Celebrating Sports Fellowship,
Spirit, and Community Pride
Important Note: All those planning to attend the next meeting,
please RVSP to Taylor prior to the meeting night.
This will insure proper food coverage for the meeting.
Taylor: 251-981-2431 or taylor.means@gmail.com
Gulf Coast Athletic Club
2015 Scholarship Recipients
GCAC Donates $5,250
To Gulf Shores Middle School
The Gulf Shores Athletic Club presented the Gulf Shores Middle School football program with a check for $5,250.00 on Thursday, May 23rd.
Earlier Discussions with Head Football Coach Mel Stringfellow, revealed that the Gulf Shores Middle School football program was in dire need of
updated equipment, especially from a safety standpoint. As an example, Coach Stringfellow pointed out that all of their shoulder pads were in disrepair,
and were literally held together with string and tape.
The Gulf Coast Athletic Club made a decision to help. The donation from GCAC allows the school to purchase new shoulder pads for the entire team and help with the purchase of new uniforms.
This donation only helps Coach Stringfellow in his quest to update their equipment and the Gulf Coast Athletic Club would encourage other individuals or organizations to consider doing the same.
A strong Middle School program can do nothing but help the Gulf Shores High School Dolphins football program.
GCAC Donates $5,000
To Gulf Shores High School
Gulf Coast Athletic Club President, John McCormick, was pleased to surprise Athletic Director and Head Football Coach, Ben Blackmon, with a check for $5,000 at Monday nights meeting. The funds will be used to purchase a much needed endzone camera for filming each game and practices.
The portable unit is needed to replace the previous method of borrowing a bucket truck, that was able to pull up to the endzone and raise a volunteer high enough to record the games. New renovations at the football stadium do not allow for a truck to be used in the this same manner.
Coach Blackmon seemed genuinely surprised by the donation and thanked the club for the very generous contribution to the needs of the football team.
Coach Kevin Steele, later added that this is how communities can make a difference in not only how the teams can prosper, but how individuals can be benifited by these types of technologies as well, to further their goals and ambitions.
Welcome, Members & Guests!
We have a great 2015-16 speaker lineup to present below.
This looks to be a great GCAC season and we're glad to have you with us!
2015-16 Meeting Dates
Date Speaker Comments
8/31 Wimp Sanderson & Sonny Smith Alabama & Auburn Basketball Coaches
9/14 Danny Ford Former Arkansas & Clemson Head Football Coach
9/28 Billy Brewer Former Ole Miss Head Coach
10/12 Brodie Croyle Alabama Quarterback 2002-2005
10/19 Jerry Stovall LSU Head Coach 1980-1983
10/26 Johnny Majors Hall of Fame Coach at UT (77’-92’). 3X SEC Champ.
11/09 Mike Kolen Former Auburn and Miami Dolphin Linebacker
11/23 Member & Guest Tailgate Party Details to come
01/25/16 Senior Bowl Speaker To Be Announced
From Our
August 31st, 2015
Meeting
Guest Speakers
Alabama Basketball
Coach Wimp Sanderson
&
Auburn Basketball
Coach Sonny Smith
Radio Personalities
Coaches, Wimp Sanderson & Sonny Smith
The Gulf Coast Athletic Club
Is Proud To Announce Our
2015 Scholar Athlete
$5,000 Scholarship Award Winners!
Brittany Leserra & Ryan C. McIntosh
Brittany and Ryan will both receive a $5,000 Scholarship Award.
The GCAC, through the hard work of their members and partnered sponsors, were able to increase the scholarship award
to the highest in the clubs history.
Brittany and Ryan were chosen from a distinguished list of Scholar Athletes from the Gulf Shores High School. We wish nothing but continued success in the futures of both our winners.
G U L F C O A S T A T H L E T I C C L U B
2015 GCAC 13th Annual
Golf Tournament Results
Congratulations to the Winners!
Shown below are more scenes from our tournament.
