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said Rutledge. Relationships We have no records of past relationships for Jeff Rutledge. "People drove up, saw the lines outside and just went on by. I wanted him to have his degree. "Each gate had four openings in it for four lines of people," Garrett says, "but it still obviously wasn't enough.". Nathan, who wore number 22, went through as many as a dozen jerseys in some games. They know they're going to get presents when they see me. Banks quarterback Jeff Rutledge, who would later lead Alabama to a national championship and play on two Super Bowl-winning teams, and Woodlawn running back Tony Nathan, who would become Rutledge's teammate at Alabama and go on to play in two Super Bowls of his own, were the marquee attractions. Tony Nathan holds his youngest brother, Cedric, after he announces in December 1974 that he will attend the University of Alabama. "We let them run and play," Tony's father, whom the family calls "Pops," says. We will update Jeff Rutledge's Height, weight, Body Measurements, Eye Color, Hair Color, Shoe & Dress size soon as possible. So, when Tony was in the 10th grade, and he came home one day and told his mother he had left the Woodlawn High School football team, she replied, in no uncertain terms, no, he had not. His most notable play with the Giants came in Super Bowl XXI in the third quarter. "It wasn't hard to grab a piece of it. It wasn't anything boastful for him. He played college football at Alabama, where he was the team's starting quarterback for their 1978 National Championship victory, and was selected by the Los Angeles Rams in the ninth round of the 1979 NFL Draft. ", Woodlawn's Tony Nathan ran for 112 yards and scored a touchdown in the 1974 Banks-Woodlawn game, but Banks linebacker Greg Muse was all over him all night long. He completed 30 of 42 p*es for 363 yards and a touchdown and rushed for 12 yards for the game-tying touchdown with only 24 seconds remaining. Some of the choices Jeff Rutledge made during his journey to become an NFL assistant coach were difficult. He also led the Crimson Tide to two Sugar Bowl appearances and two SEC Championships. He was a basketball guy.". "He wasn't too pleased," Nathan recalls. (Photo courtesy of Tony Nathan). They included touchdown passes of 29, 20 and 43 yards. Rutledge spent most of his career as a back-up quarterback and a holder on kicks. Some of our partners may process your data as a part of their legitimate business interest without asking for consent. "'And you told me you didn't want me to play this game. ", The Banks players huddle around head coach Shorty White during the 1974 Banks-Woodlawn game at Legion Field in Birmingham. Jeff Rutledge, of Newport, represents the White River and his term expires in 2024. Rutledge played collegiately at Alabama, where he was a member of three SEC Championship teams under Coach Paul "Bear" Bryant. Plan B was the system under which each N.F.L. He was the starting quarterback on the 1978 National Championship team. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (each updated 1/26/2023). Mike Perez was waived Tuesday, leaving Rutledge as the only other quarterback on the roster. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. "It was supposed to be a quick pass but somebody got in there and almost sacked Jeff. His breakout moment came against Montgomery's Robert E. Lee Generals, when, late in the game, he scooped up a fumble and ran 38 yards for the winning touchdown. ''The first game Phil Simms goes down, they've got to get a quarterback. No One Else Wanted Him. He had left the University of Alabama in the spring of 1979 without a diploma. The night before the game, Stearns says, members of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes chapters from both teams gathered for a joint meeting at Woodlawn. I will make you that promise. Almost assuredly, Nathan would not be the featured character in the upcoming movie "Woodlawn," which opens nationwide on Oct. 16, and most definitely, he would not have written a book, "Touchdown Tony: Running With a Purpose," which comes out Tuesday. When he retired from football, Nathan also got into coaching - first with the Dolphins and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and then at Florida International University. "It was time for people to actually get along -- no matter what race or color you were," he says. The four of them -- Baumhower, Nathan, Stephenson and McNeal -- played in two Super Bowls together, but the Dolphins lost both games, to the Redskins in Super Bowl XVII and the 49ers in Super Bowl XIX. Horgan III, Jeff Hart, Jim Rutledge of Canada, Gary Hallberg and Jeff Freeman pose together with their Qualifying cards during the Champions Tour. White is now retired and living with his wife, June, in Helena. 