As promised, here on the sixtieth
anniversary year of Vince Dooley’s first football team at the University of
Georgia, One Old Dawg is interviewing the seniors from that team. Our first
interview is with Fred Barber as told to his wife, Julie Barber. Fred was
Jerry’s roommate in 1964, and they had plenty of adventures together.
Grab your hot wings and have a seat as we
welcome Fred Barber to One Old Dawg’s Tailgate.
Tell us how you got started in football
and your high school career?
If you lived in Bainbridge, Georgia in the
sixties, you played football. When I was ten years old my football career came
to a temporary halt when I was taken to Emory University Hospital for the
removal of the lower half of my right lung due to a bicycle accident. Rehab and
a team of young men got me on my feet and back on the football field.
In high school, Coach Spencer Davis wrote
“Life Lessons” in the margins of our play books next to the X’s and O’s—things
like, “show respect to your mother and father, keep up your grades, and how are
you getting along in your life?” I
believe Coach Davis would rather have seen his players mature into caring husbands
and solid citizens than to see us play a winning football game. He fathered us,
hugged us, and gave us the knowledge about life—things like trusting others,
doing your job, and helping a teammate. We
were an outstanding group of young men that challenged each other to be their
best. Several players on my team received football scholarships.
My greatest honor was playing for Coach
Dooley and his staff for one year. They reestablished my love for the game of
football. In the Sun Bowl game of 1964, my run of fifty-eight yards set up the
winning and only touchdown of the game. I also scored the first touchdown
against Florida for Coach Dooley.
Can you remember anything amusing that
happened in 1964?
Everything about the trip to the Sun Bowl
in 1964!! Best trip to a bowl game EVER.
I was told never to repeat those stories. (One Old Dawg was Fred Barber’s
cohort in some of those stories and he’s not talking either).
What is one important lesson you learned
from your time as a college athlete?
In Psalm 40, David said,” He stood me up
on a solid rock to make sure I wouldn’t slip.”
There are many rocks in this world, in all shapes and sizes. An
important rock for me was sports, because without sports, I would not have
known the lessons of life that I have needed through the years. A field that
measures fifty-two yards by one hundred yards was high ground for me. It took
me where I needed to go. But the field alone was not enough. It was also the
people that stood with me and guided me and my teammates through life’s
lessons.
Who were your inspirations or role models
in your college career?
Coach Dooley once told me that when he
called the first meeting of his new team, it was, “just to find out where we
all were” and he soon realized that we were all over the place. The second
meeting started our story. Coach Dooley and his staff taught us to show up,
reach out, and be the person that will make a difference by encouraging each
other, and creating a spirit of winning.
What advice would you give to someone just beginning their college football career?
1. Encourage your
teammates– leave the criticism to the coach.
2. Show your
enthusiasm by practicing like you play.
3. Challenge
yourself to fulfill your commitment.
4. Be polite
regardless of the number of wins or losses. Those that care and stay committed
will be remembered for their effort, participation, and successful seasons year
after year.
Thank you, Fred, and Julie, for taking the
time to share your 1964 memories with the readers here. I’m sure your wise
words will mean much to many in all kinds of endeavors.
And now, One Old Dawg weighs in on the Clemson game this Saturday:
“Just
three more days to the College Kickoff Game in the Benz at High Noon, when
Georgia and Clemson square off to see who will emerge as the team to beat in
2024. Clemson has been on a roll since Dabo Swinney took over as head coach. In
the last decade Clemson has made six playoff appearances and captured two
national championships. They were 9-4 last year ending a ten-year streak of at
least ten wins and their winning percentage the last fifteen years is over eighty
percent. So, Clemson struggled a little last year, but Dabo Swinney and staff
have not forgotten how to coach, and these Tigers are looking to claw their way
back to the top.
But
look on the bright side. The Dawgs have lost only one game in the last three
seasons, the SEC championship game last year by a lousy three points. Kirby
Smart’s winning percentage at Georgia is eighty-five percent and the Dawgs are
still nursing a mad for being excluded from the playoffs last season. In
addition, fifteen Dawgs are listed on the Coaches Preseason All SEC team (five
are first team) and Georgia’s quarterback is a front-runner for the Heisman
Trophy. All that adds up to Saturday being a sad day for the Tiger faithful. Go
Dawgs!”
Well, that’s it this week for One Old Dawg. We’ll be here next week interviewing Barry Wilson, also a senior on the 1964 Georgia football team. The next week we’ll have pictures of the letterman’s reunion and especially the sixtieth anniversary gathering of the 1964 team. You don’t want to miss it. If you’d like to receive this post by email, please go HERE to subscribe and watch for the follow-up email to confirm.
Who is One Old Dawg?
Jerry Varnado played defensive end at the
University of Georgia on Vince Dooley’s first three teams, which included an
SEC championship in 1966, placing Georgia fourth in the nation. He helped coach
the UGA football team while in law school, and practiced law for over a decade.
Later, after a series of tragedies, he gave his life to Jesus Christ. After
much soul searching, he left his law practice and has preached the gospel for
forty years. He’s still at it every Sunday.
Inducted into the Valdosta/Lowndes County
Sports Hall of Fame, he is also the recipient of the Athens Athletic Hall of
Fame Fosky Henderson Award for community service. He is a past president of The
Athens Touchdown Club and is now the chaplain. He has been an FCA chaplain for
the Athens Academy Football Team for ten years.
He is the proud father of four children,
and one sweet girl now with Jesus, as well as Bapa to two of the best grandkids
ever.
