continued from page County, maybe ….
continued from page
County, maybe in the state of Georgia.
In 1965, the Bulldogs got off to an encouraging start. The schedule was daunting—defending national champion Alabama in Athens, Michigan at Ann Arbor, FSU in Tallahassee, North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and Georgia Tech in Atlanta. Tough conference games with Vanderbilt, Kentucky, Florida and Auburn were also part of the challenge.
After getting up on Alabama 10-0, the Bulldogs fell behind 17-10 with time becoming of the essence in the fourth quarter. The staff had in pre-season talked about what to do in an emergency and came with a flea flicker play. At this point things were dire. A big play was sorely needed.
If you know anything about Georgia football history, you likely know the rest of the story. The flea flicker, which never worked in practice, was executed to perfection. The inimitable Dan Magill chronicled the play, “Moore to Hodgson to Taylor to Glory.” Quarterback Kirby Moore threw a short pass to the button hooking Pat Hodson, who shoveled the ball to halfback Bob Taylor, who went the distance, 73 yards. Moore’s two-point conversion pass to Hodgson was good enough for an 18-17 victory.
In the aftermath, there was the celebratory photo of the team taking Dooley off the field on their shoulders to shake hands with the legendary Alabama coach, Bear Bryant. The centerpiece of the prized photograph was “Smiley” Brantley. That is one of the greatest photos in UGA football history.
Football was fun for ol’ No. 61. He didn’t mind the grind a player had to go through during the week because of the opportunity to play between the hedges on Saturday. He loved his Bulldog days and was forever a doting alumnus. He was proud of his diploma and his letter jacket because of what each represented.
When he was honored in Athens in 2015 for postgraduate achievement by the UGA Chapter of the National Football Foundation, the nation’s largest chapter, Wayne brought his family and showed them where he had lived, where he played, and where he went to class. A good time was enjoyed by all.
I don’t think UGA has recognized a former letterman who was as appreciative as Wayne was. Without question, he was a “Damn Good Dawg.”
