‘REMEMBER THE TITANS’ COACH DIES
Boone was portrayed by Denzel Washington
Herman Boone won a prep state championship with a newly integrated team as portrayed in a popular movie
Herman Boone, the title-winning, tough-as-nails Virginia high school football coach, portrayed by Denzel Washington in the 2000 biopic “Remember the Titans,” died Wednesday.
The North Carolina-born Boone was 84 years old. No cause of death was revealed, reported Washington-area outlet WPGC News.
Aly Khan Johnson, an assistant coach for Boone beginning in 1972, said the coach died Wednesday at his home in Alexandria, Virginia. Johnson said a funeral home operated by his wife is handling the arrangements, which are not complete. He said Boone had been battling cancer. Johnson said he had visited the coach regularly and had planned to see him Wednesday when he learned of his death.
Boone assumed the football head coaching position at Virginia’s T.C. Williams High School in 1971 — the year Alexandria city’s high schools were integrated, according to USA Today. His team and its initial success was recognized as a galvanizing factor in helping bring the city through school consolidation.
“It is with great sadness that we share the sad news of the passing of former head football coach Herman Boone,” wrote the T.C. Williams High School Football Boosters in a Wednesday tweet.
During his first year at the helm, his Titans amassed a 13-0 record en route to a state championship. Much of “Remember the Titans” covers the team’s uphill battle to win the title over 15 allwhite teams. The Titans had to overcome vindictive opponents, racist coaches and crooked referees.
“We are truly saddened to hear of the death of Coach Herman Boone today,” stated the Alexandria City Public Schools in a Twitter post. “(The district) and (high school) community will never forget his contribution to bringing our city together post-segregation.”
Boone was fired in 1979 amid allegations of verbally and physically abusing his players, reported The Washington Post. The previous year, three of Boone’s assistant coaches threatened to step down unless Boone was removed as head coach.
One of those coaches, Bill Yoast — portrayed by Will Patton in “Remember the Titans” — who assisted Boone during the 1971 championship season, died in May at the age of 94.