Science Hill High School

Tony Farrace

Tony Farrace

Tony Farrace put Science Hill wrestling and girls soccer on the map and helped the boys soccer program reach No. 1 in the country. Farrace, who moved to Wilmington, Delaware from Italy when he was 12, wrestled at Milligan College. Shortly thereafter, Science Hill AD Sidney Smallwood made him the wrestling coach. The program was in its third year when Farrace took over for the 1971-72 season. Farrace’s first captain, David Hollowell, said previous coach Ken Hart was organized and had taught the athletes how to work. “Tony taught us how to wrestle,” said Hollowell, who retired in 2008 after an accomplished coaching career at Greeneville. Indeed, from 1971-81, Science Hill went 117-10 with nine District titles (modern-day regionals). Hollowell was one of three Hilltoppers to place at the state in Farrace’s first season, an era without classification. “And that came to be the standard for Tony,” Hollowell said. Current Science Hill coach Jeff Price wrestled in high school in Abingdon when Farrace was coaching at Science Hill. “He was always kind of my hero because Science Hill was always so good,” Price said. “I always read the paper and kept up with them.” Farrace coached East Tennessee State’s short-lived program two years while Price was at Carson-Newman in the early ‘80s. “But I never really met him until I was coaching here at Science Hill,” Price said. “It was cool to get to know him. I value his counsel.” Hollowell says Farrace was a cutting-edge coach. “I consider him one of the first modern coaches,” Hollowell said. “He was old school in (practice) … but felt it was okay to have a true relationship with his athletes.” That care extended to opponents. Hollowell said Farrace took care of former Elizabethton coach John Clock when he was suffering with Lou Gehrig’s Disease. Farrace also warmed easily to a problem child or misfits. “Tony helped a lot of kids get into college and paid for a lot of kids’ lunches and clothes,” Hollowell said. “He’s one of the most caring and intelligent men I’ve ever known. And he was highly confident, but had zero ego.” Farrace also established the girls soccer program with a 10-year stint (1988-97). Ironically, the era ended the same way his wrestling run had, with Queen’s “Another One Bites the Dust” annoying his ears. He said he lost his last wrestling match against Daniel Boone and they played the song. Sixteen years later, he was confident his Lady Toppers were rolling toward a state tournament berth when, before a postseason game against Dobyns-Bennett, he heard that Queen song. “I just knew we were going to win state that year,” Farrace said. “Then when I heard that song I knew we were going to lose. It was like a bad vision. I was right back at that wrestling match. I always hated that song.” Farrace remembers Tennessee High fans blowing up a photo of him for poster. “It had ‘The Mad Italian’ on it. I would just describe myself as very, very, very passionate,” he says with warm laughter Farrace fondly recalls helping Paul Christman, then Mike Voitlein coach junior-varsity football for most of the 1970s. The sand in three decades’ hourglass disappeared too quickly, but Farrace left deep footprints.. “This (Hall of Fame) puts the icing on the cake,” Farrace said. “I really feel like a ‘Topper.”