Austin Lewter
Jefferson Jimplecute
Much has been celebrated about the 1984 State Champion Jefferson Bulldog football team.
But 25 years before that squad, Jefferson produced another State Championship.
The Central High School Lions went undefeated in 1969 en route to a State Championship.
Central was the all-black segregated high school.
The Lions posted some convincing victories that year and, more than five decades later, the community has not forgotten.
The surviving State Champion Lions were honored at WF Lockett Stadium in a pre-game ceremony Friday night.
Team members met at the Jefferson Community Center for a chance to reconnect, eat a great meal and enjoy talking about the good ole days prior to there their sideline appearance.
“We live in a strong-knit community that has a lot of history,” Alerman and event organizer Will Thomas wrote in a FaceBook post. “We are proud of this group of men’s accomplishments and want to make them feel appreciated and remembered!”
Assistant Coach Lonnie Taylor was unable to attend so organizers made arrangements to connect visit with him via video call.
He got a chance to speak and see each player.
It was heartwarming.
“ That’s the reason I hated to miss it,” said Victor Whitfield. “I remember most of those guys. I also remember they were good football players, and the coaching staff… We did not know it then, but we were surrounded by greatness—not only on the football field. When I looked at the picture [of the team] it was not lost on me—W.F. Locket Stadium.”
Sadly, 15 players, and head coach Fred A. Bonner, have passed on, but they were remembered with a Memory Tree in their honor.
Thomas organized the event with support and assistance from his wife Lucy, John Kelsey and Dave Johnson— among others.
The event was publicized by Facebook group “Revitalize Froggtown”— a grass roots initiative to celebrate Jefferson’s African American community and to encourage growth and business development.
“We live in a strong-knit community that has a lot of history,” Thomas wrote in a FaceBook post. “We are proud of this group of men’s accomplishments and want to make them feel appreciated and remembered!”
Players who were on hand and honored included Lloyd Weatherall, Lawrence Weathrall, Gerald Martin, Billy Young, Edward Drumgool, Hershell Pete, David Johnson, Johnny Green, Bobbie Weatherall, Charles Scott and Gary Randle.
The 1969 Central High Lions posted five shutouts— against Atlanta (36-0), Henderson (48-0), Kilgore (86-0), Longview (12,0) and Elysian Fields (56-0).
The also topped Jacksonville (54-44), Carthage (30-6), St. Augustine (42-8) and Crockett (60-12).