Big Alabama Football Fan by Dan Hall
Posted by Pete | Posted in News | Posted on 13-01-2016
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Big Alabama Football Fan
I was watching Alabama play in the national championship game Monday night and got to thinking about one of the biggest Alabama football fan I grew up with, Pop loved the Tide. He talked about listening to the 1925 & 1926 Rose Bowl games on the radio & then going to Tuscaloosa to see them get off the train after winning the National Championship games. He talked about listening when Johnny Mack Brown made that great catch in the 1931 Rose Bowl. I guess between him and my uncles Sam & Pete, they are the reasons I love football & specially ALABAMA football so much.
Back in the early 1960’s Alabama football was not on the TV every weekend, maybe once or twice a year. But they were on the radio, and at the time the best radio Pop had was in the car, so he and I would get in and listen ( him letting me start it up very 15 to 20 minutes to keep the battery charged) to the Tide Roll. Now Pop loved Bama winning but he didn’t like for Bama to lose, as none of Bear Bryant’s teams didn’t lose many times. If Alabama did get behind, Pop would get out of the car saying something about Bear Bryant needing to do better. He would be gone about 15 minutes, come by and ask me ” how they doing now ?”, if we were still losing he would leave again, only to come back again in another 15 to 20 minutes. But if they were back ahead or driving for a score, he would get back in the car to listen some more. We talked a lot listening to those games, about many things but mostly football, Alabama Football. I really enjoyed listening to those games with him, and watching one on TV was great, he would talk to the coaches & players about what he thought they needed to be doing.
He would love it now that they are on TV every week, and the way Coach Saban has them winning games and National Championships.
Pop got to listen to or see the first 12 of Alabama 16 national championships……
He loved football, Pickens County High School football and Alabama football. He saw his brother-in-laws, sons, nephews, and grandson play for the Tornadoes. I don’t know about the earlier games, but Uncle Pete’s and my games at PCHS, he was always standing by the fence in the north end zone. I bet at the other games he was in that spot.
And yes, Uncle Pete I was young but I remember going to your games at PCHS…”.
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That’s a good story, Danny. I enjoyed it very much.
Thanks Sandra…I though so too..
You’re right, Danny! Uncle Web was a big Alabama and Tornado fan. I remember him listening to many a game on his car radio down at the bottom of the hill. I also remember him in the north end zone with the other men puffing on their favorite smoking tobacco and rooting (and tooting) for the Tornados. On many a cold night when very little wind to blow the cloud of tobacco smoke away, the cloud of smoke would be just about as thick as the football bull that was floating in the air with very little space for a little tyke like me to squeeze up to the fence in an effort to try to see what was going on. Now, after these many years, I don’t remember the names of all the men who occupied the end zone, but I do remember Uncle Web and my Dad. Occasionally, Uncle Buck would be there. Oh Yeah, there was always Mr. Spruill, Don’s Dad, who would always be there after he was done collecting the tickets and mentally counting his money that he (PCHS) would receive from the game. I remember standing at the fence with Glendon (Mary Belle’s brother) at one game. I believe that the Tornados were playing York, and the Tornados were losing. Glendon kept saying, “Just wait until I am old enough to get out there to play. The score will be different.” I don’t know if Glendon really made that much difference when he did get there, but he did have heart. By the way, this game against York was the game that my brother, Cecil, and Bobby Moss (the two half backs for the Tornados) were catching a fourth down kicked ball after kicked ball and being immediately racked by a gang of big York players without ever missing their catch or dropping the ball a time. I really felt for Cecil and Bobby that night. They didn’t win the game, but they kept the score from being as lopsided as it would otherwise have been.
There were several great players that have run up and down that field. They were many players that gave the game all they had on that field learning how to win and lose and learning good sportsmanship…Learning that winning and losing has a price but a price that all those guys were willing to pay. They are still there, by the way. All good men …thank you for your comment. Pete
I found out this passed weekend that Pop also saw a great grandson play for the Tornadoes, my nephew David McGarity. I remember going over to watch David play and standing in the north end zone like Pop did…..
I think it was 1988 or 1989 Donna Hester Rodgers husband Donnie was the head football coach at
Gordo High school and my Robert Hall was playing for Tucsaloosa County High, the first game for both teams that year was at Tuscaloosa County, so I called Pop to see if he wanted to come over to see the game if I come and got him and would take him back home after. He did, and I think he really enjoyed it… But he set with us, you could stand in the south end zone at County high but it wouldn’t have been the same.
Nephew, I would have been surprised if Pop had turned you down on that offer. He did like his football, especially if kinfolks were playing. Who won? Uncle
Uncle,
Tuscaloosa County did but as I remember it was a very good game. County high had a much larger team than Gordo…..
It has been a few years since I was around during football season, but when I was, Gordo was always pretty tough…