Jon Voight will join a very short list of actors on Oct. 16.
He will join Gary Busey, Tom Berenger and Sonny Shroyer as actors who have played Paul “Bear” Bryant in a feature film. Busey played the legendary Alabama coach in the 1984 bio-pic The Bear while Shroyer played Bryant in Forrest Gump. Berenger played Bryant in the ESPN production of The Junction Boys.
Voight will be the fourth actor to play Coach Bryant when Woodlawn is released on Oct. 16. I can’t wait to see it.
Woodlawn is based the on the real-life story about love and unity in a school torn by racism and hate in the 1970s.
According to the official movie website, “In 1973, a spiritual awakening captured the heart of nearly every player of the Woodlawn High School football team, including its coach, Tandy Gerelds. Their dedication to love and unity in a school filled with racism and hate leads to the largest high school football game ever played in the torn city of Birmingham, Ala. and the rise of its first African-American superstar, Tony Nathan.”
Nathan went on to do great things at the University of Alabama and was a featured back in Bryant’s wishbone attack. I have a picture of the 1978 national championship team hanging in my office. Nathan played on that team and is still considered one of the best running backs at the Capstone. He was the captain of the 1978 team and finished with 1,997 career rushing yards.
After college, Nathan played nine seasons for the Miami Dolphins and Don Shula, another legendary coach.
Paul “Bear” Bryant was my hero growing up and I am a fan of college football because of him. I found some interesting quotes about “The Bear” and by “The Bear” on the Internet. Sept. 11 was the day he was born and in honor of this being his birth month, here are some of those quotes:
“His nickname was Bear. Now imagine a guy that can carry the nickname Bear.” – Former Alabama quarterback Joe Namath
“Paul Bryant was just tougher than the rest of us. That, plus his ability to make everybody believe in him, made his teams hard to beat.” – Former Texas coach Darrell Royal
“He wasn’t just a coach. He was the coach.” – Former USC coach John McKay
“I thought this must be what God looks like.” – Pro Football Hall of Famer George Blanda, who played for Bryant at Kentucky
“Bryant can take his’n and beat your’n, and then he can turn around and take your’n and beat his’n.” – Former NFL coach Bum Phillips
“If not for Osama bin Laden, Sept. 11 would only be remembered as Bear Bryant’s birthday.” – Actor and former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson on a Law & Order episode
“Never quit. It is the easiest cop-out in the world. Set a goal and don’t quit until you attain it. When you do attain it, set another goal, and don’t quit until you reach it. Never quit.” – Paul “Bear” Bryant
“It’s not the will to win that matters — everybody has that. It’s the will to prepare to win that matters.” – Paul “Bear” Bryant
“I’ll never give up on a player regardless of his ability as long as he never gives up on himself. In time he will develop.” – Paul “Bear” Bryant
“If wanting to win is a fault, as some of my critics seem to insist, then I plead guilty. I like to win. I know no other way. It’s in my blood.” – Paul “Bear” Bryant
“In a crisis, don’t hide behind anything or anybody. They’re going to find you anyway.” – Paul “Bear” Bryant
“You take those little rascals, talk to them good, pat them on the back, let them think they are good and they will go out and beat the biguns.” – Paul “Bear” Bryant
“Mama wanted me to be a preacher. I told her coachin’ and preachin’ were a lot alike.” – Paul “Bear” Bryant
Ben Barkley is the managing editor of the Snyder Daily News. He has covered news and sports for more than 20 years in Louisiana and Texas. Comments about his column can be emailed to barkley@snyderdailynews.com.