By MICHAEL BOYLAN
mboylan@thecitizennews.com

Fayette County High School will dedicate two plaques honoring two former inductees into the Fayette County Sports Hall of Fame April 14 at 6:30 p.m.

The first plaque will honor long time Fayette County resident and former baseball all-star Cecil Travis. Travis played baseball for the Tigers from 1927-1930. He turned down a scholarship from Georgia Tech to play for the Chattanooga Lookouts. In 1933, Travis was called up to the Washington Senators.

He became a starter for the Senators in 1934 and spent seven seasons as either a starting shortstop or third baseman for the team. Travis had a career batting average of .314, which is the third highest average ever for a shortstop, and in the magical summer of 1941 produced more hits than Ted Williams and had a higher batting average than Joe DiMaggio. In 1942, Travis was called to fight in World War II. He spent three years in the war and returned to baseball in 1945.

The Fayette County Tigers will name their locker room and dugout after Travis.

The other plaque that will be presented will honor the late Jimmie D. Allen, whom the field is named for.

Allen restarted the football program at FCHS in 1960 and coached both boys and girls basketball from 1959-1962. He coached baseball from 1960-1964, winning two regional championships in 1961 and 1962 and a state championship in 1964. Allen was named coach of the year in 1960 and meant a lot to the school's athletic program and their future success.

The field was named for Coach Allen in 1987.

The awards ceremony will be followed by a pivotal regional matchup between the Tigers and their rivals, the McIntosh Chiefs at 7 p.m.

It will be a significant moment in Fayette County sports history, honoring what is beloved in athletics.

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