Even after being part of a state championship team under Coach Wright Bazemore at Valdosta, a college scout once said of Jerry Varnado, “He’s too small and slow to play any college ball.”
But Jerry
did go on to the football program at the University of Georgia. Early on, in his words, he was
mostly a blocking dummy. Then in 1964, a new coach arrived—Vince Dooley. Jerry
believes Vince Dooley changed the trajectory of his life.
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| Jerry Varnado, Coach Vince Dooley |
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| Wright Bazemore, Jerry Varnado, Coach Vince Dooley |
In the fall of that year, Dooley would speak at an event in Valdosta, Jerry’s hometown. He said of Jerry, "By college standards Jerry is small and slow to be a defensive end, but you wait and see, he’s going to play a lot of football for Georgia. He has a determined attitude and he’s not afraid to hit. These are things you can’t teach a boy.”
And play he did. He rose with the team to play on that 1966 SEC championship team which was fourth in the nation. Coach Dooley’s belief in him made all the difference.
As the Fellowship of Christian Athlete Chaplain for Athens Academy football team, Jerry recently said in a talk to them, “ I remember like it was yesterday Coach Dooley’s first address to the team. He said we would endeavor to do three things:
"First, Work Hard. That involved giving your best effort every day. Second, Conduct ourselves in a manner that honors our families, our school and our community. This meant endeavoring to do the right thing, on and off the field. Third, Love one another. Care about and support one another, again, on and off the field, which included coaches, players, trainers, managers, support staff . . . everyone.
"He said if we would
do those three things, we would win our share of the football games. That was
the standard for the three years I played and we moved from ninth in the SEC
with a 2-4 SEC and 4-5-1 overall record, to SEC Co-champions with Alabama with
a 5-0 SEC and 10-1 overall record and were ranked fourth in the nation in just three
years. It worked for the quarter-century Dooley was the coach! I’m convinced
that any team on which the players truly love each other will play twenty to thirty
percent above their ability level. Love, the greatest power on earth, motivates
and empowers us to play better than we are.”
A few years ago, when we were writing One Old Dawg, Jerry wrote a piece about Coach Dooley on the fiftieth anniversary of his first year at the University of Georgia. We include that piece below as well as an epilogue Jerry wrote this week.
On Coach Dooley’s
knowledge of the game of football:
“The first year Vince Dooley was
here, many people misunderstood him and didn’t know what he was like,
particularly players, because he had the good sense to let his assistant
coaches do their jobs. He was always there, but he didn’t do a lot of one on
one coaching with players on the field.
“I had the fortunate experience of
playing for Coach Dooley for three years, but I also served as a graduate
assistant coach for three years. I found out then, he indeed did coach, but he
did it in staff meetings. He was the mastermind behind the Georgia Bulldogs. He
set guidelines and parameters for what we were going to do, and let the
assistants execute them. He was an astute student of the game of football. He
knew what he was doing and how he wanted things to go.
“The first coaches' meeting I
attended, there sat Erk Russell, my hero since I played
defense, with a notepad taking notes on what Vince said. I knew then Vince
commanded respect from people who knew him and how much he contributed to
the ongoing growth and development of a winning football team.”
On Coach Dooley’s
fairness:
“My junior year, I ruptured a
disc, had to have surgery, missed half the season and all of spring practice.
In the summer, because of muscle spasms, I couldn’t work out much to get in
shape for the next year. At fall football practice, Coach Dooley told me I’d
reported overweight.
"‘What do you mean Coach,
overweight? I’ve been trying to gain weight the whole time I’ve been at
Georgia.’
"He said, ‘You’re reporting weight
is 188.’
"I was at 196. ‘Reporting weight? I
didn’t know I had a reporting weight.’
"‘Nobody gave you reporting weight
in the spring?’
"‘No, sir.’
"He sat there and thought a minute.
‘Well, you’re still overweight; you’ll need to go to the 6:30 P.E. class for
two weeks.’