You can see a larger slideshow of
all the tournament pictures by clicking on this link:
The GCAC conducted its first meeting of the year on August 31st, 2015, which featured guest speakers Wimp Sanderson and Sonny Smith. Both Sanderson and Smith are retired SEC basketball coaches and each led their respective teams (Alabama and Auburn) to some of the best seasons in their school’s history.
Taylor Means, President, opened the meeting by greeting our guests and asking David DeMyer, membership chair, to provide his report. David introduced the new club members and asked them to stand for recognition.
Taylor introduced the new Athletic Director of Gulf Shores High School, Jamie Williams. Taylor then presented Coach Williams with a check for $9000 to fund sports team needs at the high school. Coach Williams, who is in his first year at GSHS and who is attending his first GCAC meeting, spoke for a few minutes about his coaching history, what brought him and his family to GS, and a bit about his coaching philosophy. Coach Williams brought the club up to date on the first two varsity football games of the season, and although GS lost both, he believes the team believes in themselves more than in previous years.
Taylor took back the podium and asked the ever-funny Kevin Corcoran to preside over the team reports and introduce our speakers. Kevin made several comments including noting the large turn-out (approx. 120 people) and he reminded members to RSVP so we have accurate counts for meals and tables. He also bantered back and forth with “Wimp” as Coach Sanderson came to the stage.
Coach Sanderson spoke for about 20 minutes and made several predictions including who Alabama would start as Quarterback. Wimp introduced Sonny, who also spoke for about 20 minutes. He was a “joke telling machine’ but also spoke on several serious items of interest including how coaches have difficulty removing star players from the team, and the benefits of the new rule fully compensating players for university costs.
Taylor closed out the evening by announcing the next meeting’s speaker, Danny Ford.
After the 50/50 drawing, the meeting was adjourned at 8:45pm.
From Our
September 14th, 2015
Meeting
Guest Speaker
Legendary
Clemson University
Former
Head Football Coach
Danny Ford
Former Clemson Head Coach
Danny Ford
On Saturdays in the fall, 66-year-old Danny Ford can be found one of two places. He either is watching a Clemson football game on a big-screen TV while tailgating with friends at Memorial Stadium, or he is listening on the radio from an air-conditioned tractor while baling hay when the Tigers play on the road.
Football has run like blood through Ford’s veins his entire life.
Ford grew up in Gadsden, Ala., where he played football, basketball and baseball, all the while knowing that any young Alabaman had little choice about which sport would steal away his heart.
Ford played football at Alabama under legendary coach Bear Bryant, earning all-SEC honors one season and playing in three bowl games. Then he went into coaching. Following a brief stint as an assistant at Virginia Tech, Ford went about creating the same state of hysteria over football in South Carolina that he had experienced in his home state.
During his 12 seasons as coach at Clemson from 1978 through 1989, Ford’s teams won 96 games. They captured five ACC championships and won six bowl games. His 1981 club went unbeaten and won a national championship, bringing with it unprecedented recognition for football excellence to the state of South Carolina.
From an article by Ron Morris at TheState.com.
To read the full article: Click Here Pursuit of Happiness; Danny Ford
Notes From the Meeting, by David Lee
The GCAC conducted its second meeting of the year September 14th, 2015, which featured guest speaker Coach Danny Ford, who coached at Clemson and Arkansas, and played at the University of Alabama under coach Paul Bear Bryant from 1967-69. Ford headed the Clemson Tigers from 1978-1989 and won a national championship in 1981. He led the Arkansas Razorbacks from 1993-1997. Ford compiled a career coaching record of 122-59-5.
Taylor Means, President, opened the meeting by greeting our guests and asking David DeMyer, membership chair, to provide his report. David noted that we has surpassed the 100 member mark reaching 102 paid members.
Taylor introduced GSHS Athletic Director Jamie Williams who reported on sports activities. Williams said the football team was still looking for its first win but was making progress. He noted the difficult schedule the Dolphins have faced this year, with its played-opponents currently having a 16-2 record.
