BRYAN, TX -- The University of Alabama is honoring members of head coach Paul "Bear" Bryant's Texas A&M teams this weekend. 23 members of Bryant's 1954-57 Texas A&M teams will be recognized in a pregame ceremony on Saturday afternoon. In addition they will be honored at a reception at the Bryant Museum following the game.
Back in the summer Dennis Goehring made a simple phone call to Coach Bryant's son, Paul Jr., about going through the Bryant Museum before the game. That call as evolved into quite a weekend for the "Junction Boys".
"He calls me back the next week," Goehring says "And says I'll do one better than that. I'll get the athletic department and myself and we'll put on a reception for you guys and then we'll really have some fun, Then he went onto say the athletic department got so excited about all this they wanted to introduce you all before the game. And I said by-gosh isn't that going to be fun."
Six of Coach Bryant’s players at A&M eventually found their way to Alabama to pursue coaching careers including the late Bobby Marks, who was a Tide assistant coach from 1972 to 1982.
Darwin Holt was a fullback & linebacker who played at A&M in 1957, he then transferred to Alabama in 1959 and was a member of Alabama’s 1961 national championship team.
Bobby Drake Keith was a halfback at A&M and then joined Coach Bryant as a member of his football staff in 1958 and 59.
Dee Powell was a guard at A&M, and then followed Bryant to Alabama where he served on his staff for 20 seasons.
In 1957 John David Crow won A&M's only Heisman-trophy and later served as an assistant for the Tide from 1969 to 1971.
Gene Stallings played for Coach Bryant at A&M and then following his playing career at A&M, followed "The Bear" to Alabama, where he was an assistant coach for seven seasons. In 1965, he became head coach at Texas A&M for seven seasons, then was a long-time assistant for the Dallas Cowboys. After a stint as head coach of the St. Louis & Phoenix Cardinals, he served as Alabama’s head coach from 1990 to 1996, leading the Tide to the 1992 national championship following a Sugar Bowl win over Miami.
Saturday's game will kickoff at 2:30 from Bryant-Denny Stadium and will be televised by CBS Sports and can be seen in the Brazos Valley on KBTX.
