I accidentally gave Jerry Fischer back his copy of Wray Lane's remembrance of Century in the 1930's and I have too much brain fog from my coughing episodes to think of anything original, so I mined for ideas in the 2005 Tri City Ledger columns on the Alger Sullivan Historical Society website. Our other Jerry to the rescue (Jerry Simmons):
As part of a column Jerry wrote in April 2005 he told this story of how his brother Eddie came to be Century High School's Junior High football coach.
“Eddie also tells another story that few people outside his immediate circle of friends ever knew. He was watching Century High's football practice one afternoon, fresh out of college and the first year he taught at Century High School, the fall of 1958. He saw Coach John F. Waters walking toward him. As he got next to Eddie, Waters pulled a whistle on a cord out of his pocket and put it around Eddie's neck. He said, “Mr. Simmons, I want you to start up a Junior High School football team.”
Eddie protested, “But Coach, I don't know anything about coaching a football team.”
“You know more than THEY do,” replied Waters as he walked away. So began a football coaching legend. Eddie's Junior High teams had among the best records of any coach's teams in CHS lore. The truth is, many of the players still have a high regard for him. I will always be known, if I am known at all, as Coach Simmons' little brother.
Especially in those days, coaches' salaries were not the best in the world, according to Eddie. But even he was paid a supplement of about $50.00 a month. He illustrated the point of low pay by telling about Bubba Stanton needing the roof replaced over his store one summer. As he drove by one day, Eddie noticed two men working in the hot sun on Bubba's roof. As he got closer to the store, he realized it was Coach Jim Manderson and Coach Waters! As many of you know, Manderson was highly respected as a coach, having one of the few undefeated varsity football teams in CHS history - and there he was roofing Bubba's store as a side job!
The story goes they were paid in groceries, rather than cash - that proves Bubba was a wheeler-dealer, huh? It was a good deal for all concerned, if you ask me.”
I knew Eddie Simmons from two perspectives, student and co-worker. He was my homeroom teacher in 9th grade and my US History teacher in 11th grade. I admired him as a man of principle who cared for his students and who cared about educating us. Later as an ESE teacher who worked with him first as the Psychometrist who tested my students and later as the Guidance Counselor of Carver Middle School I was pleased to see that he had not changed. His Christian principles guided his work.
He coached my brothers as the Junior High head coach and a Varsity assistant coach. My brother William once told me, “In Coach Simmons' opinion, if we're 9-1 and the 1 is Flomaton we had a winning season; if we're 1-9 and the 1 is Flomaton we had a losing season.”
I was sitting near Eddie at a CHS-Baker game (late '70's I think.). The winning team would go to the playoffs. The game was close; tempers were flaring. As the rest of the Century faithful were loudly protesting the officials' holding call against our beloved Blackcats, I heard Eddie quietly say, “I have never seen a football play when there wasn't somebody holding.”
Thanks for the memories, Eddie and Jerry.
The next ASHS meeting is Tuesday, February 20th in the Leach House. I hope to see you there.
