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—THE PEMBROKE JOURNAL. Thursday, January 9. 1969
(Editor’s Note: The following article is from Sunday’s
Savannah Morning News, and deals with a sports persona
lity familiar to Wayne Countians. We think you'll like
this story about Blakely Thornton.)
By Lumer Williams
Blakely Thornton, head boys’ basketball coach at Ludo
wici High School for over 32 years, has submitted his
resignation, to become director of the Title 111 federal
program (Teacher Assistancy Program of Physical Educa
tion and Recreation) in the Bradwell County School
System at Hinesville.
Thornton, recognized as one of the thoroughbreds of the
high school coaching profession, must rate among the
premier coaches in Georgia boys' basketball. His early
records are incomplete, when teams played unlimited
schedules, and he does not know exactly how many games
his teams have won, but it is safe to assume at least 600
games.
One team, Thornton recalls, won 34 games one season,
and he had “several others” to win around 30 games,
counting tournaments, in a season The fewest wins any of
his teams ever racked up in a season of play was 10.
The erstwhile coach completed his home coaching
duties at Ludowici last Tuesday night by beating his former
pupil, Bo Warren and his Jesup team. He will officially
wind up his coaching in the upcoming Jesup Christmas
Tournament this week
Ludowici boys are 8-2 for the season.
Thornton was young and fresh out of college when he
came to Ludowici in 1936. In that first year he came in
contact with a youngster that was to go out from under
him to make a name in athletics. The lad was James (Nig)
Warren, a freahman candidate for basketball and baseball.
He made both teams, and the only two years Ludowici
has fielded a football team, was in Nig’s junior and senior
years.
THROW A MILE
“He was strong, and could throw a football a country
mile and kick it even further,”'Coach Thornton recalls.
“Warren was a top scorer and strong rebounder in
basketball, a power hitter and great pitcher in baseball in
addition to his football attributes, and he became the first
boy I ever coached to win a college scholarship. Wallace
Butts gave him a football scholarship, and then sent him
down to GMC at Milledgeville. Nig would have been a
star in Georgia, I’m sure, but he went away to the war and
did not go back to college,” his old coach relates.
Warren, of course, later became somewhat of a legendary
baseball player in these parts.
Since the Ludowici gymnasium was built 21 years ago
and Thornton’s cage teams moved in from the outdoor clay
court, the team has made seven trips to the state tournament
in Macon, bringing back the top title once.
“The sweetest victory of all was that state championship
game, it was the only season my team won its last game
of the season; and that champion team did not have wliat
is known as a ‘star.’ None of the boys had offer to play
college ball, and none did. But they were almost unbe
lievable in their team play, closeness to each other, dedica
tion to the game and determination to do things right.”
Thornton said of the team. It was the 1961 Ludowici team.
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Ludowici’s Blakely Thornton
Retiring From Coaching Ranks
. A JpF
Coach Blakely Thornton
Another great team was the 1950 team, when Ludowici,
competing in Class B, beat favored Perry to go into the state
finals against the fabulous Irwinville team. Ludowici sur
prised everybody, including Country Childes, coach of the
Irwinville powerhouse, by hanging in there all the way to
lose by only 15 points in the state finals. Ludowici thereby
became the final victim of Irwinville, which was abolished
as a high school after winning that, their 78th game in a
row and their third straight title.
Jimmy Parker, who played later at VPI and the Univer
sity of Georgia, sparked that 1950 outfit.
OTHER TOURNEY TEAMS
Other state teams under Thornton included two while
Bo Warren was playing; two while Larry Chapman was
starring for the Blue Tide, and one when Gene (Turkey)
Wells was the Tide spark.
One of the high points in Blakely Thornton’s coaching
career came not in a state tournament, but in the Savannah
Christmas Tournament. It was in the 1958 Savannah meet
when Ludowici and Nahunta reached the finals, and Ludo
wici nosed out the Layton Johns-led Nahunta team of
Harold Scott by one point when Larry Chapman stole the
ball with only seconds to go, went down, passed off. and
then got the pass back on a fast break and went in for two
points to win the game as time ran out.
“In that game we went right at Nahunta’s strength,
starting off with our six-foot center, Larry Murray, hooking
on the 6’7” Johns. And we tried to run the big boy down
We did get him tired, but later he learned to tun and went
on to become the top SEC performs. at Auburn,” Coach
Thornton related.
“By the way,” Thornton reminded, “it was Johns that
was instrumental in getting Chapman a scholarship to
Auburn that year. When the Auburn coach went to see
Johns, the big boy told them they should see the guard up
in Ludowici and he came right on up and signed Chapman."
(Chapman is now head freshman coach and chief scout
for Auburn.)
When asked to name some of his outstanding players
down through the years Thornton said it would be unfair,
for he’d surely leave some out.
Inspection Os
Prisons Begins
ATLANTA (PRN) - State
Health director Dr. John H.
Venable today returned from
a brief capitol meeting with
Gov. Lester Maddox and set
into motion the necessary
procedures to implement the
governor’s requested
“re-inspection” of the state’s
prison branches and public
work camps by state and local
health department inspectors.
In July of 1967, the Health
Department - at the request of
then Board of Corrections
director Asa D. Kelley - made
a detailed check of health and
sanitation condition at all of
the state’s prison facilities.
In the new report
promised to the governor by
Jan. 15 Dr. Venable
indicated that these factors
will be included:
what improvements have
been made;
what reported 1967
inadequacies have not been
corrected;
any sanitation conditions
that may have changed from
“good” to “unacceptable;”
improvements in process.
Dr. Venable said that
inspections will begin “next
week.” He indicated that the
prison checks will be made by
state and sanitary engineers,
usually working in teams. “In
our inspections,” the health
director said, “we will not use
local inspectors in districts
where they normally work.”
He added that such an effort
would give “more objectivity”
to the inspection reports.
Dr. Venable said that - as in
the 1967 effort - the
inspection teams would check
food preparation, bedding,
ventilation, insect and rodent
control, clothing and water
supply.
Birth
Mr. and Mrs. Ralph Wilkes
of Pembroke R.F.D. announce
the birth of a daughter Wilma
Darlene in the Bulloch County
Hospital December 29th. The
baby weighed 7 lbs. 3 ozs.
Maternal grandparents are
Mr. and Mrs. Edgar Barnard
of Pembroke and paternal
grandfather is Mr. Delbert
Wilkes of Pembroke, R.F.D.
“1 had many, many outstanding boys. But 1 can name
some who went on to play college ball, each of whom did
real well in college. There was Jimmy Parker and Bo Warren,
four years at Georgia Southern (now coach at Jesup);
Gene Wells, two years at Brewton Parker and two more at
Stetson University, where he set school scoring records at
both places (now coaching at Johnson County in Wrights
ville); Chapman, who played at Auburn three years on the
varsity and Wendell Stuart, my only big boy at 6’7” who
played four varsity seasons at Abilene Christian out in
Texas where freshmen are eligible. Wendell was the most
courageous athlete I ever coached. And I had Everett (Sig)
Gordon, who had a small leg, crippled by polio, but who
earned a scholarship at Brewton Parker, where he played
varsity basketball. Gordon was so competitive and so
determined to overcome his handicap, he actually became
one of the faster boys on the team through work, work,
work and more work,” the coach reminisced. Gordon
coached for two years at Lumber City where he led one
team into the state meet.
MANY GREAT MOMENTS
Great moments were many for Blakely.
“In that championship game in 1961 Marion County had
us by seven points with two minutes and 17 seconds left
in the game. Some of our fans started leaving the place
but our boys caught fire and we won the state title by one
point. Some Ludowici folks heard about it on their car
radio and came back in to join the celebration. Marion
County had two free throws with two seconds to play
and down by one. The Marion shooter missed the first one.
I called time out to let it, I hoped, get him a bit nervous
studying about the second one, and he missed it too. One
of our six-foot boys went clean over that rim to get the
rebound for us and preserved the win. I’ve got the tape of
the broadcast and the announcer said my boy went up over
that rim and I can still see him doing it.
“That was my greatest thrill.
“I remember playing in the upstairs of the Hinesville
National Guard Armory where the ceiling was real low. We
beat them one year there when Bo Warren shot a low, line
drive type shot to keep from hitting the ceiling, from the
center line, to win the game as the buzzer sounded.
“Our big rivalries over the years have been with Hines
ville and Glennville, and I remember that even when Wade
and Dale Fillingame were in Hinesville and they had such
height we'd manage to split with them each year, and in one
of those Bo Warren years we beat them in the district finals
to go to state.
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Our way pays dividends.
Mortimer used to hide all his money in the mat
tress. But then he realized he could be earning
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now, Mortimer's sharing in a grand total divi
dend of $324,014.00 for the past six months.
Your savings can earn dividends like that, too,
at First Federal, where small accounts are es
pecially welcome.
RUNNERS-UP
“Another high point came in 1950 when we were state
runnerup to Irwinville. In our first game up theie we were
™w„ by IS in ibe third period, .nd the <oppo™.;
was so sure of the win he began putting in his subs, and we
began pressing and went on to win.
“Comebacks always please me most
“When Wendell Stuart was here I thought we tad tta
best Class C team in the state. In the distnct fin^l tad
one of my biggest disappointments whet. Adnan and
Ludowici went into six overtimes with Adnan fmDy
winning That is 18 extra minutes of play, and
was tired, especially my big boy. Adnan went on to tta
state final and even though they scored nine more field
goals than the opponent they did not nng a free। ttaow
and lost the state by one point. Keith Faulkner wh
played at CMC, was little and could go all night, I do
believe, beat us out of that region title and probably tta
state championship.
MIGHTY HAPPY .™ a n v
“I’ve enjoyed every game, every season and especially
every win. The people of Long County have been good to
me. It has been a mighty happy 3214 years foi
I’m grateful to all my players for the sacrifices they rtade
and the dedication they displayed, for that s what trade i
a happy and right successful time for me," concluded Coach
Thornton, who then hastened to add, "And if you can, try
to mention that the press sure has been kind to me, too.
EDITOR’S NOTE—We are carrying this story of Blakely
Thornton who we have always looked upon as a Pembroke
boy, he having lived here 4 years when nothing but a
“youngun,” his father the Kev. J. A. Thornton was
pastor of The Methodist Church in Pembroke for 4 years,
aid it was during that time that we learned to know
and like the Thorntons. They were here at the time of
Ye Editors father was ill and died, and Rev. Thornton
was faithful to our family during these trying times,
and if for no other reason, we have always felt very
close to the Thornton family and have enjoyed seeing
Blakely at the various games, when our teams “collided
he's a son of a Methodist Preacher and Robert (Red)
Bowers, a son of a Christian preacher. We wish Blakely
the best of luck in the years ahead. He is a fine young
man, a great coach and an outstanding citizen in any
community.—F.O.M.
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