Former local coaches and their great impact on others

Coach Ray Tucker and his impact

It was a chance but pleasant meeting last week when I saw and spoke with Coach Ray Tucker. Coach Tucker has been on the local scene since 1979 when he came to Calhoun High from Rockmart to serve as head basketball coach.

As basketball coach and math teacher, the Lafayette native performed with dignity and grace for the years he coached at Calhoun and other schools in the area. It was with great pleasure I could listen to him teach his advanced math classes across the hall from my classroom at Calhoun High.

It was with admiration getting to observe his teams over the years and concluding Coach Tucker got as much from the talent on his team as anyone I had ever seen.

Coach Tucker has most recently served as head boys’ basketball coach at Gordon Central. He retired from the classroom a few years ago but continued to coach. When the 2017 season ended, the successful coach also concluded his coaching career. The Hall of Fame coach will now pursue other avenues, and it is suspected he will get in his golfing rounds. Coach Tucker also served as golf coach in a most productive way.

In parting after that meeting, I reflected on the great number of young people’s lives Coach Tucker had influenced and made an impact in a very positive way.

Every student or player who came his way was more prepared to face the future challenges of life in every area.

Other coaches who left outstanding impressions

Most are familiar with General Douglas MacArthur’s statement in his farewell speech to Congress when he said “Old soldiers never die, they just fade away.” It is sad but true of many who coach our young boys and girls.

Coaches leave the arena of battle and live in communities with new generations coming along. It doesn’t take long for the remembrance of those coaches’ actions on the athletic stage to completely, as General MacArthur said, “Fade away.”

Let me give attention to a few who live among us and were important factors in the athletic programs at various schools in Calhoun and Gordon County. I begin with Frank and Norris Hall (no relation).

Frank Hall: Coach Frank Hall never strayed far from home after his outstanding athletic career at Red Bud High School. Coach Hall began his teaching and coaching career at Calhoun High after graduating with a math degree from the University of Chattanooga. It was after he left Calhoun and went to Fairmount High in the early 1970s to begin a most impressive career while coaching the Fairmount girls for many years.

It was with pride he would discuss his teams and their efforts. Many years ago, I named as “Victory of the Year” his Fairmount team’s victory over Coach Bob Greeson’s Calhoun girls in the Red Bud Christmas Tournament. That “Victory of the Year” tag reigned supreme over victories of all local schools and in every sport.

It is one which surely occupies a place of pride and accomplishment in the mind of the coach and his girls. I hated for Calhoun to lose but I could feel good for Coach Hall.

Coach Hall stayed on the Fairmount scene until the high school program ended and their kids headed to the newly formed Gordon Central High.

Coach Hall and I both serve on the board of directors of the local Hall of Fame. We are the two oldest members and that allows us a view greater in scope of local athletic competition and competitors than anyone else. I must add that that even with our vision of great scope, it isn’t nearly complete.

Coach Frank Hall left a legacy of accomplishment and good at Fairmount High.

Norris Hall: I would call Coach Norris Hall the “Astro Kid” but I am going to deal with him from a local viewpoint. While Coach Frank Hall was coaching the Fairmount girls, Coach Norris was serving as coach of the boys’ team. Their stories are interesting and informative about great moments along their years of service.

Coach Norris Hall, like Coach Ray Tucker, is a native of Lafayette. He came to Gordon County and made us all aware of his teams and their accomplishments. He was consistent in the promotion of his players and their outstanding play.

One of the outstanding stories of local athletic completion is his Bulldogs’ outstanding performance in one of Calhoun High’s Christmas tournaments. Coach Hall directed his team deep into the brackets before losing to Northwest Georgia (Dade County) either in the semifinals or finals (I don’t remember which).

Norris Hall was a dedicated personality on the Fairmount athletic scene for years and his impact on his players and students will be felt for a long time.

Bill Smith and Hamp Alexander: Coach Bill Smith and Coach Hamp Alexander are two coaches who made impacts on so many young people in Calhoun and Gordon County. I sat down to write less than an hour ago and now I see my time (space) is up. I am not going to omit the outstanding contributions and efforts these two coaches made on our local scene. Next week, I will begin with a discussion of each of them and their impact on local athletics.

Incidentally, Frank Hall, Hamp Alexander, Bill Smith and this old writer all fall into the same age category – not exact, but close.