About The Eatonton messenger. (Eatonton, Ga.) 18??-current | View Entire Issue (May 1, 2025)
Sports Thursday May 1, 2025 B The Eatonton Messenger Loran Smith Columnist UGA Hall of Fame Following World War II, Americans were anxious to return to normalcy. A big part of that came in embracing college football on Saturday afternoons. The nation and college campuses were filled with returning veterans looking to obtain a degree and get on with their lives. This was before the television and mass media initiatives of today, so the game also flourished at the grass roots level and experienced remarkable growth. In 1947, Army head coach Red Blaik, war hero Gen. Douglas McArthur, and legendary sportswriter Grantland Rice met and laid the groundwork for the National Football Foundation (NFF). The first HOF class was inducted in 1951. The awards annual banquet began in 1954 and has been a big date on the December calendar ever since, except for one year when COVID caused a shutdown of the Hilton Hotel where the NFF hosted its banquet. The University of Georgia (UGA) has had 21 of its former players and coaches inducted into this august group and those affiliated with the UGA chapter of the NFF are working diligently to promote the candidacy of George Patton, a two time All-American who was the cornerstone of the Vince Dooley era. The NFF for years held its annual induction banquet at the Waldorf Astoria in mid-town Manhattan. In 1975, William C. Hartman, then chairman of the Georgia Student Educational Fund, took an associate to the Foundation induction banquet and continued throughout his life. After a couple of years, Hartman began buying a table and inviting several Georgia friends and supporters to attend the banquet. For a few years this became an annual excursion for several of UGA’s most enthusiastic supporters. From those casual and informal outings, a chapter was formed, with its first awards gathering taking place in 1986 at the Athens Country Club. From that loosely organized begin ning and with Hartman and GSEF underwriting any budget shortfalls, the Chapter experienced a trial-and-error existence until it firmed up a volun teer board of directors and created a golf outing that enabled the chapter to grow and expand until it became the largest chapter in the country, a ranking it has retained the last dozen years or so. Headliner college head coaches, National Foot ball League stars, and media celebrities have all attended at one time, including UGA’s Kirby Smart; Bob Stoops, Okla homa; Archie Manning, Ole Miss; Rick Neuheisel, former head coach and now CBS college football analyst; Ron Jaworski of Monday Night Football; Mike Tirico, NBC play by play announcer; comedian MORE FAME > B2 IAN TOCHER/Staff The Gatewood girls' 800-meter relay team completes a handoff during the region meet held last Thursday in Eatonton. Gatewood T&F qualifies athletes for state meet Lance McCurley lance@msgrnews.com Gatewood’s track and field teams hosted and partic ipated in the final GIAA Region 4-AA meet last Thursday. The Lady Gators 10 LANCE McCURLEY/Staff Putnam midfielder Angel Sanchez (10) dribbles past an Oglethorpe County defender in the regular season finale on April 15. The junior scored the go-ahead goal against Vidalia last Friday in overtime, helping the War Eagles advance to the second round of state playoffs. War Eagles topple Indians in OT to advance Lance McCurley lance@msgrnews.com Putnam County needed overtime to defeat Vidalia and advance to the second round of the state soccer playoffs. In the first overtime period, midfielder Angel Sanchez scored for the War Eagles, who then prevented the Indians from responding to clinch a 4-3 win to move on. performed well, finishing third with 110 points, behind Edmund Burke and Brent wood. They qualified more than 20 athletes for the GIAA Class AA state meet. “I thought the girls had a very solid day at our region meet,” Gatewood head coach The victory thrilled Putnam’s players, who felt like underdogs going into the match. “I think we actually performed very well,” Putnam head coach Michael Taylor said. “It was one of the best games that I’ve seen them play this season. We were focused. The guys were coming in MORE SOCCER » 83 Jeff Ratliff said. “Our region is the strongest track region in the state. I felt like we had a great showing and, more importantly, we qualified a lot of girls for the state meet.’ According to Ratliff, the Gatewood girls qualified for 28 out of a possible 34 slots for the state meet. “That is fantastic,” Ratliff added of the Lady Gators’ accomplishments. “With that many girls going to state, we have a chance to have a great state meet and MORE TRACK >83 stills BRAD HARRISON/Staff Carolyn Thomas played the No. 3 singles spot for the Lady War Eagles this season and will return next year. PCHS tennis teams fall in first round Lance McCurley lance@msgrnews.com Last week, both Putnam County tennis teams lost in the first round of the Class A Division I state tournaments, ending their seasons. The No. 14 seed Lady War Eagles faced No. 19 Banks County, with the Lady Leop ards advancing to the second round of the tournament after a 3-0 win. The girls’ match was competitive, with two Putnam County players winning in the third set, but it was called early. Hannah Erickson in the No. 1 singles spot, along with the No. 2 doubles team of Joelle Lukens and Addie Grace Ursy, were performing well for the Lady War Eagles, but Banks County shut the door and secured the win. “Two of my girls were winning and were in the third set, but didn’t get to finish,” Putnam County head coach Christian Keiser said. “The other matches also went to third sets, but unfortunately, we were on the losing side.” Putnam County’s girls entered the playoffs after finishing third in the region. With their season now over, there remains some upside as the entire roster returns next year. Erickson, Lukens, Ursy, Vidhi Raiyani, Carolyn Thomas, Kalalena Xiong, and Daniela Cruz Perez will return, hoping to make it back to the postseason in 2026. “I’m proud of their effort and competitiveness,” Keiser said. “It was our best showing in state since I’ve been the coach.” The No. 28 Putnam County boys traveled to Rome to face No. 5 Model. The Blue Devils handled their business and defeated the War Eagles, advancing further in the playoffbracket. It was a tough loss for Putnam County’s boys, who fought hard against one of the MORE TENNIS » 82
