Friday, Sept. 14, at Brewton Municipal Stadium will be a special night for T.R. Miller football’s past, present and even the future.
While the Tigers of 2012 will be playing for T.R. Miller, there will be no traditional T.R. Miller on the back of the jerseys.
Instead, current player Jones Manning’s specially-made black jersey will be playing for former Tiger Patrick Byrne; Josh Maloy will be playing for his dad Dwight; and Ashton Wilson will be playing for his uncle Dusty Wilson.
This will all be done because of the legacy of T.R. Miller football in a game called “The Legacy Game.”
So what is the legacy of T.R. Miller football?
There were good teams in the late 1930s and early 1940s with a couple of good teams in the 1950s. In the 1960s, they were the worst team in the state of Alabama. In 1961, T.R. Miller scored only 41 points and scored 26 in 1962. From 1960 to 1963 —four seasons —T.R. Miller won three games. In 1964, the wins for T.R. Miller increased to eight games.
Since 1964 — a span of 48 seasons— T.R. Miller has had only three losing seasons. There have been six state championships; five runner-ups and 22 teams have won 10 games or more. The Tigers were the winningest team in the 1990s and is currently the team with the most wins in the state of Alabama with 616. Deshler in second place has 610.
All that will be on showcase when the Tigers host the Excel Panthers this fall.
“The Legacy Game preparations are going great,” Riggs said. “I have been really amazed by the response we have got first off from our former players. A certain number of them are coming back for the game. Second, the players and the parents on the team went out and secured pledges for the game. Not only were the pledges for them but also for the players for anyone that has ever played football at T.R. Miller.”
As of right now, Riggs said he has over 450 pledges and there are still a couple of months until the game.
“I have just really been amazed by the response from all those people and the community in general,” he said. “We are really looking forward to it. Some of our players commented that I talked to said they are glad we are doing it and then they said what playing football has meant to them and how it has helped them with where they are today. Some of it is work ethic. Some of it is just learning with their jobs and families. That is nice to know that it has been an important part of their lives and not just about winning and losing games.”
So how will the game work?
A current Tiger will wear his jersey but it will have the name on the back of it that he is playing for. People can pledge money to anyone or in memory of anyone they want to. “We already have the jerseys in and they are ready to go,” Riggs said. “Then we will have a big roster with every pledge on it. Every one that has pledged in honor or memory of someone will be able to see it. I think it will be an exciting thing to come out with the jerseys on that night. I think it will be a pretty big deal to look at the roster and see somebody pledged money in your name. That they think enough of you to do that. Some have pledged $100 but have divided it among five people. It has been fun for me to read the pledges when they come in.”
Riggs said some past classes have pledged money in memory of some that have died in their classes.
“It has been a really good deal,” Riggs said. “We hope to do some other things. We will have a legacy shirt printed and ask the fans to wear it that night. The quarterback club has also made some Legacy Game caps and they are nice. They have TRM on it and the Legacy Game patch on the side. I hope to have a great turnout for the game. We hope a bunch of people will come out and the quarterback club will do their tailgate party also that night. Hopefully everyone will come out to the game and we can celebrate T.R. Miller football with a nice reunion.”
Riggs said pledges are still being taken for the game.
If you are interested in donating go to: http://thelegacygame.com/pledgenow.html for more information or send in donations to: T.R. Miller QB Club, P.O. Box 572, Brewton, Alabama, 36427