David ‘Chip’ Nichols

A dream of every football lineman is to score a touchdown. David ‘Chip’ Nichols toiled in the trenches for East Fannin High School from 1962 through 1965. He realized a lineman’s dream on the night of August 27, 1965 when he tackled a Hayesville, NC running back with such force that the runner coughed up the football in his own end zone. Chip pounced on the ball for a touchdown, helping the Wildcats earn an 18-7 victory. Chip made more than 15 tackles in the game that he describes as “the best game of my career”. Chip says that “football during my four years at East Fannin was somewhat disappointing.” East Fannin was a small school and finding enough able bodies to field a competitive football team was always a challenge. During Chip’s four seasons, the Wildcats only won five times. Chip Nichols, however, was an outstanding athlete who could compete with the finest competition around. The absence of team success in football, however, did not carry over to his basketball career. He began playing basketball at Mineral Bluff and, at the beginning of his 7th grade year, Kenneth Wood came to Mineral Bluff to teach and coach the basketball teams. Chip describes Wood as “a young, energetic coach who enjoyed teaching young kids how to play the game of basketball. He enjoyed playing himself and the gym seemed to always be open”. Chip was joined on the roster by fellow Hall of Fame member Morgan Arp, Dale Buchanan and Johnny Rogers and these four youngsters would play together throughout their basketball careers. During Chip’s 8th grade season, Mineral Bluff went undefeated. They won over teams from Blue Ridge, Morganton, Epworth and perennial power McCaysville by lopsided scores. In the Fannin County Tournament championship game, they thumped McCaysville to the tune of 53-17. The future of East Fannin basketball looked bright as the four Mineral Bluff boys arrived there in 1962. Chip and his teammates were greeted at East Fannin by first year coach Ron Ely. Chip describes Ely as “another young, passionate coach who had enjoyed a stellar career as a player at Tennessee Wesleyan College.” Ely would stay at Morganton for three seasons that were the halcyon days for basketball at East Fannin. His first two teams produced win totals of 15 and 18 games, setting the stage for great things in 1964-65. Chip had good size, standing 6’1” and weighing a solid 185 pounds. He played inside, leading his teams in rebounds and scoring around 8 points per game. He counts the 1965 victory over archrival West Fannin as the biggest thrill of his basketball career. On the night of January 15, 1965 the Wildcats dominated West Fannin to the tune of 65-41, snapping a nine game losing streak to the Yellow Jackets. East Fannin went on to finish the season with 22 victories and five defeats. A loss to North Gwinnett in the Region 4B tournament denied the Wildcats their first appearance in a state tournament. Ron Ely moved on to Sylva-Webster High School in North Carolina in 1965 and was replaced by veteran coach and another member of the Fannin County Sports Hall of Fame, Jack Myers. The 1965-66 team, led by the Mineral Bluff foursome of Nichols, Arp, Buchanan and Rogers, split the regular season series with West Fannin and won the Region 4B sub-region title with a victory over Towns County. In the overall 4B tournament, they defeated Jefferson and Lithonia before losing to Oconee County in the championship game played at Oconee County. The runner-up finish propelled East Fannin to their first, and only, appearance in the state tournament. They finished the season with a record of 25-7. This team was inducted into the Fannin County Sports Hall of Fame in 2023. Chip Nichols was elected as the Most Athletic senior boy in the graduating class of 1966. He was a student leader, serving as a class officer each year and holding membership in the Key Club and Big E Club. Chip went on to graduate from the University of Georgia, earning a Bachelor’s degree in Management. While in Athens, he met his wife of 54 years, Nancy Carroll Nichols. He was introduced to Nancy by his friend Don Clement, another East Fannin graduate and charter member of the Fannin County Sports Hall of Fame Board. Chip worked with the US Department of Agriculture as a District Director in Commerce, Georgia for 40 years. He and Nancy continue to call Commerce home. Nancy holds a Master’s degree from UGA and was an educator for 30 years. They have two grown children, Brent and Ashley, and five grandchildren. Chip and Nancy love spending time with their children and grandchildren and are avid Georgia Bulldog football fans. They also enjoy travelling and Chip can boast of having visited all 50 states and several foreign countries.