"This made me angry, because I was
disciplined for not doing something I didn’t even know I was supposed to do.
But later, when I started coaching, I understood. He knew he wouldn’t be able
to explain why I didn’t receive the same treatment as others who reported
overweight. If he didn’t discipline me, it would seem he was inconsistent. And
who knows, I could’ve forgotten I was supposed to be 188 pounds. Plus, I wasn’t
in good shape, and those P.E. classes got me ready to play.”
On how much Coach Dooley cared about players:
“I learned when I coached how much
Vince Dooley cared about his players. He had a personal interest in them and
did things we didn’t know about. Again, because he didn’t have one on one
contact, many players didn’t realize how much he cared. We’d have discussions
in coach’s meetings about players and difficulties they might be having, and
it’s then I saw he wanted players to be successful in football, in the
classroom, and in life.
"He was always liberal in giving
graduate assistant jobs to those who needed them. The graduate assistant job is
what enabled me to go to law school.”
On Dooley’s dedication:
“After the midday game on
Saturday, sixteen-millimeter film would be flown to Atlanta by helicopter to be
developed. Later a helicopter brought it back, landed on the practice field
next to the coliseum, and the film taken to Vince Dooley’s house.
“After games, there’d be a party
at the Dooley’s for recruits that were in town. Since I lived near Vince
when I practiced law, often, a friend and I would go over to the Dooley’s at
10:00 p.m. after everyone left to watch the film with him, as he prepared for The
Vince Dooley Show, which aired on Sunday afternoon. He’d leave about midnight
and go to the UGA television station.
“Anytime you wanted to find Vince,
you could find him at the Five Points Waffle House around 4:30 on Sunday
morning after he filmed his show. Then he’d go home, change clothes, go to 8:00
mass and then come to practice at 9:30. Our Sunday morning practices were more
of a training, than practice— just a little exercise to get players loosened
up. Vince had it early Sunday so players could still attend church. I don’t
know when he ever went to sleep.”
On Vince Dooley’s encouragement:
“In the early 1980’s, a friend
from Valdosta asked me to be a lay speaker at a downtown church one Sunday.
When I was in Valdosta, I visited a friend there, and didn’t know Vince was
staying at their home. The Dooley’s daughter was a cheerleader at Valdosta
State and they were there to see them play for the small college championship.
What I didn’t know is they’d made plans to hear me speak as well. They went to
8:00 mass and then came to church to hear me. It’s also a blessing that Wright Bazemore, my high coach was there as
well as my freshmen position coach, Ken Cooper.
"Later on, I ran into Barbara Dooley. She said, ‘As soon as the service
was over, Vince looked at me, and said, “Jerry is really an evangelist, isn’t
he?”’
"Keep in mind that at that point in
time, I was still a lawyer. I wasn’t a preacher. And I was beginning to deal
with a sense of calling to preach. To have Vince Dooley recognize a quality in
me that lent itself to preaching was one of several factors which led to me
leaving my law practice and entering full time ministry.”
So, in
many ways, Coach Vince Dooley’s influence has moved far beyond the football
field in Jerry’s life. Many players would have this same testimony. Coach
Dooley’s life reminds us of a verse in Psalm 1, “He is like a tree planted by
streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not
wither. Whatever he does prospers.” (Psalm 1:3)
We were thankful to join other lettermen a few weeks ago to celebrate Coach Dooley's ninetieth birthday. What a joyous time that was, and we treasure the memories.
Jerry adds these words today, “Thank you Coach for the many ways you helped me in life. Your faith in God, your integrity, and your selflessness have been a model for me and challenged me to live a life that makes a difference for good in this world. I love you Coach, and I’m glad to know you’re in heaven, but I’m sure going to miss having you here on earth.”
Also, we want to remember perhaps the greatest college football player of all time, the legendary Charley Trippi who died at 100 earlier this month.
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| Jerry Varnado with Charley Trippi |
For more from us on Coach Dooley, we invite you to visit the One Old Dawg blog and check out the archives.
