He was going to youth league programs, scouting the local talent. We had weight limits, and if you weighed a certain amount, you couldnt play in the backfield, and I was a bigger kid then. Who are some of the great players you saw from your era or before? 2. He was the quarterback, and he went to Ole Miss. What do most people want to talk to you about at these book signings? Chuck Knoll's Steelers were champions and as. He is from American. The first time was when Bazemore retired, and they hired Charlie Green. VALDOSTA Buck Belue starred at quarterback for Valdosta High years before the team's current players were even born. The book has not been life-altering for Belue. I was always a fan of the top players and programs and curious about the way they did it, what scheme they were running. He will be inducted with Belue in October. He was the best in the business. Georgia legend Buck Belue helped lead the Bulldogs to the 1980 national championship and has published a book called " 'Inside the Hedges: The Quarterback's Journey to the 1980 National Championship." Schools . As for the Dooley thing, Belue makes no apologies. He set other state records in high school football that lasted decades, including the single-season receiving record of 1,573 yards as a sophomore in 1971. Like those Thomasville players [during 1973 and 1974 state championship seasons]. Lowndes and Valdosta fans certainly embraced the Winnersville rivalry, showing their love for the home team and their disdain for the other side. What do you get when you combine the winningest high school football program in the country with one of the most consistently winning football programs in the state over the last three decades? Hundreds of people turned out at the The Salty Snapper, including former Valdosta High classmates and UGA teammates. Also, I was motivated by writing about the 1980 season and about the guys that never got the credit. He had everybody running the same offense so that by time you got to middle school and high school, you didnt have to learn any of it. Brooks rushed for 1,816 yards as a senior, 1,852 yards as a junior and 1,088 as a sophomore. The dream was to wear that Valdosta uniform and do like every other graduate that came through, and that was win a state championship, and we played Clarke Central in Athens and lost 16-14. There is no denying that Rush Propst as a football coach, is as good as they come for on-field success. At Valdosta, you were heavily influenced by the legendary head coaches Wright Bazemore (1941-42, 1946-71) and Nick Hyder (1973-95). He sort of chuckled and said there was a lot of built-up frustration over those years of losing to Valdosta, Dont take it personally is what I believe he said., 5. It was infuriating.. He is currently co-founder and editor of Georgia High School Football Daily. Guy Belue is on Facebook. Furious, actually. Hyder, a devout Christian, brought fans and players from both teams together for an FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes) banquet on Thursday night prior to the big game, allowing the two sides to fellowship over dinner. He hasnt given up his day job, which is to conduct a daily sports-talk show on Atlanta radio station The Fan. Heads up to Atlanta area high school quarterbacks and receivers: I'll be hosting my annual QB Passing Camp this July, again. Generally, they build in signings around their everyday lives. Brooks finished with 7,962 rushing yards and 3,621 receiving yards in his NFL career and was named to the Bengals 40th Anniversary team in 2007. Following a Lowndes punt, Valdosta took possession around midfield. I talked with Coach [Jim] Hughes about that later. You need to watch him tonight, and he put on one of the most memorable performances I can remember seeing. He played both football and basketball at Clemson and was a three-year starter on the hardwood. His three children range in age from 8 to 11. Youd see him around town and stop and go wow. Youd be in awe. Im just humbled really by it all, just thankful that I was working alongside those coaches and teammates, without whom I wouldnt be able to enjoy something like this. His next signings currently are planned for July 22 (6-8 p.m.) at Padriacs in Vinings and July 24 (4-6 p.m.) at Rosatis Sports Pub in Belues current hometown of Cumming. I enjoyed it. We spent so many Friday nights at Cleveland Field, or Bazemore-Hyder Stadium as they call it now, watching them win big. How would you contrast and compare those iconic coaches? Their entire sideline of players and coaches tried to climb the wall to get into the stands, and some just took off running towards the opposite end of the stadium.. Sports Illustrated said last fall . Holcomb oversees the Wildcat Football Museum and sits on the Board of Directors for the Valdosta Touchdown Club. In practice, it was always the 1s against the 1s. We would have to hire extra security guards for the entire week of the game, starting on Sunday night, and it would last all week long until the game was over, Redshaw said. Defensive coordinator Erk Russell. Belue also presented a defibrillator to the school Friday. Most coaches are going to take their schemes to the grave, but he learned the new offense and made the change for the team. Latest: Gallery: Buck Belue book signing at Coach's Corner Four other ex-Georgia players helped Belue at the camp. Belue was atUniversities Forever in Cumming on Saturdayto promote his book,'Inside the Hedges: The Quarterback's Journey to the 1980 National Championship,' a project that was decades in the making. I hope that will help them this season. He was the 1977 AJC Class 3A back of the year. "I got to work last year on it, before the football season started," Belue said. 25 Georgia high school player of all-time. Rogers was the Wildcats team manager in 1994 and a top Wildcat supporter. 