Two former Panthers will be inducted into the Russellville Alumni Athletic Hall of Fame Friday night when Russellville High School entertains
district rival Franklin-Simpson.
One of them was a record-setting running back. The other is better known for promoting RHS athletes and teams than for his own feats on the field.
James ‘Sonny’ Duncan (Class of 1956) and Lon Sosh (’60) are becoming the newest members of the select group of former Panther players and coaches.
Hall of Fame plaques are provided by the Russellville Alumni Club.
The ceremony will be held between the girls and boys basketball games. John Brett Reynolds, Sosh’s nephew, will be master of ceremonies.
Descriptions of the honorees follows:
Lon Sosh
A Russellville varsity basketball and baseball player for three seasons each, Lon Sosh is better known as the “Voice of the Panthers.” A deadly shooter
from the corner, he helped Coach Jim Young’s 1959 and ’60 basketball Panthers reach the regional semifinals both years… Sosh, who also was all-state
three years in band, began his radio career on WRUS as a teen and started broadcasting RHS games at age 22. He was on the air for 32 Panther seasons
and built excitement about RHS sports, usually with fellow former Panther athlete Pat O’Brien by his side. He aired Saturday morning gatherings at
which the football game of the night before was discussed, and he introduced the concept of re-airing games on Saturdays so that the players could
listen.. He also was active in the Quarterback Club and often emceed postseason banquets. Later as owner of WRUS AM and FM, he created KQ-!01, which
promoted sports, including providing a more widespread audience for RHS football and basketball. He was the voice of a 29-station network for WKU
sports, calling games in a variety of venues that included Madison Square Garden. Later he also was the play-by-play voice of Austin Peay State
University men’s basketball and the women’s basketball team at SMU. He came home to WRUS to complete his radio career from 2007-2011 where he revived
his “Big Daddy Bob Alou” persona.
James ‘Sonny’ Duncan
One of Russellville’s most versatile football players ever, Sonny Duncan played tackle on defense while becoming a record-setting running back on
defense. He was a 145-pound defensive tackle on Coach Harold Hunter’s 1954 team which compiled an 8-1-2 record. The defense allowed only seven points
to Bowling Green while shutting out the other SKY League teams, Glasgow and Franklin. Then in his senior season, he set a WKC rushing record of 1,325
yards that lasted for a decade. In his first game on offense, he scored the only touchdown in a win over Murray. His 60-yard punt return was the only
RHS score in a 19-6 loss to Franklin. He threw scoring passes to Glenn Gilliam in identical 14-13 wins over Marion and Owensboro Catholic, and he
scored the only touchdown in a 7-6 win over Trigg County. Duncan showed his unselfishness and versatility by playing defensive tackle on this team,
too. He also was a baseball player, appearing in a Panther varsity game for the first time as a seventh grader.