Palmer to be inducted into Juco Sports Hall of Fame

Corky Palmer, the coach who led Meridian Community College’s baseball program into national prominence, will be inducted Tuesday night into the Mississippi Junior College Sports Hall of Fame. The ceremony will be held at the Jackson-Hilton beginning at 7 p.m.

Each of Mississippi’s public community colleges select an inductee per year, and Palmer has been chosen as Meridian’s honoree for 2011. Palmer coached the MCC Eagles from 1987-96, compiling a record of 409-160, winning over 70 percent of his games. He is one of only two coaches in baseball history to lead both a junior college and a NCAA Division I team to their respective college world series. He accomplished the latter part of that distinction while head coach of the Southern Miss Golden Eagles.

“Coach Palmer is a legend in the annals of Mississippi college baseball,” said Dr. Scott Elliott, MCC president. “We are very excited about his induction into the Hall of Fame. He brought great honor to MCC as our baseball coach. His impressive record speaks for itself.”

Palmer will be joining in the Hall the following previous inductees from MCC: Lou Weddington Hart (golf); Cliff Lee, Jason Smith, Billy Harold Smith, and Paul Phillips (baseball); Jim Redgate (golf and basketball); and Ronald Murray (basketball).

At MCC, Palmer coached the Eagles to three trips to the Division I World Series in Grand Junction, Colorado, including a national runner-up finish in 1996. Palmer’s MCC Eagles captured five conference titles and four regional championships during his tenure. He was named Region 23 Coach of the Year on four occasions and NJCAA National Coach of the Year twice.

After departing MCC, Palmer became head coach at his alma mater, the University of Southern Mississippi, where he compiled a 458-281 record and led the Golden Eagles to eight NCAA Regionals, including seven in a row in his final seasons before retiring. His 2009 USM squad earned the university’s first-ever trip to the NCAA World Series in Omaha, Nebraska, by sweeping the University of Florida Gators in the NCAA super Regionals at Gainesville, FL.

Prior to entering the college coaching ranks, Palmer amassed a high school coaching record of 102-52. His 32-year career coaching mark at all levels stands at 969-493. A prolific high school and college player himself, Palmer was a three-year starter at catcher for USM under the legendary Pete Taylor and captained the Golden Eagles his senior year. Palmer is a member of the M-Club and Alumni Association Hall of Fames at USM as well as the 2011 Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame inductee class.