TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (March 1, 2022) – The Florida College System Activities Association is proud to announce the Class of 2022 inductees to its Men's and Women's Basketball Hall of Fame.   

• Antwan Jones, student-athlete, Tallahassee Community College 
• Chris Jones, student-athlete, Northwest Florida State College 
• Carol Smith Rhoden, student-athlete, Gulf Coast State College 
• Derrick Worrels, coach, Hillsborough Community College 

Antwan Jones

Growing up in Live Oak, Fla., Antwan Jones flew under the radar of most college basketball programs.  However, it only took one visit from then-Tallahassee Community College head coach and fellow FCSAA Hall of Famer Mike Gillespie to realize the Suwannee High School standout was a diamond in the rough.   

Jones wasted little time establishing himself as an upper echelon player. He scored a career-high 37 points in his collegiate debut against FSCJ on November 4, 1998 and led the Panhandle Conference in scoring as a freshman on his way to first-team all-conference honors.   

As a sophomore, Antwan averaged a team-high 18.6 points en route to being named Panhandle Conference Player of the Year and earning FCSAA All-State honors. He joined Tallahassee's 1,000 Point Club on January 22, 2000, against Gulf Coast State College and still ranks sixth on the school's all-time scoring list. That season, he also garnered national recognition from both Sports Illustrated and SLAM Magazine as part of features on junior college basketball. 

In two years at Tallahassee, Jones led the Eagles to 46 wins, a total of 16 weeks at No. 1 in the FCSAA Top Ten and consecutive berths in the FCSAA State Tournament. He capped his NJCAA career by being named Second-team All-America in 2000.  

Upon graduating from TCC, Antwan signed and played with the University of Cincinnati before finishing his collegiate career at NAIA powerhouse Georgetown College, where he was again named Second-team All-America in 2002. 

Jones enjoyed a professional career that included stints in England and Sweden, as well as the NBA's D-League's Fayetteville Patriots.  

Antwan currently resides in his hometown of Live Oak, Fla., where he mentors youth and remains involved in basketball through his elite one-on-one training program and coaching AAU basketball. In 2019, he became the first inductee into the Suwannee County Police Athletic League Hall of Fame and was a 2020 inductee into the Suwanee High School Hall of Fame. 

Jones will be recognized at halftime of Friday's 3 p.m. game. 

Chris Jones 

Chris Jones arrived on the Northwest Florida State College campus to much fanfare in 2011. Two seasons and numerous accolades later, he lived up to the hype and then some, leaving Niceville as one of the most decorated players in school history.  

As a freshman, he averaged 18.0 points, 4.2 assists, 4.6 rebounds and 1.8 steals. He followed that by averaging 21.8 points – which ranked fifth nationally – 5.1 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 3.0 steals as a sophomore, becoming just the second player since 1997 to earn Panhandle Conference Player of the Year awards in consecutive seasons.  

His 2013 campaign included FCSAA State Player of the Year honors, a second consecutive year as a NJCAA First-team All-American and he was recognized as the National Junior College Division I Player of the Year by the National Association of Basketball Coaches. Among his many memorable moments that season was a 49-point performance against Lee College, right here in Raider Arena, capped by a 75-footer at the buzzer to give Northwest Florida State the win. 

Playing for then-head coach Steve Forbes, Jones led Northwest Florida State to consecutive 30-win seasons, a 62-6 overall record between 2011 and 2013, which included a FCSAA State Championship in 2012 and NJCAA Runners-up finishes in 2012 and 2013.  

Following his Northwest Florida State career, Jones was off to the University of Louisville, where he played for Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino, and has played seven seasons professionally overseas.  

Although unable to attend in person due to professional commitments overseas, Jones will be honored this week and Northwest Florida State College Director of Athletics Ramsey Ross will accept on Jones' behalf. 

Carol Smith Rhoden 

Every story has a beginning and when writing about the generation-long dominance of Gulf Coast State College women's basketball, Carol Smith Rhoden, arguably, belongs in the opening paragraph.  

A native of Birmingham, Ala., Carol excelled in athletics at a young age and was encouraged by her mother to pursue her dreams. When she was a high school freshman, Carol's mother passed away and her grandmother took the reins to ensure she continued to live out those dreams.  

