WS Chronicle

The R.J. Reynolds High School Sports Hall of Fame announces the induction of its 13th class which includes eight new members. The public is invited to the induction ceremony that will be held at halftime of the men’s basketball game between Reynolds and Glenn. The game is scheduled for Feb. 2 at 7:30 p.m. in Bryson Gymnasium. Prior to the game, there is a dinner for inductees and current members of the R.J. Reynolds Sports Hall of Fame in the RJR auxiliary gymnasium. 

Members of the 2024 R.J. Reynolds Sports Hall of Fame class are:

*James Alexander was a fixture as a teacher and coach at R.J. Reynolds High School for 29 years starting in 1989. During his tenure, he served as head wrestling coach and assistant football coach. He coached many individuals to multiple conference, regional and state championships. In addition, “Coach A” served in a variety of other capacities for R.J. Reynolds Athletics including girls cross country coach (one year), an assistant track coach (five years), golf coach (two years) and assistant spring athletic trainer (four years). Coach Alexander is widely known for having a positive impact on many students during his time as teacher and coach. 

*Darrell Deaton graduated from R.J. Reynolds High School in 1979. He was a member of the wrestling and football teams and was 1978 football district player of the year. He was invited to and played in the 1979 East-West All-Star game. He was recognized as all-district for wrestling for multiple years and participated in state meets and was recruited from R.J. Reynolds to play football at Duke University.

*Ashton C. Fleming graduated from R.J. Reynolds High School in 2012. She played girls varsity basketball all four years. Ashton was the first female to represent R.J. Reynolds in the East/West all-star game. She earned all-star academic team and all-conference for three years, all-county two years, and all-county defensive player MVP as a sophomore. She was honorable mention on the All-America team. She went on to earn a full scholarship to play at Wofford College, where she was a four-year letterman and still holds numerous records. After college, she played professionally in London with the Oakland Wolves. She now is a teacher at Northwest Middle School, director of CP3 AAU 10U-17U girls’ program, and the head coach of the varsity girls’ basketball at Forsyth Country Day School.

*H.C. “Joby” Hawn was the head football coach at R.J. Reynolds High School from 1930-1947. As coach, Joby Hawn took the team to the Western Conference Championship. After RJR, Hawn served as recreational director for P. H. Hanes Knitting Company from 1947 to 1962. He was also an outstanding local high school official in basketball and baseball. He served as head official for the Frank Spencer Classic for ten years, which is held at R.J. Reynolds. In 1983, Governor Hunt awarded Mr. Hawn the Order of the Long Leaf Pine as a result of his distinction as a YMCA volunteer and Senior of the Year for Forsyth County. Later he officiated for the Southern Conference and the ACC, as well as in the Sugar Bowl, Cotton Bowl, Orange Bowl, and Gator Bowl. Coach Hawn was the first full-time commissioner of the Carolina Intercollegiate Athletic Conference from 1962-1976. The Conference now has the Joby Hawn Cup, which is an award given each year to the team with the most points. Hawn also has been inducted into the Lenoir Rhyne University Sports Hall of Fame and the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame. H.C. “Joby” Hawn passed away on July 27, 1986. 

*Jomo Legins graduated from R.J. Reynolds in 1994. During his three-year career at Reynolds, Legins’ versatility made him one of the most productive players in Forsyth County. Legins made the Shrine Bowl as defensive back, All-State at linebacker and All-Northwest team as running back. Jomo led RJR in rushing for two consecutive seasons, rushing for 1,228 yards and 12 touchdowns as a senior while recording over 60 tackles, 10 QB sacks, 3 interceptions, and caused 6 fumbles earning the distinction of Most Valuable Player in 1993. Legins also earned All-City/County, a second consecutive All-Northwest team honor, AP All-State Linebacker, Central Piedmont Conference and Distinguished Athlete award by the U.S. Marine Corp in 1993. Legins attended UNC-Chapel Hill where he started three consecutive years at strong safety and earned the Greg Poole Award in 1997 given to the Most Outstanding Special Teams Player of the year.   

*Robbie Mudge graduated from R.J. Reynolds High School in 2011. While at R.J. Reynolds, he was a star on the tennis team, setting records and earning many honors. He was Conference Player of the Year 2009-2011. He won State Individual Championship, State Team Championship and All-American honors. His individual record as a tennis player at R.J. Reynolds was 105 wins and only one loss during his tenure. After RJR, he played tennis for North Carolina State where he played #1 seed on the team and was three-time all ACC. After college, he played professionally and has served as the assistant coach of the UNC-Charlotte tennis team. Presently, Mudge is the founder and director of tennis operations at Altitude Tennis Academy in Charlotte.

*Ryan Odom graduated from R.J. Reynolds High School in 1992. During his time at Reynolds, he played varsity basketball and tennis. He earned the honor of All-Conference in both basketball and tennis for two years. He was awarded Team MVP in basketball his senior year. After RJR, he went on to play basketball as a four-year starting guard for Hampden-Sydney College and led the team to a 80-30 record during his playing career. Since that time, he has served in coaching positions at the collegiate level for Furman University, UNC Asheville, American University, Virginia Tech, UNC-Charlotte, Lenoir Rhyne, University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC) and Utah State. He currently is the head men’s basketball coach at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU).   

*Brittany Johnson Todd graduated from R.J. Reynolds High School in 2003. She was a star in swimming and cross country. She was an elite swimmer for the YMCA and R.J. Reynolds and was a five-time state champion in swimming. She earned MVP at the 2003 North Carolina High School Women’s Swimming & Diving State Championships. She went on to swim at the University of Florida and to be an Olympic trial swimmer in 2000 and 2004. Brittany is now the founder and CEO of B Balanced Counseling & Wellness.

A complete list of past inductees of the R.J. Reynolds High School Sports Hall of Fame can be found in the R.J. Reynolds Booster Club section of the school’s website or by going to this link: https://www.wsfcs.k12.nc.us/Page/107054.  For more information, please contact:RJRsportshof@gmail.com.