Our List of Esteemed
Guest Speakers
Throughout the Years
Celebrating Sports Fellowship,
Spirit, and Community Pride
Nov. 29, 2010 Meeting
Guest Speaker
Coach Ray Perkins
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Ray Perkins was born in Petal, Mississippi. He attended the University of Alabama, playing football 1964–1966. He played for the legendary coach Bear Bryant and was a teammate of Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback Joe Namath. The Crimson Tide won national championships in both 1964 and 1965, and Southeastern Conference championships in 1964, 1965, and 1966. During his senior year, he was named team captain. He was also selected as an All-American in 1966.
He played for the National Football League's Baltimore Colts as a wide receiver from 1967–1971, under coach Don Shula. Perkins caught a 68-yard touchdown pass from Johnny Unitas in the 1970 AFC Championship Game to lead the Colts to a 27–17 victory over the Oakland Raiders and a berth in Super Bowl V.
September 26, 2011 Meeting
Guest Speaker
Former Auburn Head
FootballCoach, Doug Barfield
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Doug Barfield coached at Auburn University from 1972-1980, where he served as Head Freshman Coach, Offensive Coordinator, and Head Coach with a record of 29-25-1. Doug served as Head Football Coach and Athletic Director at UMS-Wright, Andalusia, Hillcrest of Evergreen, and Opelika High School with a combined record of 88-29-1. Doug was also an assistant coach and offensive coordinator at the University of Southern Mississippi and Clemson during his career.
September 12, 2011 Meeting
Guest Speaker
Sports Radio Personality
Max Howell
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Before getting into radio, Max Howell spent years on the football field. He played at Troy State in 1961-62, coached safeties at Florida State in 1987-88 and was recruiting coordinator under Billy Brewer at Ole Miss in 1989-90.
Howell also was an offensive assistant at Escambia High in Pensacola, Fla., where he coached tailback Emmitt Smith.
Additional Links of interest:
August 29, 2011 Meeting
Guest Speaker
USA-Coach Joey Jones
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When University of South Alabama Director of Athletics, Joe Gottfried, and the head coach search committee laid out their list of qualifications, three main things came to mind. They wanted to find someone with collegiate experience, someone with ties to Alabama and the Mobile area and someone with the youthful energy needed to start a program from scratch. As the process continued further and further along, one name continued to rise back to the top.
That name was Joey Jones.
Additional Links of interest:
October 10, 2011 Meeting
Guest Speaker-Roger Shultz
4-year starter at Alabama
& Biggest Loser Contestant
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In April 2008, Roger Shultz walked away from the Finale of NBC’s hit show Biggest Loser Couples a Winner. The prize money he won as the runner up was nice but what he really gained back was his health. “$250,000 prize money isn’t life changing, what is life changing is having my health back”. Roger was diagnosed as Type II diabetic on his 37th birthday; he had struggled to keep his weight down after his All-American playing days at the University of Alabama.
Links of interest: www.RogerShultz.com
Thank You!
To all our great speakers for the 2011 season!
Aug 29--Coach Joey Jones, University of South Alabama Head FB Coach
Sep 12--Max Howell-Radio sports talk show legend and former football coach.
Sep 26--Coach Doug Barfield-Former Head Football Coach-Auburn University
Oct 10--Roger Shultz--former Univ of Alabama player and coach.
Oct 24--Jackie Sherrill--Former Alabama player & Head Football Coach at Miss. State
Nov 7-- Inky Johnson-former UT football player "An Amazing Story of Faith and Perseverance."
Nov 21-- Dr Gaylon McCollough: Coach Paul “Bear” Bryant:
Grandmaster of Mind Over Matter
Jan 23, 2012-- Coach Larry Blakeney--Head Football Coach-Troy University.