31. I host The Buck Belue Show on 680 The Fan Atlanta, weekdays 10-11. Jun. He also became the first active player at South Carolina to have his jersey retired, No. Thats when I figured it was time to go., 3. What was the most memorable high school game that you played? Hyder became head coach your freshman year. Around that same time, Prince recalled: In the mid-70s, a Lowndes student went to Cleveland Field and attached a Lowndes Vikings flag and hoisted it up to the top, but he wasnt finished. Today's interviewee is Buck Belue, sports talk show host for 680 The Fan, quarterback for Georgia's 1980 national championship team, four-year starting quarterback at Valdosta, inaugural. So the Viking flag flew high and proud over the Valdosta stadium property, for at least a little while.. [3], Belue also lettered in baseball all four years at Georgia. Washington High in Massillon, Ohio, is 612-158-35 since 1894. The Georgia football team had just put a bow on an undefeated regular season with a resounding 38-20 win over Georgia Tech in 1980 when the players awoke the following morning to news that coach Vince Dooley reportedly was leaving to become coach and athletic director at Auburn. The first time I played quarterback was in the eighth grade. He came in from West Rome with the idea of running the wishbone like he was doing in Rome, and I was coming over for spring football as an eighth grader, and it wasnt a couple of months later we were back for preseason practice, and he was totally shifted to the Bazemore offense, as we called it. Nobody would have a better perspective from a players standpoint than Buck as the quarterback of that team.. Feb. 25, 2021 -. Its an oral history that will never die in fact, it just keeps growing, year after year, down there in Winnersville. It was pretty good, Johnson said. This is the story of the Winnersville Classic, the annual showdown between Valdosta High School and Lowndes High School. The timing was awful, Buck Belue writes in his new book, Inside the Hedges. Most of the players thought it was a selfish move to even do an interview. They just had a huge impact in my career along with all those teammates I played with at Valdosta, many of them deserving of those kinds of honors. Mark Lemke joins me. That place [Lowndes home stadium] was rocking before the 77 game, but we had known after that 76 game that this game was going to be different, and it was.. Former Valdosta Wildcat quarterbacks Buck Belue, left, and John Lastinger, right, will join their coach, the late Nick Hyder, in the Valdosta High Sports Hall of Fame Thursday night.. Register Batting . His 37 career touchdowns are fourth all-time for the franchise. Coach Jerry Don Baker confirmed the rumor. Wilson had fulfilled his first promise to Martin: A winning season in his first try, something Lowndes had never before experienced. That term remained dormant until 1981, when Johnny B. Lastinger, a Valdosta High graduate and the executive vice-president of the Valdosta-Lowndes County Chamber of Commerce, decided to take advantage of the Winnersville designation. They were up 40-0 with 30 seconds left and still giving the ball to William Andrews. Belue also talked to all of the players about being positive influences and representing themselves and the Valdosta Wildcats well. The. Buck Belue is a 1978 graduate of Valdosta High School in Valdosta, GA. Sign up on Classmates for free to reconnect with Buck Belue and other high school alumni. Who are some of the great players you saw from your era or before? It was designed to look like it was coming from Lowndes fans. SPONSORED BY: Buck Belue - 1980 National Championship QB It was the last one. Seeing Andy Johnson in 1969 was one of my first recollections of high school football [at the 1969 Class 3A championship game between Athens and Valdosta at Cleveland Field]. "Twenty years we've been here. When I finally got a chance to talk to them, I told them I hoped theyd understand that the governor of Alabama, Fob James, was my roommate at Auburn and was involved in trying to persuade me. The players gathered together on the steps of the old McWhorter Hall athletic dormitory and seethed. 