Love that Dooley accent
I talked to Vince Dooley, the grand old Georgia coach, on Tuesday for an upcoming story — he almost took the OU job in 1965 — and it was a treat. For one thing, Dooley’s accent is intoxicating. Many a red-blooded American has mentioned how sexy are the Dixie accents on the Southern belles that come our way, but no less charming are the country squires who speak a different brand of English. Dooley is from Alabama, but that’s right next door. Think about Frank Broyles, the greatest college football analyst ABC ever had. Broyles is a Georgian, and that classic Southern accent of his was a college football staple.
Dooley is a Georgia icon, having coached the Bulldogs to six SEC titles in 25 years and the 1980 national championship. Seems like every SEC school has an iconic coach. Bama has the Bear, of course. LSU has Charley McClendon, who coached there 18 years. Arkansas has Broyles, who coached 19 years in the Ozarks. Auburn has Shug Jordan, who coached there 25 years. Ole Miss has John Vaught, who coached there 25 years. Tennessee has Robert Neyland, the General who led the Vols for 27 years, and Johnny Majors, who coached Tennessee for 16 years. Plus Dooley. Think about. In 1970, virtually half the SEC was led by coaches who would be the biggest names in their school’s history — Bryant, Vaught, McClendon, Jordan and Dooley. And Tennessee was led by Bill Battle, who coached only seven years but won 72 percent of his games.
This is the kind of stuff that makes me love college football, and why I’m so fired up to go to Georgia this weekend. I’ve never been between the Hedges. Been to a women’s basketball tournament in Athens, the 1996 NCAA regional, but never a football game. I’ve been to Alabama and Tennessee, and both are spectacular environments. I’m anxious to see how Georgia compares.
Berry Tramel can be heard Monday through Friday from 4:40-5:20 p.m. on The Sports Animal radio network, including AM-640 and FM-98.1. You can e-mail him here and follow him on Twitter @BerryTramel.
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