23/04/2026
POPLIN, SMITH, AND WHITLEY ARE 2026 HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES
For the fourth consecutive year, Pfeiffer University will host the Stanly County Sports Hall of Fame induction ceremony, which is scheduled for Tuesday, June 16 at 6:00 pm at the Stokes Student Center.
Inductees for 2026 include Donnie Poplin, a standout baseball athlete and pro scout, David Smith, a tennis and basketball star and community leader, and the late Roger Whitley, who excelled in football on the high school and college levels before embarking on a long career in law enforcement.
DONNIE POPLIN
Donnie Poplin was a three-sport athlete at South Stanly High, but his amazing accomplishments on the baseball field led him to a lifelong career at the highest levels of the sport.
While lettering for four years on the Rebels diamond squad, Poplin was selected All-Rocky River conference and as team Most Valuable Player in 1983, ‘84, and ‘85. He was selected as Rocky River Conference Player of the Year in 1984, and was the first signee for UNC-Charlotte’s baseball squad in its 1985-86 recruiting class.
At UNCC, Poplin lettered each season from 1986 to 1989, and was team captain his final three years. He was selected to the All-Sun Belt Conference second team in 1987 and ‘88, and to the first team in 1989. He was also named to the All-Region team and was voted as UNCC’s team MVP during the 1989 season.
In collegiate summer league play in the Valley League in 1987 and ‘88, Poplin was a member of the Wi******er Royals. The team captured the league championship in 1987, and he was voted the team MVP in 1988.
Poplin’s career as a professional baseball scout began in 1992, when he served as a part-time Associate Scout for the Seattle Mariners organization. In 1993, Seattle elevated him to Area Supervisor for scouting, a position in which he remained until 1999.
In 2000, the Atlanta Braves made Poplin their Area Supervisor for scouting, a position he continued in for two years, before accepting a position with the Cleveland Indians (now Guardians) as a Pro Scout in 2002. He served in the Cleveland organization for 19 more years, having been promoted to the position of Major League Scout in 2004 before becoming Special Assistant to the Team President and General Manager in 2015.
The Kansas City Royals called in 2022, hiring Poplin as a Special Assistant to the General Manager for Pro Personnel Strategy, a position he remains in currently. This season marks Poplin’s 34th in professional baseball.
Poplin and his wife, Teresa, have two sons: Chase and Alex, and live in Norwood.
DAVID SMITH
David Smith was a standout athlete in basketball and tennis at Albemarle High School in the 1960s, before starring in tennis at Pfeiffer.
In 1966, Smith was an all conference basketball player who led the Bulldogs to a win over Valdese for the WNCHSAA championship, the only time Albemarle has won the title. In the championship game, Smith tallied 24 points, including 14 of 14 from the free throw line. He finished the 1965-66 season second in the conference in scoring with a 19 points-per-game average and led the league in free throw percentage, shooting at a 90% clip.
In tennis, Smith was the number one player for the Bulldogs all three years, earning All Conference honors each year. He finished his high school career with a 30-3 record.
Smith continued his tennis success at Pfeiffer College where he was All-Conference for three years, and All-District for two, adding two Conference Championship titles along the way. He qualified for the NAIA Tennis Nationals in 1968. He was inducted into the Pfeiffer Sports Hall of Fame in 2019.
After college, Smith won numerous local and regional titles, and in the early 1980s was ranked as the #5 tennis player in North Carolina.
After a successful business career, he returned to Pfeiffer as Vice President for Enrollment Management, a position he held for eleven years. Smith then moved over to the Athletics Department and served as coach of Pfeiffer’s tennis squad for four years.
David has been very active in community affairs, having served as Chairman of the Stanly County Chamber of Commerce, President of the Albemarle Rotary Club, and serving on the Stanly County Economic Development Commission, the Albemarle Downtown Development Commission, and the Board of Directors of Tillery Compassionate Care. He currently serves on the Board of Trustees at Pfeiffer University.
Smith and his wife Janice and grandchildren Bailey and T.J. reside in Albemarle, and are active members of First Lutheran Church.
ROGER WHITLEY
The late Roger Whitley was a key player on Coach H.T. Webb’s Albemarle High School football squads between 1955 and 1957. He continued his outstanding play at the collegiate level, after which he served the law enforcement community in various roles.
During his senior year, Whitley was a star fullback on Albemarle’s 1957 Western NC High School Activities Association championship football team after having started at tackle the previous two seasons. Over the course of the 1957 season, Whitley averaged nearly 185 yards and two touchdowns per game, was named All-South Piedmont Conference, All-State by the Charlotte News, Charlotte Observer, and Greensboro Daily News, and was also chosen to play in the Shrine Bowl. He was named to the All-American teams from World Week Magazine and Scholastic Magazine and was named honorable mention by The Sporting News.
In college, Whitley played fullback, defensive end, and punter at Ferrum Junior College and at Mars Hill College, where he earned Hall of Fame recognition at both schools. He also remained close to the game of football after college, serving as a high school football official with the North State Officials Association for 18 years.
Following graduation from Mars Hill, Whitley served as a police officer for four years, and as a probation and parole officer for 13. During the final 27 years of his career, he was Director of the Criminal Justice Academy at Gaston College in Dallas, NC where he trained and graduated nearly 2,500 law enforcement officers before his retirement. He was active in the Cleveland and Gaston County communities, serving as a longtime Lions Club member, and as a member and elder at Pisgah Associated Reformed Presbyterian Church in Gastonia.
Whitley passed away at his home in Shelby on October 16, 2025 at the age of 85. He is survived by his wife Nina, and daughters Tracy Rayne, Tammie Keplinger, and Tonya Beam, as well as six grandchildren.
Tickets to the Stanly County Sports Hall of Fame Ceremony will go on sale on May 11 at the following sites:
Jesse F. Niven Community Center in Albemarle (704-984-9567)
E.E. Waddell Community Center in Albemarle (704-984-9569)
Starnes-Bramlett Jewelers, 127 West Main Street, Albemarle
Locust City Hall
Oakboro City Hall
Tickets may also be purchased online at the following link:
https://albemarle.recdesk.com/Community/Program/Detail?programId=716
Tickets are $35 in advance and increase to $50 on the day of the event.
Sponsorship opportunities are available to businesses and individuals as well.
For further information on the Stanly County Sports Hall of Fame, call 980-621-8980, or e-mail [email protected].