4 Georgia high school football player of all time. Three, Ill win a state championship, which youve never won. Joe Wilson accomplished all three within three years.. Despite having played each other since 1968, the Lowndes vs. Valdosta game didnt become the Winnersville Classic until 1981. It was a real mess, he said. In baseball, he had a career .356 batting average and became a second-round pick in the 1978 MLB Draft. Closed on Weekends. We were in an extra bedroom, and his wife came in a couple of times and told him dinner was ready. Ron Simmons was a monumental piece of Warner Robins state and National Sports News Service (NSNS) national championship team that went 13-0 and was considered by some the most dominant Georgia team in history. Whichever you prefer, this town has won a lot of high school football games over the years.Valdosta High School has 24 state titles to it's cred. In some cases, the insults would turn from verbal to something more physical. VALDOSTA Buck Belue starred at quarterback for Valdosta High years before the teams current players were even born. In football, Belue was named to the first-team All-SEC team in 1981. McGuyrt also emceed the FCA banquet that was held the Thursday before the big game. Tales like McGuyrts are part of a timeless record shared by Valdosta-area locals. Baker, who coached from 1976-2006, recalled showing up on Monday morning the week of the Lowndes game, year after year, to a Valdosta High campus awash in hundreds of rolls of toilet paper, and walls and windows painted with pro-Lowndes messages. It was good learning from their experiences. Former receiver Lindsey Scott, who lives in Valdosta, former linebacker Keith Middleton, a longtime Valdosta High assistant coach, and former quarterbacks John Lastinger and Greg Talley helped out. Its important to me to come back and pass that knowledge along. Netflix on Friday is premiering 'Titletown High,' a documentary series chronicling Valdosta (Ga.) High School's 2020 football season and Rush Propst, its controversial coach. . I knew coverage, I knew techniques, things that it seemed like these other quarterbacks didnt understand at the time. Andrews was named to four Pro Bowls and earned two second-team All-Pro selections. The Valdosta Wildcats have been playing football since 1913, and with over 900 wins, 24 state championships, six national championships, and a bunch of region titles, they remain the winningest high school football team in the country. Im glad he came here and did this for us. Benjamin Franklin "Buck" Belue played American football and baseball at the University of Georgia from 1978 to 1981. valdosta high school Fields Victoria Lane-Long Victor James Vivian Manghram Voncil Moss What is your favorite part of The Valdosta Daily Times? The Saints drafted Rogers in 1981, making him the first Georgia-grown player selected first overall in an NFL Draft. ], Then, Valdosta was really laying down the hammer in 1971 [winning a national championship in Coach Bazemores final season]. Larry Kinnebrewrushed for more than 1,000 yards as a fullback and was the dominant force defensively on East Romes 15-0 Class A champion that shut out nine opponents and held four others to seven points or less in 1977. He started in 78 out of 92 career games, made three Pro Bowls and was first-team All Pro once. Hes a very good coach, Belue said. They were very different. Sign up for our email newsletter. Rogers was the 1981 NFL Rookie of the Year. I just wanted to be real with that, Belue said. His 34 wins as Valdostas signal caller is a team record, and hes the programs only four-year starter (1974-77). Those were the low-key celebrations of Winnersville. He came through for me on that, which was huge.. The student then greased the entire flag pole from top to bottom, ensuring that it would not be very easy for Valdosta High maintenance to climb up to detach the Viking flag. Buck was a great quarterback for maybe the toughest high school program to play forthe Valdosta Wildcats. The Plowboys name would serve as a rally point of sorts for Lowndes, establishing and embracing their underdog status, especially against the football WIldcats. 2. On the next play, Wilkes found Sherrod Inman in the back of the end zone to cut the lead to 17-14. One of their defensive linemen, Charles Bergman, got hold of Bucks jersey at the sleeve, and ripped it right off his back, Lastinger said. It includes Brooks County to the west.. Valdosta is the home of Valdosta State University, a regional university in the University . Doug Henderson, whose sons Ashley, Justin, and Doug all played at Valdosta, recalled a prank in the mid-90s that was designed to fire up the Wildcat players. [Johnson scored on a 68-yard run on the final play of the first half, then threw a 28-yard TD pass and a two-point conversion in the final seconds for a 26-26 tie. A behind the curtain look at my story from Valdosta High through the University of Georgia. I dont blame the players for feeling that way, said Dooley, who will turn 90 in September. Former Georgia quarterback Buck Belue is no stranger to the radio. Since it started playing football in 1913, Valdosta has won 612 games and lost 129, with 33 ties. He was the most successful Lowndes coach against the Wildcats in the series. McPhersons own performance is one of the best among the head coaches in the Classic. In 2007, the AJC ranked him the No. And when he showed up Friday to host a camp, they came to the field excited to learn from him. That next morning, as Valdosta faculty, students, and parents begin arriving at the school, they saw the huge Viking ship floating in the pond in front of their school. In the spring of 1978, he won the Class A 100-yard dash in 10.02 seconds. Belue threw for 299 yards in his career, completing 37 of 68 passes with 3 touchdowns and 3 interceptions. Heset a Bengals record in 1984 with four rushing touchdowns in a game against the Houston Oilers. That was just heart-breaking. BUCK BELUE Belue, Benjamin Franklin Height: 6-1 Weight: 190 Born: December 12, 1959 Macon, GA High School: Valdosta (GA) Even though Valdosta and Lowndes High had been playing each other every year since 1968, it was becoming obvious to everyone, including Lastinger, that the game was becoming much more competitive, especially with the arrival of head coach Joe Wilson at Lowndes. Buck Belue net worth Feb, 2023 Buck Belue net worth 611 Thousand Millions of dollars 76% Net worth score Disclamer: Buck Belue net worth displayed here are calculated based on a combination social factors. Martin brought in Wilson for an interview after hearing that the coach was not exactly happy with the Wildcats at the time. He bypassed his senior season and went to the USFL and totaled 7,046 all-purpose yards and 61 touchdowns in three years. 