100.00 Down Payment and Houses with No Credit Check. Trailing 35-14 with 10:37 left in the third quarter Rutledge replaced an ineffective Stan Humphries and led a great comeback. Jeff is an experienced communications and public affairs professional with more than a decade working in government and the private sector. Continue with Recommended Cookies. Jerry McDonald, a split end and defensive back, turned down college football offers and decided to play baseball instead after he was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates. That was Laura Holmes, whom Rutledge later met when his Fellowship of Christian Athletes adviser suggested that he ask her to go with him to the team banquet following his freshman year at Alabama. After seven seasons at Vanderbilt, Rutledge became the head coach at Montgomery Bell Academy, a school for seventh to 12th grade boys in Nashville. "That was neat, that she had just come up (for the game), not knowing anything that was going to happen years later," Rutledge says. Simms is the Giants' starter and Jeff Hostetler is No. "I wanted some kind of meat to serve him," William Nathan remembers. Their two-year reign as 4A state champs also ended with a 12-0 shutout loss to eventual champion Homewood in the first round of the playoffs. He was part of a team that earned back-to-back state titles at L. Frazier Banks High School in Birmingham, Alabama. His brother Gary Rutledge was also a quarterback at Alabama from 1972 to 1974. So I ended up saying, 'Thanks, coach, but no thanks.' There was no mortgage. By Frank Litsky, Special To the New York Times. In 2006, the Birmingham Board of Education decided to close the deteriorating middle school, too, saying it was unsafe and an eyesore. He is currently single. Woodlawn never beat Banks during Nathan's three years on the varsity. Jeff Rutledge was born on January 22, 1957 in Birmingham, Alabama, USA. View popular celebrities life details, birth signs and real ages. William Nathan, who worked as millwright at Connors Steel in Birmingham, made his son Tony his first football by stitching together a strip of Naugahyde and stuffing it with rags and cotton balls. "Well, Shula knew what talent was," Nathan says. Unfortunately, he doesn't remember anything about it. His finest moment as a professional player came when as a member of the Redskins he came off the bench in a game versus the Detroit Lions in 1990. (Photo courtesy of Tony Nathan). Add to that the fact that, back in those days, only one team from each region made the state playoffs. But, Knoxville, too, was a little too far from home for Nathan. Wore number 17 for the New York Giants. Nathan played on the B-team his freshman year, and by his sophomore season, he earned a spot on the Woodlawn varsity as the starting free safety on defense. (Photo courtesy of Banks High School Facebook page). On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Six years later, he led the Tigers to an undefeated 15-0 season and a 4A state championship. Where was Jeff Rutledge born? Also learn how He earned most of networth at the age of 63 years old? Banks coach Shorty White had assigned Muse to shadow Woodlawn's Nathan everywhere he went, and although Nathan finished with 112 yards on 31 carries, Muse was all over him most of the night. "It was weird," he says. "The touchdown was a busted play," he recalls. His net worth has been growing significantly in 2021-2022. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. "You go through life carrying that (lesson): If you start it, you better try to be the best at it, and finish what you've got to finish," he adds. So I had never beaten them.". Louise Nathan roasted a raccoon that her husband, an avid hunter whom friends called "Coon Man," had bagged on one of his late-night coon hunts, and they invited Bryant to have dinner with them. Description above from the Wikipedia article Jeff Rutledge, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia. "They had the best running back in the state and we had the best quarterback," former Banks head coach George "Shorty" White remembers. And since Banks and Woodlawn were in the same region -- and both were competing in 4A, which was then the largest high school classification in the state -- only one of them would advance. American football player and coach (born 1957), Alabama Crimson Tide starting quarterbacks, Washington Commanders starting quarterbacks, 1978 Alabama Crimson Tide footballAP national champions, Alabama Crimson Tide football yearly statistical leaders, History of the New York Giants (19791993), "High School Football Database - All-American (Parade 1974)", "Jeff Rutledge Named as Football Head Coach - Valley Christian High School", "NFL vet Rutledge returning as high school coach", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jeff_Rutledge&oldid=1134094507, High school football coaches in Tennessee, Coaches of American football from Alabama, Players of American football from Birmingham, Alabama, Articles with dead external links from October 2010, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 17 January 2023, at 00:15. Meanwhile, Woodlawn High School stands majestically in the same location on First Avenue North, just like it has since 1922, and the football team is still sending players to the NFL, including Chris Davis, the Auburn cornerback who was the last-second hero of the 2013 Iron Bowl. