ATLANTA — The University of Georgia gave the public a chance Friday to honor a sports icon. Vince Dooley died last month at the age of 90. He served as head football coach and athletics director at UGA for decades.
Fans, friends and former players got a chance to pay their respects at a public service for Dooley at Stegeman Coliseum on UGA's campus.
Scott Woerner, Mike Fisher, Nathaniel Hudson, Chris Welton, Robert Miles and Frank Ros reflected on Dooley's impact on their lives and others. They were devastated to hear about Dooley's passing. Woerner, originally from Texas, said he met Dooley on the high school bleachers at his high school when he was being recruited.
"Going to play football for Coach Dooley at UGA was the smartest thing I ever did," Woerner, a former UGA safety, said. "The class we came in with in 1977, we went through the first losing season of Coach Dooley and four years later, we won a national championship. You never knew what Coach Dooley was thinking because it never showed on his face. He was always very stoic, kept everything close to the breast.”
Woerner said Dooley went from coach to teacher to mentor to friend in the 45 years he had known the late sports figure. Woerner said Dooley changed his life.
Hudson, a former offensive lineman, remembered Dooley for his coaching style, which was heavily influenced by his time in the U.S. Marine Corps. Despite antics regarding a certain hog and the team's seniors, Hudson said he appreciated the tough love Dooley consistently showed his players.
"He was going to get everything you got. His discipline made us what we were," Hudson said. "By following rules and knowing we had things to do, he always had the answer for us. If nothing else, he could work us until we found the answer. Coach Dooley wasn’t the kind of guy who wanted to just see you achieve one time. He wanted it all the time. He wanted you to go through life that way.”
Hudson credited Dooley with championing social advances, having recruited the first African-American football players and advocated for women's sports as athletics director.
"There are no more Coach Dooley’s," Hudson said. "They’re one of a kind, and we had the greatest time because we got to share some time with him.”
Fisher had a back-and-forth exchange as a former transfer to the football team and walk-on student-athlete. He noted how Dooley would empower players to become leaders and make decisions for themselves.
Dooley racked up accomplishments in 25 years as Georgia's head football coach. He amassed more than 200 wins, six SEC titles and a national championship in 1980. As athletics director, Dooley oversaw sports programs that won more than 20 national titles and dozens of conference titles. He is also a member of the College Football Hall of Fame, along with both the Georgia and Alabama Sports Hall of Fame.
Dooley's impact extended beyond the football field as well. Welton, a former linebacker, called Dooley a "Renaissance Man," having served with the UGA legend on the American Battlefield Trust Board. Welton said he and Dooley saw each other just a few weeks before his passing at Antietam.
“We were trying to get him to take it easy, and he just kept saying ‘I don’t know how many battlefields I’ve got left to walk,'" Welton said. "Everything he did, he pursued with a passion, a zest, a zeal. It’s not just this region, he’s a national figure and he’s raise the profile of the state. He has been a great ambassador for this state.”
Dooley was also an author, avid gardener, political candidate and statesman for the Peach State. In his passing, Dooley leaves behind a mark and legacy that will live on after him.
“Just cherish him versus mourning him, because we all would be lucky to live 90 years and have such a full life and so much curiosity and learning, then impact so many people – and not just individually but generationally," Ros said. “The best way to honor Coach Dooley is to be the best self you can be.”
"To be the coach that he was, but also the father, husband, administrator. All those different roles and how he handled those roles in a way that you want to emulate," Miles said. "Dooley left behind a legacy of not giving up, that there’s always hope and there’s always an opportunity for you to get better and contribute in some way. He left more than a thumbprint, a footprint. He left a heartbeat, a legacy."
You can watch Dooley's celebration of life event below: