New Fairley basketball coach Steve Terrell keeping cousin Desmond Merriweather's legacy alive

Shortly before Desmond Merriweather died from colon cancer in 2015, the state championship basketball coach whispered something to his younger cousin Steve Terrell.

Terrell was confused at first but the words have since filled him with an unwavering resolve.

"His last words to me were, 'You, me,'" said Terrell, who was named Fairley boys basketball coach this summer. "I didn't know what he was trying to say at the time because it wasn't clear. But as time passed, I realized he was saying I'm the new him and I gotta continue saving these kids."

Merriweather, 41, was a three-time state championship coach at Lester Middle School who went on to coach at East High School.

Terrell always tried to follow his older cousin and was Lester's coach from 2015-22, winning two state championships.

"Dez was everyone's big brother," Merriweather's mother, Nadolyn Smith, said. "Steve followed Desmond's steps."

Just as Merriweather changed the lives in Binghampton through basketball, Terrell hopes to do the same for a Fairley program that last won a state title in 1993.

Passing the coaching torch

In the summer of 2014, Merriweather was running late to coach his son Nick's team in a local tournament. He called Terrell for a favor.

"I ain't gonna make it, coach them for me," Terrell recalls Merriweather saying. "It was fun because they were already good. I (realized) I can actually do this."

Terrell cites his cousin's death as the moment he began taking coaching seriously. It inspired him to start the Team Dez youth basketball organization. Terrell's success with Team Dez helped him land the job at Lester.

Penny Hardaway was a childhood friend of Merriweather and coached with him at Lester and East, eventually taking over as East's coach. Hardaway advised Terrell through his early days at Lester.

"Everything I do, I do it for Dez," said Terrell, who spent the last two seasons as an assistant at Power Center Academy. "A lot of that stuff that happened with basketball wouldn't have happened if it weren't for him."

At Fairley, Terrell is looking to shift the culture, all while keeping Merriweather's memory alive.

"I'm trying to build a program with structure. (Fairley) was 5-21 last season, but I guarantee we will have the complete opposite record this year," Terrell said. "I wish (Merriweather) would have been able to see my success. He definitely would have told me to take this opportunity and succeed."

Wendell Shepherd Jr. is the high school sports beat writer for The Commercial Appeal. Contact Wendell at wendell.shepherd@commercialappeal.com . Follow Wendell on X, formerly known as Twitter, @wendellsjr_.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: New Fairley basketball coach Steve Terrell keeping cousin Desmond Merriweather's legacy alive