October 24, 2011 Meeting
Guest Speaker-Jackie Sherrill
Former Alabama player and
Mississippi State Head Coach
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Jackie Sherrill is a former Alabama football player. He served as the head coach at Washington State University (1976), the University of Pittsburgh (1977–1981), Texas A&M University (1982–1988), and Mississippi State University (1991–2003), compiling a career college football record of 180–120–4. Sherrill is currently a studio analyst for Fox Sports Net.
Sherrill played football at the University of Alabama under Bear Bryant from 1962 to 1965, helping the Crimson Tide win two national championships.
November 7th, 2011 Meeting
Guest Speaker-Inky Johnson
"An Amazing Story of
Faith and Perserverance"
Inky Johnson
In short, this wasn’t his plan.
For former University of Tennessee football player Inquoris “Inky” Johnson, a promising career with the Vols seemed to point towards the possibility of being drafted into the National Football League. However, an injury on the field during his junior year in 2006 left his right arm completely paralyzed, ending all hopes of professional play.
But then again, according to Johnson, this was God’s plan for his life. Instead of an NFL career, last October Johnson become the sports and health coordinator for JustLead, the flagship program of Emerald Youth Foundation, a nonprofit ministry for youth in inner-city Knoxville.
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Dr. Gaylon McCollough
November 21st, 2011 Meeting
Guest Speaker
Dr. Gaylon McCollough
A Portrait Of
Coach Paul "Bear" Bryant:
Grandmaster of Mind Over Matter
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While he was coach at the University of Alabama, winning championships, setting records, turning out All-Americans, and preparing assistant coaches to become head coaches, a frequently asked question posed to Coach Paul "Bear" Bryant by sports writers was: "What is the secret to your success?"
The coach's pat answer was: "If I knew, I sure wouldn't tell you."
So, who did the coach share his innermost thoughts with? The answer is: the people he trusted most--his inner circle, one of which was a former student, E. Gaylon McCollough, an Academic All-American Center on Coach Bryant's 1964 National Championship team.
In his insightful book, THE LONG SHADOW OF COACH PAUL "BEAR" BRYANT, Dr. McCollough shares with the readers a never-before-revealed portrayal of the legend whose mystical aura continues to be felt throughout the American football world...thirty years after he was laid to rest.
More importantly, Dr. McCollough's book--and presentations related thereunto--demonstrate why Coach Bryant was the Grandmaster of Mind over Matter and how the lessons he taught--and lived by--can be used to achieve success in any arena or endeavor.
Coach Larry Blakeney
January 23rd, 2012 Meeting
Guest Speaker
Larry Blakeney
Head Coach of
Troy University
Our 2011 GCAC Guest Speakers
Coach Blakeney is currently in his 21st season as Troy's head football coach and is the most successful coach in the history of Troy. His stint there is the 3rd longest uninterrupted tenure among active head coaches in college football. His tenure at Troy University has been nothing less than remarkable. During his 20 years, he has led the Trojans to a 161-82-1 record, posting the third-best winning percentage among all programs in the state of Alabama during that span.
As the school’s longest-serving and most successful head coach of all time, Blakeney led the Troy football program to an unequaled run of success that has taken the Trojans from Division II to the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) and now to the grandest stage of all, the Football Bowl
Subdivision (FBS).
Coach Blakeney has guided the Trojans to 15 winning seasons, including six seasons of 10 wins or more and he currently stands fourth among all college coaches to have manned a sideline in the state of Alabama with 161 victories.
Throughout his career, Blakeney has been recognized by his peers, by the people he has worked for and with, and by the sporting community at large. He has been named to four separate Halls of Fame including the prestigious Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in 2009, was the recipient of the Johnny Vaught Lifetime Achievement Award by the All-American Football Foundation in 2000, has been named Coach of the Year on numerous occasions and he gives generously of his time to almost any group or organization who asks for it.
This past spring, Blakeney was awarded with the ultimate honor - the playing surface at the university’s home stadium was to be named after the legendary head coach. The home field at Troy University will now and forever be known as Larry Blakeney Field at Veterans Memorial Stadium
