A Story That Never Gets Old

My 9th grade football team was very good…undefeated. My first year as a kicker. Georgia Military in Milledgeville sent over their B team to play us in Macon, and we beat them 66 – 0.

A few weeks later we bussed over to Milledgeville for a rematch. They had cheerleaders and a guy who did pushups every time the opponent scored, one for every total point. He quit before the end of the first quarter. The halftime score was 66 – 0, and the final score was 96 – 0. I liked the game because the stadium wall was just beyond the goalposts, so every time I kicked an extra point the ball sailed out of the stadium.

In the mid-70’s Tech had a linebacker named Steve Putnal. His brother Rex was a wide receiver for Georgia. Their kid brother Stan was even more talented, and played on that 9th grade team. He was a small, lightning-fast receiver with great hands. He was also a great artist, and that’s what he’s doing today.

I was reminded of this because of this note from Reid: I heard today on the radio the story of how Tech beat Cumberland 222-0. Cumberland had beaten Tech in basketball BAD, and Tech wanted revenge. The year before the football game, Cumberland discontinued their football program. The next year, Tech informed Cumberland that if they broke the contract, it would cost them $5,000, which was huge in that day. So, Cumberland gathered up a bunch of Frat members and pickups, and came to Atlanta for the game. Also, Tech never threw a single pass during the game.