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (each updated 1/26/2023). Bold denotes league leader. He was a backup in Super Bowl XIV as a member of the Los Angeles Rams, he was a backup to Super Bowl MVP Phil Simms in Super Bowl XXI as a member of the New York Giants, and was a backup in Super Bowl XXVI as a member of the Washington Redskins. And to himself. The year before, Logan had coached at rural Locust Fork High School in Blount County. After the Tide slipped to an uncharacteristic 9-3 in Nathan's sophomore season -- Alabama's worst record in his four years there -- the team bounced back to go 11-1 and finish runner-up to national champs Notre Dame in 1977 and to go 11-1 again and win it all in 1978. I don't know exactly when, but I'll do it.'". Gosh, that game was 40 years ago, which is unbelievable.". So I've never come to camp feeling confident I'd be in place. That year, the Cardinals made a late season run and earned a Super Bowl berth, but lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers, 27-23. (Photo courtesy of Tony Nathan). A month ago, Jeff and Laura Rutledge decided that today would be Reunion Day, the day Laura and their three children would leave their home in Mission Viejo, Calif., and fly east to join Jeff for the winter. He played college football at Alabama, where he was the team's starting quarterback for their 1978 National . . This week, Birmingham filmmakers Jon and Andrew Erwin began shooting a movie, "Woodlawn," which takes place during Nathan's days at Woodlawn High School and focuses in on that 1974 Banks-Woodlawn game. "I don't even know if he realized how good he was back then. On October 2, 2019, his wife gave birth to a daughter. He would just tear it off and throw it up in the crowd. "And I didn't like that. So you go all out and do what you can do just to fit in.". The night after that chat, in an exhibition game against the Kansas City Chiefs, Rutledge completed all 8 of his passes for 156 yards. Rutledge would never start an NFL game again but he did see spot duty in relief of returning starter Mark Rypien in the Redskins 1991 Super Bowl Championship season, including some playing time in the Skins last game of the regular season, again against the Philadelphia Eagles. "I was like, 'All right, it's that time.'". | Learn more about Jeff . "We have, I think, one of the best alumni associations in the NFL," Nathan says. "It was a culmination of really four years of building up to that point," Woodlawn quarterback Denny Ragland remembers. "Greg was not very big but he had a huge heart and he gave Tony fits that night. On Sunday, the Jets lost their backup, Pat Ryan, for at least six to eight weeks with a sprained knee. White says he was assured by the Legion Field crew that it would be able to handle the crowd. "I knew some of those guys, and I'm like, 'Why would y'all be out here in the hot sun watching freshman football?'" "All three kids were raised here. Although Woodlawn had history on its side, Banks, by 1974, had the upper hand on the football field, winning state titles in 1965, 1972 and 1973 - all under Shorty White's leadership. "They all looked at me like, 'OK, don't you think it's your time?'" While Nathan ran for 112 yards and scored a touchdown that night, the Colonels lost to the Jets 18-7, with Rutledge completing eight of nine passing for 185 yards and a touchdown. Rutledge, first, and then Stan Humphries were knocked out of the game, leaving emergency quarterback Brian Mitchell (a kick returner and former college quarterback) to finish the game. Jeff Rutledges income source is mostly from being a successful Player. When the other team did not pick up on Rutledge, he took the snap and did a sneak up the middle for yardage that gave the Giants a first down that would eventually lead to a go-ahead score. (Sugar Jets was a reference to a brand of cereal from the 1950s and '60s.). It was Geralds, Nathan would say later, who talked him out of quitting football, and for that, Nathan remained forever grateful. Jeff Rutledge takes a breather during the 1974 Banks-Woodlawn game at Legion Field in Birmingham. "I wanted to go home. It's tough for me to tell her to wait. The consent submitted will only be used for data processing originating from this website. He finished his college career with a 33-5 record as a starter, which currently ranks him as the University of Alabama's seventh all-time winningest quarterback. He was a backup in Super Bowl XIV as a member of the Los Angeles Rams, he was a backup to Super Bowl MVP Phil Simms in Super Bowl XXI as a member of the New York Giants, and was a backup in Super Bowl XXVI as a member of the Washington Redskins. He received his degree from Alabama in Business Administration and in 2011, was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame. There are 90+ professionals named "Jeff Rutledge", who use LinkedIn to exchange information, ideas, and opportunities. (Birmingham News file/Charles Nesbitt). That game meant that Rutledge got the nod to start the following week on Monday Night against the Philadelphia Eagles in a game that was to become infamously known as the "Body Bag Game". "I didn't have to worry about cutting grass because they played all the time.". (Birmingham News file/Robert Adams). Rutledge earned MVP honors at the 1978 Sugar Bowl and also earned All-SEC honors in 1978 and 1979.