Lastingers vision was to bring the two fan bases together all week long for community-wide events. 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. You also talk about the other coaches at Valdosta, especially offensive coordinator Joe Wilson, who later became Lowndes head coach and led the Vikings to a 1980 state title, and Jack Rudolph, Valdostas longtime defensive mastermind [and father of Georgia Tech and NFL player Coleman Rudolph]. 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. He was the quarterback for the Georgia Bulldogs in 1980, when the team went 12-0, and, after beating Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl, was named the consensus national champion. Read, watch, and listen to the latest news and opinions in the high school sports world. This record stood for 29 years. That was Lowndes first win ever against Valdosta, whose quarterback was Buck Belue, the future University of Georgia star. Lowndes and Valdosta fans certainly embraced the Winnersville rivalry, showing their love for the home team and their disdain for the other side. The Valdosta High class of '78 alumni are listed below. But I never in any way committed to them.. Its been written and put away for five years, then re-written and put away for 10 years and then re-written again. These two Wildcat backers agree on their most memorable moment: The Comeback.. GHSF Daily recently named him the best player in Thomasville High history, and the AJC in 2007 ranked him the No. His 1971 state-record 21 receiving touchdowns stood until 2010. One of the motivations for doing the book was to talk about Valdosta High School and the football program through the years, and Ive had so many people, whether theyre Bulldog fans or not, ask questions about how Valdosta won all those games. After the game, Joe Wilson told me, Baker, as John Bond was running down the sideline, I came real close to sticking my foot out and tripping him, but I changed my mind.. It was WWII. Valdosta is a city in and the county seat of Lowndes County, Georgia, United States.As of 2019, Valdosta had an estimated population of 56,457. VALDOSTA Buck Belue starred at quarterback for Valdosta High years before the teams current players were even born. We have estimated Buck Belue's net worth, money, salary, income, and assets. Scott. At quarterback, its about being a leader, and being a field general. 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]. 2. Joe told Martin, Ill give you three reasons: One, Ill give you a winning season, which youve never had. The Georgia High School Association has levied a $7,500 fine against Valdosta High School, ordered the Wildcats to forfeit seven victories from the 2020 football season, banned the team from . There was still a chance for the Vikings if they could return the kickoff, but they never got the chance. Simmons, a defensive lineman and tight end, was the AJCs Class 3A Lineman of the Year and a Coach Athlete All-American and Joe Namath All-American. We worked a lot on fundamentals. The signing will be held at the Salty Snapper, located at 1405 Gornto Road in Valdosta, from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Belue will also be speaking to all in attendance, discussing details about the book starting . @680TheFan. Owen Prince, Lowndes County Schools director of information and athletic business, and a graduate of Lowndes High School, recalled what led to Wilsons unhappiness at Valdosta. Chuck Knoll's Steelers were champions and as. As for the Dooley thing, Belue makes no apologies. With Coach Hyder, you just couldnt imagine anyone working harder than him to be successful. It doesnt get better than that. Buck Belue 0:00 0:32 The "best team ever" conversation is an interesting one. I admired these athletes. He played nine NFL seasons, made two Pro Bowls and finished with more than 18,000 all-purpose yards. Belue quarterbacked the Bulldogs to a 12-0 record in 1980, culminating with a 17-10 win over Notre Dame Jan. 1, 1981 in the Sugar Bowl. It was fun to finally get it all down on paper, Belue said of the writing process. Facebook gives people the power to share and makes the world more open and connected. He was the quarterback for the Georgia Bulldogs in 1980, when the team went 12-0, and, after beating Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl, was named the consensus national champion. What are your thoughts on making the Georgia High School Football Hall of Fame? Well, the only thing that went crazy was the mule. We just rolled with it and said the timing is the timing. The most improbable win for either team was this one, with Valdosta overcoming a 17-7 deficit in just 1:14 to win the Winnersville Classic over Lowndes. Occasionally, however, things got a little out of control. They were very different. Last season, he was backup to another Valdosta alumnus, All-Southeastern. What is your favorite part of The Valdosta Daily Times? 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. Washington High in Massillon, Ohio, is 612-158-35 since 1894. 5,214 - Buck Belue . During the banquet, Valdosta police would bring in a black wreath that said, Death to the Wildcats from the Lowndes High Vikings, McGuyrt recalled. He's the host of the Buck Belue Show on Atlanta sports radio's 680 The Fan every weekend from 10:00 a.m. Partly cloudy skies this morning will become overcast during the afternoon. Ben Belue, 71, of Valdosta was a devoted family man and lifetime sales executive, born in Anniston, Ala. on Nov. 28, 1940 and raised in Macon, Ga. where he attended Lanier High School. ], 6. 