Taylor asked Dr. Gaylon McCullough to introduce our male and female student athletes being honored. Both students spoke for several minutes about their backgrounds and thanked the club for its work and for being honored. Parents of the students were in attendance.
Kevin Corcoran led the team reports section of the meeting and the crying towel was presented to Arkansas for their 16-12 loss to Toledo, despite 5 trips to the “red zone”.
Coach Ford took the stage and recounted several stories including his first bowl game against Ohio State. The game was infamous and most club members remembered the hall of fame coach from Ohio State Woody Hayes punching a Clemson player on the sidelines after a Clemson interception that sealed the win for Clemson. This led to the downfall of Hayes as a coach. Ford told other motivational stories, and provided several inspirational lessons he learned from Coach Bryant while a player at Alabama.
After the 50/50 drawing, the meeting was adjourned at 8:45pm.
GCAC Donates $9,260
To Gulf Shores High School
& Middle School
The money donated will be used throughout Gulf Shores Athletics, including new track uniforms, state of the art sideline communication equipment, and much more.
From Our
September 28th, 2015
Meeting
Guest Speaker
Legendary
Ole Miss
Former
Head Football Coach
Billy Brewer
Former Ole Miss Head Coach
Billy Brewer
Billy Brewer played for Ole Miss under legendary coach, Johnny Vaught, and was named to the "Team of the Century" in 1993. His 1959 team only allowed 21 points in the season and was voted the "Team of the Decade."
He coached the Rebels from 1983-1993. During his 11-year tenure, Brewer led the Rebels to six winning seasons and five bowls, including their first New Year's Day bowl game since 1969. Brewer led Ole Miss to eight Egg Bowl victories over in-state rival Mississippi State.
He was named SEC Coach of the Year in 1986 and 1990. At Ole Miss, Brewer compiled a 67-56-3 record, placing him second on Ole Miss' all-time wins list behind Vaught.
From Our
November 9th, 2015
Meeting
Guest Speaker
Auburn Linebacker
Miami Dolphins
Mike Kolen
"Captain Krunch"
2 time Super Bowl Champ!
Former AU & Miami Dolphins Linebacker
Mike Kolen
Mike Kolen played at Auburn under Ralph "Shug" Jordan from 1966-1969 where he was an All SEC linebacker. His hard hitting style earned him the nickname "Captain Crunch."
Kolen played with the Miami Dolphins under Don Shula from 1970-1977. He was part of one of the most epic plays in NFL history, referred to as the "Sea of Hands" game, which occurred in the playoffs against Kenny Stabler and the Oakland Raiders.
Kolen is a 2X Super Bowl Champion with the Dolphins and was a part of the 1972 undefeated team which is often referred to as the "Greatest Team in NFL History." Auburn's leading tackler each season is presented with the "Mike Kolen Award."
From Our
October 12th, 2015
Meeting
Guest Speaker
Alabama Record Setting Quarterback
Brodie Croyle
Former University of Alabama Quarterback
Brodie Croyle
John Brodie Croyle is a former Alabma quarterback. He was drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League in the third round of the 2006 NFL Draft.
He played college football for the University of Alabama from 2002 to 2005.
Despite being hindered by knee injuries in his senior season in high school, Croyle was a highly recruited prospect by Louisiana State University, Florida State University and the University of Alabama. On the night Croyle was ready to announce his decision to attend Florida State, he changed his mind and chose Alabama, his father's alma mater, instead. In Croyle's four years playing for the Alabama Crimson Tide football team, he set numerous school records, and was a finalist for the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award. Croyle led the Crimson Tide to the 2006 Cotton Bowl Classic and was named the game's offensive MVP.
Though he saw little playing time in his rookie season in the NFL, Croyle shared the starting position with Damon Huard in 2007. On November 18, Croyle started his first game as the Chiefs' starting quarterback against the Indianapolis Colts.
