| Larry Schmittou |
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In 2006 , he was named a member of the Tennesseee Sports Hall of Fame. EARLY CAREER Larry Schmittou was a teacher in the Nashville Public School System from 1961 - 1968 . During that time he coached high school Basketball and Football . He also worked for several years as a territorial scout for the Cleveland Indians Major League Baseball team. In 1968 , he became the head baseball coach and head football recruiter at Vanderbilt University in Nashville. Through 1978 , he led his teams to over 300 wins, including four consecutive Eastern Division Championships and the overall SEC baseball championships in 1973 and 1974 - both years he was named SEC "Coach of the Year." MINOR LEAGUE BASEBALL In 1978 , Schmittou put together a group of investors including country & western stars Larry Gatlin , Jerry Reed , Conway Twitty , and Richard Sterben (bass singer of the Oak Ridge Boys ) in order to purchase a minor league baseball team. He called the team the Nashville Sounds which would play their home games at Herschel Greer Stadium which held 10,700 fans. They were a part of the Double-A Southern League and were affiliated with the Cincinnati Reds . During the first year of play, the Sounds drew in over 380,000 fans, leading the league in attendance. The Sounds would be a major draw for years to come. Their success has been attributed to Schmittou's business philosophy of selling tickets at low prices and making profits from souvenirs, concessions, etc."25 for 25: Stars in the ''Baseball America'' Universe." ''BaseballAmerica.com'' July 20, 2006. August 2, 2007 In 1985 , the Sounds made the jump to become a Triple-A team of the American Association , and in 1998 joined the Triple-A Pacific Coast League . In 1993 and 1994 , Schmittou welcomed the Double-A Nashville Xpress to Greer Stadium in Nashville. He also owned the Huntsville Stars and a team Greenville, South Carolina. As of 2007 , the Sounds and Stars are still playing in their respective cities. By 1996 , Schmittou had sold all of his baseball teams and retired from the professional baseball business. S&S FAMILY ENTERTAINMENT LLC Today, Schmittou owns S&S Family Entertainment LLC which operates a chain of bowling centers in the Tennessee and Kentucky . It is the seventh largest bowling chain in the world."25 Emerging Companies." ''Nashville Post.'' December 1, 2002. August 2, 2007 REFERENCES
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