[4]. Gerelds, recognizing Nathan's underutilized potential, thought he needed to have the ball in his hands more often and moved him to offense his junior year.Before the start of that 1973 season, something else happened that changed the Woodlawn football team's fortunes. Tony is a very revered guy here in our community, here in our church community.". "That's what I always wanted. His brother Gary Rutledge was also a quarterback at Alabama from 1972 to 1974. When the teams ran back onto the field for the third time, the lower bowl of Legion Field was practically full. Perhaps that epic 1974 showdown at Legion Field between Birmingham high-school heavyweights Woodlawn and Banks would have been just another Friday night football game. Once the game did start, Banks built an 18-0 lead on a pair of 21- and 16-yard touchdown runs by fullback Jerry Murphree and a 32-yard TD pass from Rutledge to Grefseng, who also doubled as a back-up tight end. "We were out there playing in the mud and the rain," Woodlawn's Ragland says. At 65 years old, Jeff Rutledge height not available right now. "I came to stay until Tony makes up his mind," Bryant replied. Trivia (4) Quarterback for the Los Angeles Rams (1979-1981), New York Giants (1983-1989) and Washington Redskins (1990-1992). "Up until my eighth-grade year, I had been going to Banks games all my life, watching Jeff Rutledge's older brother, Gary, and Johnny Musso play,'' Ragland says. At the age of 32, starting his 11th season as a National Football League quarterback, Rutledge was not sure he would make the. Jeff Rutledge, Nathan's old rival from Banks, was now his teammate, quarterbacking the Tide. If all of the gates had been open, they would have had 60,000 people.". (Birmingham News file/Charles Nesbitt). "I played with older guys, and I wanted to be able to play on their level," Nathan says. Woodlawn students used to yell, ''Rip those Sugar Jets," which was a reference to this brand of cereal. Something like that. Probably, Tony Nathan never would have gone on to play for Paul "Bear" Bryant at the University of Alabama, and without him, it's possible the Crimson Tide might not have won that 1978 AP national championship. Jeffrey Ronald Rutledge (born January 22, 1957) is a former American football quarterback and coach who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons. are hard-pressed to remember the final score. The next year, I was on injured reserve. ''But this is tough on the family. He resigned in the Spring of 2012 to return to Arizona to spend time with his family. He was part of a team that earned back-to-back state *les at L. Frazier Banks High School in Birmingham, Alabama. As a senior, he was a member of the 1974 Parade High School All-American team. He is now a bailiff for Miami-Dade County Court Judge Edward Newman, a former Dolphins teammate. The athletic teams at Banks adopted the name Jets, and in 1961, the Alabama Air National Guard loaned the school a Korean War-era F-86D Sabre jet, which was painted in the school colors of Columbia blue and scarlet and prominently displayed on campus, making it an inviting target for practical jokers from rival schools. Last year, Nathan was inducted into the Dolphins' Walk of Fame, immortalized alongside such legendary Dolphins as Dan Marino, Bob Griese, Paul Warfield, Larry Csonka and Nick Buoniconti in the sidewalk outside Miami's Sun Life Stadium. An estimated 42,000 people poured into Legion Field that night -- a state high-school attendance record that still stands -- but as big as the game was, just as many people were curious to see its two superstars, Woodlawn's Nathan and Banks' Rutledge. "It touched me," he says. In the spring of 2007 Rutledge got his first NFL coaching job when he was hired as quarterbacks coach with the NFL's Arizona Cardinals, with direct charge over Kurt Warner. Former Buyer/Planner at Rutledge Properties LLC. Drafted in the ninth round of the 1979 NFL Draft (246th overall pick) by the Los Angeles Rams, Rutledge played in 14 NFL seasons from 1979 to 1992 for three different teams. That game meant that Rutledge got the nod to start the following week on Monday Night against the Philadelphia Eagles in a game that was to become infamously known as the "Body Bag Game". All rights reserved (About Us). ", In the lunchroom, the Woodlawn students would break into impromptu pep rallies, standing in their chairs and yelling, "Rip Jets, rip Jets, rip those Sugar Jets." Charles Tillman Rutledge, Jr. Boiling Springs, SC Charles Tillman Rutledge, Jr., 80, of 2558 Old Furnace Road, passed away Thursday, June 20, 2019, at Spartanburg Hospital For Restorative Care . His wife, Laura, a former Miss . The name still resonates in the state, especially since Jeff Rutledge was homegrown (Birmingham) and in 2011 was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame. According to our records, Jeff Rutledge is possibly single. Senior Consultant. They came out in such numbers that the start of the game had to be delayed twice so folks could work their way through the jammed Legion Field turnstiles. I knew it even before that, when Plan B came along.'' "I get to meet a ton of people -- lawyers, defendants, victims -- and they all are different," Nathan says. By Friday, the excitement was at full-tilt boogie. He was worn out, and he was just tearing the rest of his jersey off.". After playing in three college all-star games following his senior season, Nathan fell behind in his classes, and he was worried he might flunk out his spring semester. His parents met at the University of Arkansas, and when he was almost four his family moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He was a two-time all-state guard on the Woodlawn basketball team, and as a centerfielder and first baseman on the baseball team, he got drafted by the Montreal Expos. Jeff Rutledge Biography. He and his wife, Johnnie, who was his high school sweetheart at Woodlawn and his college sweetheart at Alabama, still live in the same house they bought in 1983. So they put the pressure on him, too. Jeffrey Hunter was born Henry Herman McKinnies Jr. on November 25, 1926 in New Orleans, Louisiana, an only child.