After being named the 1998 Miss Basketball by the Birmingham Tip-Off Club, Carol signed with Gulf Coast Community College where she played for fellow FCSAA Hall of Famers Roonie Scovel and Grover Hicks. With the Lady Commodores, she delivered one of the most impressive careers in FCSAA history – 59 wins, back-to-back Panhandle Conference Championships, consecutive FCSAA State Championships, 4th and 7thplace finishes at the NJCAA Tournament, consecutive Panhandle Conference and FCSAA State Player of the Year awards, a two-time first-team All-American by the NJCAA and the Women's Basketball Coaches Association and, in 2000, was the Kodak/WBCA National Player of the Year.  

Upon graduating from Gulf Coast, Carol returned to her home state and played her final two seasons at Auburn University. In 58 career games with the Tigers, she averaged 11.4 points, 2.6 rebounds and 2.7 assists. Academically, Carol earned three degrees on the Plains and, while completing her master's program, worked as a women's student assistant for head coach Nell Fortner.  

That experience launched Carol into a coaching career that led her back to Birmingham's W.J. Christian School, where she was the head boys coach from 2006-2009 and served as the head girls coach from 2009-18, leading the Lady Chargers to several city championships while garnering Coach of the Year recognition. 

Carol was named to the SEC Community Service Team in 2001 and community service remains a key component of her life to this day, with numerous initiatives supporting women and children.  

A member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., Carol is also the owner of "Created 2 Hoop, LLC" where she conducts basketball personal training, group training and seasonal camps. Recently, she published a children's book, Carol's Dream, that shares her story and teaches young people they can overcome anything and achieve their dreams if they dedicate themselves to the things they love.  

Taking the lessons learned as a child and that fueled her success as a student-athlete, Carol continues to use the triangulation of scholarship, character and purpose to develop leaders in school, the community, and most importantly, in life.   

She and her husband, Rogers Rhoden, live in Birmingham where they are raising their two daughters, Laila and Alana.  

Smith Rhoden will be recognized at halftime of Friday's 6 p.m. game. 

Derrick Worrels 

Derrick Worrels was a prep standout at Tampa's Plant High School before enrolling at hometown Hillsborough Community College. Playing under legendary coach Joe Patton, Worrels suited up for the Hawks from 1983 to 1985. An All-Suncoast Conference performer, Derrick led Hillsborough to a record-setting 23 straight wins during his sophomore season, became the Hawks' first student-athlete to have his or her number retired and was the first student-athlete inducted into the HCC Hall of Fame. 

After graduating from Hillsborough, Derrick transferred to the University of North Carolina at Asheville, where he was a two-sport athlete in basketball and baseball between 1985 and 1987. Following college, Derrick played with Cross Fire International, Spirt Express and the USBL's Tampa Bay Sunblasters.  

In 1992, Derrick embarked on a successful coaching career when he returned to UNC Asheville as an assistant coach. In 1996, his career came full circle when he returned to Hillsborough as a men's assistant. After two seasons, he received his first head coaching opportunity when he chosen to lead the HCC women. One year later, in 1999, he was named men's head coach and promptly guided the Hawks to the FCSAA State Tournament nine times and was a three-time Suncoast Conference Coach of the Year over the next 11 seasons. Following a brief return to the Division I ranks as an assistant coach at Canisius College, Derrick came back to Hillsborough in 2012 and coached the Hawks for six more seasons, garnering another postseason berth in 2015. In 17 total years as men's head coach at his alma mater, he won more than 300 games and helped numerous student-athletes garner Division I scholarship opportunities, including fellow FCSAA Hall of Famer Othello Hunter, who earned a roster spot with the Atlanta Hawks. During this time, Derrick also served a term as FCSAA Men's Basketball State Chair.  

As a first-generation college student, Derrick prided himself on the opportunity to give back to young men as a coach and mentor. His efforts resulted in a graduation rate of greater than 80 percent and – with a master's degree in hand and currently pursuing a his Doctorate of Education in Community College Leadership from Kansas State University – successfully aligns with a distinguished career beyond athletics 

Beginning as an academic advisor at HCC in 1994, Derrick's coaching career coincided with service to the College as an adjunct professor, enrollment development coordinator and assistant dean. He left Hillsborough in 2018 to become Senior Vice President of Student Services at Ranger College in Ranger, Texas, and on January 10, 2022, he was officially appointed as Ranger's new President and CEO.  

Worrels will be recognized at halftime of Wednesday's 8 p.m. game.