Croyle now joins his father at Big Oak Ranch, a Christian home and school founded by his father for children from troubled and abusive situations, and at the Drumm Farm in Independence, Missouri, a facility that provides foster children with a safe and stable home. Croyle serves as a spokesperson for Johnson County Court Appointed Special Advocate. On July 14, 2007 Croyle married Kelli Schutz, the 2005 winner of the America's Junior Miss competition. The couple met in Mobile, Alabama in 2006, while Croyle was preparing for the Senior Bowl.
From Our
October 19th, 2015
Meeting
Guest Speaker
Former LSU
Head Football Coach
Jerry Stoval
Jerry Stovall played RB at LSU from 59'-62', succeeding Heisman Trophy winner Billy Cannon. He was named an All-American, won the Walter Camp Memorial Trophy, and was the runner-up for the 1962 Heisman Trophy. In 2010, Stovall was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.
He was the #2 pick in the 1963 NFL Draft, selected by the St. Louis Cardinals where he played DB from 63'-71'. Stovall had 18 interceptions in 97 games, and was selected to the Pro Bowl in 1966, 1967, and 1969.
Stovall coached LSU from 80'-83'. His 82' team finished the season ranked #11 after defeating #4 Florida, #8 Alabama, and #7 Florida State and earned a spot in the Orange Bowl, where LSU lost, 21-20, to a #3 Nebraska team led by Tom Osborne. In 1982, Stovall was named the National Coach of the Year.
Stovall went on to become AD at Lousiania Tech from 90'-93' and now serves as President and CEO of the Baton Rouge Area Sports Foundation.
Former LSU Head Coach
Jerry Stovall
Next Meeting
October 26th, 2015
Meeting
Guest Speaker
Legendary
Head Football Coach
Johnny Majors
Iowa State-Pitt-Tennessee
Former Tennessee Head Coach
Johnny Majors
Tennessee has had its share of athletes who have gone on to have successful careers in college and professional sports, but without a doubt one of the most successful is John Majors. As a high school player at Huntland High School, Majors was an outstanding all-around athlete who held the record as State Overall Scoring Leader in football for three consecutive years in 1950, 1951, and 1952.
As a player at the University of Tennessee, Majors led the Volunteers to an undefeated, untied regular season record of 10-0 and an appearance in the Sugar Bowl. While at Tennessee, Majors was All-Southeastern Conference twice and was voted player of the year in the Southeastern Conference twice by the Nashville Banner in 1955 and 1956. Majors was also NCAA All-American; United Press International National Back of the Year, 1956; Atlanta Touchdown Club’s SEC back of the year, 1956; and Heisman Trophy runner-up in 1956.
Majors began his professional coaching career with the University of Tennessee as a student-assistant in 1957, becoming an assistant coach in 1958 and 1959. He was assistant coach at Mississippi State from 1960-1963 and was assistant coach at the University of Arkansas from 1964 through 1967, when Arkansas won the National Championship in 1964. As head coach at the Iowa State University, Majors rebuilt the struggling Cyclone football program, taking the team to their first-ever bowl games in 1971 and 1972 and winning Big 8 Coach of the Year in 1971.
Majors would once again rebuild a failing football program as head coach at the University of Pittsburgh, where he took the Pitt Panthers to the Fiesta Bowl in 1973 and ultimately led them to a National Championship 1976, winning National Coach of the Year in both 1973 and 1976. Majors returned to the University of Tennessee in 1977 as head coach of the Volunteer football team. His career with Tennessee would span fifteen years and include ten bowl appearances, seven of which resulted in Tennessee victories; three SEC Championships in 1985, 1989, and 1990; and an overall win/loss record of 116 and 62. Majors was voted Coach of the Year in 1985/86.
Majors returned to the University of Pittsburgh as head coach in 1993, and in 1997 he became Director of Athletics and Special Assistant to the Chancellor at the University of Pittsburgh. Majors continues to stay active in college football as speaker, team evaluator, and recruiter.
