2026 tennessee state athletics
Hall of Fame

Teresa Phillips is one of the most influential figures in Tennessee State University athletics history, serving the institution for more than three decades as a championship coach, administrator and Director of Athletics. As head coach of the women’s basketball program from 1989-2000, Phillips transformed the Tigers into a conference power, compiling 144 victories while leading the program to back-to-back Ohio Valley Conference regular-season and tournament championships in 1993-94 and 1994-95. Her 1993-94 team captured the program’s first OVC regular-season title, won the conference tournament championship and earned Tennessee State’s first NCAA Tournament appearance. A three-time OVC Coach of the Year and 1990 USA Today National Coach of the Year, Phillips also made history as the first woman to coach an NCAA Division I men’s basketball team. In 2002, she became Tennessee State’s Director of Athletics, ushering in a transformative era for the department. Under her leadership, TSU won 12 Ohio Valley Conference championships, launched its first official athletics website, improved student-athlete graduation rates, expanded sponsorship opportunities, secured NCAA grant funding and oversaw major facility improvements, including the construction of the football indoor practice facility and significant upgrades to Hale Stadium and other athletic venues. Her impact extended well beyond campus, earning recognition as one of Sports Illustrated’s 101 Most Influential Minorities in Sports and selection as one of Tennessee’s 10 Legends in Women’s Basketball during the 2014 Women’s Final Four. A trailblazer throughout her career, Phillips was the first African American female student-athlete at Vanderbilt University and later earned the school’s Lady Commodore Athlete of the Year honor. A member of multiple halls of fame, including the Ohio Valley Conference, Vanderbilt Athletics and Fisk University halls of fame, Phillips leaves a lasting legacy of leadership, innovation and excellence that forever changed the trajectory of Tennessee State Athletics.