Sep 29, 2016 | Women's Cross Country, Women's Track and Field
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After years away, the Tankersleys return to the Bluff City.
By: Jen Lawson
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*NOTE: This feature story on the Tankersleys -- Abigail and father, Mike -- first appeared in the Sept. 17 Memphis Tigers Football GameDay program (Memphis State Throwback Game).
Getting back to Memphis, Tenn., was a priority for cross country/track and field runner Abigail Tankersley.
It was where she was born. It was where her brother was going to school. Most importantly, it was where her family returned.
Abigail, one of 13 children, spent the vast majority of her childhood away from the 901 as her father, Mike Tankersley, spent his career in the U.S. Air Force. The Tankersleys found themselves as far north as Alaska and as far south as Texas before relocating back to the Bluff City last year.
Abigail attended high school in Texas and continued her education at the University of Alabama, where she ran cross country and track and field. After completing her bachelor's degree in just three years, Abigail had one goal in mind, and that was to make the next chapter in her life a permanent return to Memphis.
"I felt like, whatever it was, either graduate school or a job, I wanted to come back to Memphis," said Abigail. "It worked out last summer as I was accepted into graduate school, and I had the ability to run cross country and track. That was really special just because my brother, Stephen, was in his last year of undergrad, and we were able to be teammates for a season."
Very few student-athletes have the opportunity to be on the same team as their brother or sister. Then, to add that both parents were alums of that same university and that her dad was a football player at the school is its own kind of special story.
"There is something special about growing up and hear my dad talk about playing in college and knowing that both he and my mom went to school here," added Abigail.
Mike and Jessie Tankersley attended Memphis State University in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Prior to attending medical school at Memphis State, Mike competed on the football team for two seasons. Mike acquired several mentors who "took him under their wing" in his time with the Tigers, including special teams coach Murray Armstrong and VP of Student Affairs Dr. Don Carson. Mentors such as Armstrong and Carson allowed for his experience on the field and in the classroom to be as incredible as the one Abigail and Stephen are experiencing now.
Mike Tankersley during his Tigers football days.
"It was really special to be able to have another opportunity to run at the collegiate level again and to be able to run for a program like Memphis," added Abigail. "I've really enjoyed having the ability to represent the University of Memphis."
After returning to Tennessee, Mike has had the ability to make a similar impact for not only his family, but also for the Memphis community and future University of Memphis students.
"For me to be able to come back to my hometown and be able to take care of my community has been really special," said Mike.
The ability to impact students at the University comes next fall when a memorial scholarship in honor of Mike's older sister, Terry, will be available for juniors and seniors who want to pursue special education.
"That's been a great experience in working with the leadership at the University," said Mike.
Terry was born with a moderate intellectual disability and, with family playing such a key role in the Tankersley's lives, it is incredibly important to them that this memorial scholarship is coming to fruition.
The journey of the Tankersley family is far from finished as Abigail and Stephen are still completing graduate school at Memphis, and seven of the 13 kids have yet to go to college. But, coming back to Memphis was the key component in their lives.
"It was really important to be in the same city and close to my family," said Abigail. "I feel very blessed. I am close with all of my siblings, and we are a very tight-knit group."
