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June 1, 2022
MP boys coach Nix retires
Proud to have helped make Bulldog hoops competitive over last decade, Nix new head coach at FPD
By Will Davis
publisher™ my mcr.net
Mary Persons boys basketball coach Greg Nix is retiring
after 10 years leading the Bulldogs.
Nix said he’s proud to have built the program from
where he found it in 2012, including three trips to the state
playoffs and in 2016, MP’s first trip to the Sweet 16 since
1968.
“We’ve had a lot of good accomplishments,” said Nix.
Nix said he set out to build the program starting with
middle school in hopes that MP would remain competi
tive year to year.
“I believe we’ve done that,” said Nix. “I’ve enjoyed my
time at Mary Persons. I appreciate Dr. Finch and Dr.
Hickman and the Board of Education for their support of
our program.”
In fact Nix liked Monroe County so much he moved his
family up here from Perry four years ago. He said that he
and MP football coach Brian Nelson have always gotten
along well as they took their head coaching jobs the same
year.
Along with coaching basketball, Nix also coached the
MP golf team, helped with football and taught history and
civics.
“I’ve been fortunate to make a lot of good relationships,”
said Nix. “I hope that will continue.”
Nix said he has an even 25 years teaching in Georgia
public schools and started thinking about retiring after he
saw the boys basketball job at FPD was open. He applied
for it and was offered the job so he bought a couple of
years to allow him to retire from public schools.
Nix is coming full circle as he began his career at a pri
vate school, Crisp Academy in Cordele.
But Nix said what he really likes about FPD is that it’s a
Christian school where he will be free to share his faith
with students. Nix said he’ll also be teaching social studies
from a biblical worldview, which he said is attractive to
him.
Teaching is a family business for Nix. His mom and dad
were both teachers, and dad was a high school basketball
coach. His grandmother, with whom he was very close,
taught elementary school for 42 years.
Mary Persons boys basketball coach Greg Nix is retiring after 10 years coaching the Bulldogs. (File photo)
Former Mary Persons star JT Stokes is now
with the arena team the Bismark Bucks.
Former MP star Stokes
excels for Bismark Bucks
By Park Davis
da vispark34@ gmail.com
J.T. Stokes, a 2015 gradu
ate from Mary Persons
High School, is now an
indoor football player for
the Bismarck Bucks out of
Bismark, North Dakota.
Stokes had a stellar 2021
season for the Bucks as a
wide reciever. He had 33
receptions, 526 receiving
yards, 13 touchdowns,
and averaged 15.94 yards
per reception. His best
game was against the Iowa
Barnstormers, where he
had 98 recieving yards and
3 recieving touchdowns.
The Bucks are 3-8 in the
current season, which
includes games on Fridays
or Saturdays from March
through July.
In high school, Stokes
had 35 receptions for 556
yards as a senior and was
named a First Team All-
Region 2-AAAA selection.
Out of high school, Stokes
went to play football for
Wingate University, where
he excelled in his 2018
season with 811 receiving
yards and 9 touchdowns.
Young Monroe County Bandolero
racecar driver in over 200 races
By Steve Reece
stevereece@gmail.com
In Spanish, the term bandolero
means “bandit”. In English, it is
used to describe an entry-level
race vehicle that’s halfway between
a go-kart and a full-sized car
with nearly a 6-foot wheelbase
that resembles a miniature stock
car complete with a sheet metal
cage and a tube frame. Drivers as
young as eight years old par
ticipate in Bandolero races across
the United States and Canada in
such places as the Atlanta Motor
Speedway. They usually race until
they’re too large to fit into the cars.
Connor Butler, 14, of Forsyth
is one such driver. He raced at
the Speedway in March in a car
sponsored by the Myers Industrial
Railroad Construction Company.
Unfortunately, he crashed in the
third lap, putting him out of the
“outlaw” class race by damaging
his right front suspension, but he
won a quarter-mile race in Atlanta
last month. He estimated that he
has been in around 200 races and
that was the first time he won a
plaque for first place.
Connor has been racing for
around 2 years since Buddy
Meyers, the team owner, bought
his car and trailer which is stored
in a garage at the Atlanta Motor
Speedway when it is not going
to different tracks. He said his
parents are a big part of the team
by giving him moral support and
help at the track.
Connor said there is no prize
money offered at any of the races,
but the races are invaluable in
teaching aspiring race drivers how
to drive and act on the track. He
has plans to one day be a NAS
CAR driver and considers racing
to be a sport. He said every NAS
CAR driver trains before the race
just like a football player and exer
cises that affect the arms and legs
as well as breathing techniques
and a lot of reaction time training
are very important to drivers.
Although some NASCAR driv
ers enter professional competition
coming up through the dirt track
circuit, many are past Bandolero
drivers. NASCAR scouts attend
the youngster’s races, searching for
talented drivers. Connor said you
never know who a scout is but if
you’re good, you’ll be put on a list
that the higherups will see and
they pick out who they think is
best for the team. A driver could
be contacted as young as 16 or 17
and put into an older car to start
his racing career. Then they might
move up to the truck series before
moving around to different teams
and hopefully making it to the
NASCAR circuit.
Connor is the son of Natalie and
Jimmy Butler and just finished
the 8th grade at Monroe County
Middle School. He wants to go to
a technical college to learn auto
mechanics after high school. For
upcoming races search Facebook
for Fegends and Bandolero racing
at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
Conner Butler, 14, is an aspiring racer.