphis football head coach candidatesRelated content: