Who’s who list of coaches, players team up for special night in Alabama
By Al Blanton
Published:
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — An eager, 26-year-old assistant coach at Alabama was working late in the evening when coach Gene Stallings stuck his head in the office doorway. The assistant — young, recently married, and full of vinegar for his new job — was going over tape and preparing for an 8 o’clock staff meeting the following morning. Stallings looked down upon his young prodigy, furrowed his brow, and said, “Hey, what are you doin’ here?”
Wanting to impress his coach, the assistant began to brag about all of the work that was getting done. Stallings was unimpressed.
“Let me tell you something,” Stallings continued, his ten-gallon voice laden with severity. “Don’t ever let me catch you in this office again. You’ve got a bride. You go home to your bride. I don’t care what time you come in, but when we’re done, you go home.”
Although these gruff instructions were difficult to hear, this moment made a profound impact on the former Alabama assistant, who is now the head coach at Clemson University.
Dabo Swinney, wearing a windowpane suit and fielding questions from a cluster of reporters, recalls this story as he sits in a pressroom at the Renaissance Hotel & Spa in Montgomery, where, on this night, he is tapped as the keynote speaker at the 17th annual Jimmy Rane Foundation Banquet and Celebrity Golf Tournament, an event that has doled out over 350 scholarships — over $3 million in total aid — since its inception.
“Shoot, this is an unbelievable honor,” Swinney said when asked about the importance of being the keynote speaker. “This is a really neat event. I’ve done a lot of things, but this one’s kind of made me a little nervous.”
The theme for the event is “It’s About Giving Something Back,” and the guest list has grown significantly across the years.
“It’s been a fun time and gives us a chance to see some of our old coaching friends and rivals. It’s kind of like family.” — Vince Dooley
For this installment, the Foundation welcomed, in addition to Swinney, the following legends: R.C. Slocum, Vince Dooley, Frank Beamer, John Cooper, Johnny Majors, Bobby Humphrey, Gene Stallings, Ozzie Newsome, Carnell “Cadillac” Williams, Pat Dye, Bobby Cremins, Jason Campbell, Bruce Pearl, Ed “Too Tall” Jones, Antonio Langham, Ronnie Brown, Barry Krauss, Murray Legg, Gus Malzahn, Matt Stinchcomb, and Tyler Watts, among others.
Fans hoping to catch a glimpse of their favorite coach or player were afforded a time of drinks and fellowship before taking their stations in the banquet hall to hear Swinney’s address. Special guests entering fashionably late to the fete were the rock stars: Bo Jackson and Cam Newton.
To open festivities, guests were peppered with punch lines and the sarcastic banter of pals Wimp Sanderson and Sonny Smith, former basketball rivals turned co-Masters of Ceremonies. Former Auburn coach and current head basketball coach at Coastal Carolina, Cliff Ellis, followed with announcements and an introduction of Special Presentations, and student speaker and Rane Scholarship recipient Kylie Tumiatti preceded the recognition of the 2017 scholarship recipients, 34 in total.
“I think it’s rewarding to see all of these scholarship kids,” said Vince Dooley, former Georgia head coach and athletic director. “In fact, I met one who’s working for Jimmy (Rane) that’s a scholarship winner and she is really proud that she was a scholarship winner. So that makes it extra special.”
Beside the podium, former rivals sat on raised platforms and shared tales across a surf-and-turf dinner. If their relationships were once adversarial, you wouldn’t have guessed it on this evening. “It’s been a fun time and gives us a chance to see some of our old coaching friends and rivals,” Dooley added. “It’s kind of like family.”
“When you show up, you see guys you competed against or coaches,” Swinney said. “It’s kind of like a fraternity. We’re all on the same page, on the same team, for the same purpose.”
Rane, the chairman, president, and CEO of Great Southern Wood Preserving and President of the Jimmy Rane Foundation, also commented on the camaraderie of the event. “We probably ought to call this the coaches’ and players’ foundation,” Rane joked. “I think they enjoy being together, but I think they really enjoy seeing their work go to great causes. They enjoy being around the kids, and they enjoy being around each other. And they’ve got all kinds of tales and stories. You can tell it’s all genuine.”
Each year, the Foundation receives thousands of applications from students in 24 states, and the recipients join their families at the annual banquet to formally receive their scholarship. “We’ve been very blessed in that the Foundation continues to grow every year,” Rane said. “We are going to raise right at $800,000 tonight.”
Bobby Humphrey, former running back for Alabama and the Denver Broncos, seemed to put a bow on the night’s events. “Sports is only for a short period of time,” Humphrey said, “and it’s just a game. And that game is over in a matter of sixty minutes. Life is a continuation.”
Humphrey’s comments were particularly meaningful after Stallings was hospitalized later in the evening with a mild stroke. Sports, while important, pales in comparison to life, so these men will admit.
Swinney says that Stallings’ words from over 20 years ago still resonate with him today.
“It’s something I’ve always carried with me, something I’ve instilled in our program,” Swinney said. “I’ll never, ever forget it.”
Al Blanton is the owner of Blanton Media Group, publishers of 78 Magazine and Hall & Arena.