38. John Lastinger remembers that game and the play. Buck Belue 0:00 0:32 The "best team ever" conversation is an interesting one. I just take it as a huge honor.. He also told them they have the talent to be a great football team, and said he was excited about the upcoming season, the first under new coach Rick Tomberlin. I just think of all the people that helped me get there, as I mentioned, Coach Bazemore, Coach Hyder, Coach Wilson, Coach Rudolph. Join Facebook to connect with Guy Belue and others you may know. He was the 24th overall pick in the 1981 NFL Draft by the San Diego Chargers, but his best seasons came in Cincinnati, where he was selected to the Pro Bowl four times (1986, 1988-1990). He is also the only quarterback to start all four years for the Valdosta Wildcats where he was inducted as a member of the Valdosta High School Hall of Fame in 2007.[10]. I grew up admiring most of those guys on the list we were voting on. Valdosta is the principal city of the Valdosta Metropolitan Statistical Area, which in 2021 had a population of 149,590. Want to get the content before anyone else? [7], Since 2000, Belue has been a sports radio host with WCNN in Atlanta, Georgia. 1. You have permission to edit this article. Don't miss this opportunity to learn from these Atlanta football players who have succeeded on every level! Valdosta High School is the most successful High School football program in the country. [Rome, a 6-foot-4 tight end, set a national record for receiving yards in a season. Lastingers vision was to bring the two fan bases together all week long for community-wide events. He rushed for 1,332 yards as a senior, when Duluth missed the playoffs despite finishing 8-1-1, and ran for 2,300 yards and 28 touchdowns as a junior on a state runner-up team. They put it on us my freshman year. That passage appears in Chapter 18 -- titled The Dooley Drama -- of the 199-page book. [8] Belue was also inducted into the Georgia-Florida Hall of Fame in 1996.[9]. Valdosta, Georgia is called Title Town, USA because they have won more high school football games and titles than anyone else. But part of Belue's focus in writing the book was shining a light on his hometown of Valdosta, as well as some of the lesser known players on Georgia's 1980 team. GO CATS! Belue devotes several chapters to his high school days pursuing state championships under coach Nick Hyder. So he came up with the name Plowboys. He and then-band director Billy Martin ordered straw hats with LHS Plowboys across the front, which the band wore during their halftime performance.. He was a country boy and proud of it. Thats when I figured it was time to go., 3. The class also includes two players that went to Valdosta High School (Rome and Belue), Avondale (Dudish and Kell), Warner Robins (Brooks and Simmons), Washington County (Spikes and Edwards) and Parkview (Francoeur and Stinchcomb) while 26 other high schools had one player represented. My thought was that they played in Albany last night and probably got in bed at 3 a.m., and hes up scouting out the talent in town. VALDOSTA, Ga. (WCTV) - The Valdosta High School football team has been hit with sanctions from the Georgia High School Association following an investigation into the program. It was the last one. Dooley stayed, Georgia went on complete the last perfect season in school history, and Belue and his coach are just fine. Belue, who lives in Forsyth County, currently hosts the Buck Belue Show on 680 The Fan. !"-Susan Wooten, 2022 CATS Winner This record was later broken by Aaron Murray's 98-yard touchdown pass to Reggie Davis in Georgia's victory over North Texas in 2013. In 1977, Wilsons second season, he made good on his assurance to Martin that he was finally going to beat Valdosta, and on his boast to Hyder that he was going to whip your [butt], by leading the Vikings to an incredible 7-2 win over the Wildcats in front of a frenzied Lowndes home crowd. Partly cloudy skies this morning will become overcast during the afternoon. Breaking down Vaughn Grissom trying to replace Dansby Swanson at shortstop. I just take it as a huge honor., Created by Ellen Kennerly Made with Squarespace, 2022 Georgia High School Football Daily. Joe had been passed over for the head coaching job at Valdosta twice, Prince said. ET. If you are a Valdosta alumn, we encourage you to register and be sure to sign up for the alumni newsletter. And I have so many great memories of him taking time to help coach me up. Then, with only 49 seconds remaining, Valdosta recovered Dale Kents onside kick and from the Valdosta 47-yard line, Wilkes lead his Wildcats down the field with another TD pass, this one to running back Avery Burney, to put Valdosta on top 21-17 and leave everyone in the stadium stunned. 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