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. BUCK BELUE Belue, Benjamin Franklin Height: 6-1 Weight: 190 Born: December 12, 1959 Macon, GA High School: Valdosta (GA) Belue devotes several chapters to his high school days pursuing state championships under coach Nick Hyder. Created by Ellen Kennerly Made with Squarespace, 2022 Georgia High School Football Daily. As a Johnson County senior in 1979, Walker rushed for a state-record 3,167 yards and 45 touchdowns and led the Trojans to the Class A championship. Oh yeah, they had a bounty out for Bucks jersey, Baker said. It was pretty good, Johnson said. ], 4. Bazemore watched you play in youth ball and suggested to the coaches that they move you to quarterback. I had other friends there, too, just like they did that day in that room. GO CATS! Thats when I figured it was time to go., 3. On their annual Fourth of July vacation to Florida last week, the Belues made stops at the Marshside Grill in Brunswick and the Coachs Corner in Savannah to peddle books. The following year, he put up a career-best 714 rushing yards. 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. Since it started playing football in 1913, Valdosta has won 612 games and lost 129, with 33 ties. Four other ex-Georgia players helped Belue at the camp. The current Winnersville series record stands at 36 wins for Valdosta and 24 for Lowndes heading into the 2022 season. [Rome, a 6-foot-4 tight end, set a national record for receiving yards in a season. They put it on us my freshman year. I talked with Coach [Jim] Hughes about that later. Its something were going to build on. We were playing old youth league football at 9, 10, 11 years old, and were playing at about 8 in the morning, and if you look back in the stands, youd usually see Coach Bazemore watching the games. Youd see him around town and stop and go wow. Youd be in awe. The Georgia High School Association has levied a $7,500 fine against Valdosta High School, ordered the Wildcats to forfeit seven victories from the 2020 football season . I remember Stanley Bounds. Sports Illustrated said last fall . 1. We were in position to win the national championship and he is about to jump to our rival? How did Bazemore make a quarterback out of you? Belue played one more season at Georgia, leading the Bulldogs to a 10-2 record the following year while engineering an offense that averaged 31 points per game, the ninth most in the country in 1981. So, we brought the mule out, with Freddie riding the thing, and that mule started out toward midfield just as we had practiced, but then the crowd roared, and it scared the poor mule so much that he just stopped in his tracks and Freddie went flying off over the front of it., That mule then took off, without Freddie to guide him, straight towards the Valdosta sideline, Prince said. Belue, who lives in Forsyth County, currently hosts the Buck Belue Show on 680 The Fan. Benjamin Franklin "Buck" Belue played American football and baseball at the University of Georgia from 1978 to 1981. He will be inducted with Belue in October. Buck Belue - Player Card Home >> Minor League Baseball College Baseball High School Baseball Boxscores and Analysis Other Topics Minor Leagues >> Minor League Players Minor League Teams Affiliate History Minor Leagues Minor Leagues by Season Independent Baseball Leagues Prospects Minor League Awards Minor League People Minor League Transactions 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. I just think of all the people that helped me get there, as I mentioned, Coach Bazemore, Coach Hyder, Coach Wilson, Coach Rudolph. [7], Since 2000, Belue has been a sports radio host with WCNN in Atlanta, Georgia. Even on a business trip in a remote Caribbean country, it followed the former. William Andrews was the leading rusher for Thomasvilles consecutive state champions in 1973 and 1974. Oscar universe belongs to 'Everything Everywhere'. One of the key plays in the 1980 season was a 93-yard touchdown pass from Belue to wide receiver Lindsay Scott[1] Belue was kidded about Valdosta falling to Clarke Central in the 1977 Class 4A state finals. There was some of that thought process going on. What are your thoughts on making the Georgia High School Football Hall of Fame? 1. 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. Two, Ill beat Valdosta, which youve never done. We learned a lot. Buck goes shopping with his daughter at the Braves Store in SunTrust Park.It is obvious they are not on the same page when it comes to jersey shopping.. Like those Thomasville players [during 1973 and 1974 state championship seasons]. 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. Low around 65F. The Valdosta Wildcats are undoubtedly one of America's most successful high school football teams, with more than 900 victories, two dozen state titles and its star players seemingly on a. Those were the low-key celebrations of Winnersville. Henderson said neighborhood residents called the police, who came over to the Valdosta fields where he and other fans were watching practice. They were very different. "We just love it. The coach it was John Lastingers dad, as a matter of fact they installed this tight end-around pass, and I ended up leading the league in passing. [John Lastinger followed Belue as the starting quarterback at Valdosta and at Georgia. So, I felt like I needed to respect (Auburn) by taking a look at it. Lowndes athletic director Danny Redshaw said things have calmed down considerably between the two sides today, but there was a time when the Winnersville Classic put both Lowndes and Valdosta on high alert. Lastinger decided he wanted to make the annual football game more of a community-wide event and celebration, so beginning with the 1981 Valdosta vs. Lowndes game, he called it The Winnersville Classic. What had been just a game between the two local schools would become a week-long celebration involving the community, fans, players, and coaches, and the game would never be the same again. [5] Belue also played during the 1984 and 1985 seasons at quarterback for the Jacksonville Bulls of the USFL. No question about it.. The Saints drafted Rogers in 1981, making him the first Georgia-grown player selected first overall in an NFL Draft. Host of Buck's Beat podcast. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. And I have so many great memories of him taking time to help coach me up. Sorry, there are no recent results for popular commented articles. Reid is forever known for The Run against Valdosta in the 2007 game. In the 2011 game, Lowndes was leading 17-7, and with only 1:14 remaining in the game, looked like they were on their way to their eighth straight win in the Winnersville Classic. I definitely wanted to share the Valdosta experience because Ive had thousands of people ask me over the years, What was the secret to Valdosta winning all those games all those years? Belue said. She finally came in and dumped it on his lap. I was blessed with this great coaching. [Belue passed for a state-record 5,214 yards and won two region titles in his four Valdosta seasons. Buck Belue, right, and Lindsey Scott, second from left, with Valdosta High football quarterbacks Michael Turner, left, and Alfrie Johnson, second from right, during the camp at Valdosta High School Friday morning. Rome talked about playing for the legendary Wright Bazemore. He played at 6 feet, 2 inches, and 240 pounds but was exceptionally fast. He also added 1,487 rushing yards and . Belue also details in the book how he. I appreciate these guys taking time out of their busy schedules to come out here and work with these players, Belue said. Also, I was motivated by writing about the 1980 season and about the guys that never got the credit. First Amendment: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. Then in July 2021, Hutson Mason became one of five co-hosts of The Locker Room, leaving Belue with his own show called The Buck Belue Show on WCNN. Rogers was among three Georgians named to the 1976 Coach & Athlete All-America team. When Buck finished his career he was the state's all-time passing leader with 5,214 yards. So, thats up front in the book. He is from American. Credit: Photo by Chris McShane (provided by Buck Belue). It includes Brooks County to the west.. Valdosta is the home of Valdosta State University, a regional university in the University . Belue also details in the book how he balanced his baseball pursuits while competing to be the starting quarterback on a team that won back-to-back SEC championships. Our maintenance folks earned their pay that week.. A defibrillator is a device used to treat a person who has suddenly gone into cardiac arrest, and possibly save their life. Its a good feeling knowing you represent Valdosta. In 1979, Walker was the AJC Class A Back of the Year, a Parade All-American, a Coach & Athlete All-American and the No. Former Valdosta assistant coach Jerry Don Baker, who played at Valdosta in the 60s and coached at Valdosta from 1976-2006, said he was there when Wilson told Valdosta he was leaving. He was the first 4 year starter at Quarterback at Valdosta High school. That still sort of haunts me even today., 7. "So most days, at the end of the day, I would just jot down some notes from the day. Before he was an All-SEC running back at Auburn and played 13 NFL seasons, James Brooks led Warner Robins to a 1976 Class 3A championship and a National Sports News Service (NSNS) national title. Sign up for our email newsletter. The runner-up was Herschel Walker, then a sophomore. Joe Wilson had accomplished two of his three goals. If you are a Valdosta alumn, we encourage you to register and be sure to sign up for the alumni newsletter. Hyder became head coach your freshman year. $1 Million - $5 Million. Valdosta, Georgia is called Title Town, USA because they have won more high school football games and titles than anyone else. Belue is widely considered one of the best quarterbacks in Valdosta history. Register Batting Valdosta High School is the most successful High School football program in the country. Those who were part of the game shared the plays and players they remember the most. He fell short of a state title when Clarke Central beat Valdosta 16-14 in the 1977 Class 3A championship. Between plays, we would stand there and listen to Coach Rudolph break down the responsibilities of each defensive player for the play we just ran. I've had these friends that have said, 'You're crazy releasing the book now, right after the '21 team.' Andrews was named to four Pro Bowls and earned two second-team All-Pro selections. All but Scott are former Valdosta players. Your high school friends are looking for you! Billy Henderson [Clarke Centrals coach] called three straight timeouts and iced the kicker. Salary in 2020. [2] Belue was named captain of the 1981 team. So, Joe sits down with Martin and Sonny asks him, Joe, why should I hire you? Prince said. The problem was the plane didnt get low enough, and the wind blew the flyers all over the neighborhood next to the practice field.. We had weight limits, and if you weighed a certain amount, you couldnt play in the backfield, and I was a bigger kid then. I just wanted to be real with that, Belue said. 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. Former UGA quarterback Buck Belue authors book on 1980 championship season, Online archive of print stories 2006-present, Pick em 2022 Forsyth Sports football picks, Football: Forsyth County News Media Day-watch the videos. 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