Coach Erk Russell is more than the statue that stands in front of the entrance to Paulson Stadium. He is a true legend, the real “bald eagle” of Georgia Southern who made us the football powerhouse we are today. He would be turning 89 this week, if he were still around. Here is a breakdown about our university's hero.
The winner.
Before coming to Georgia Southern he developed the "Junkyard Dawg" defense for the University of Georgia, taking the team to win the NCAA Division 1-A national championship in 1980. He then formed a football team out of nothing for us in 1981 and by the second competitive season in 1985 the Eagles had claimed their first national championship for Division I-AA. By the time Erk retired after the 1989 season we had just become the first college team to go 15-0 and were up to three national championship titles!
Creator of traditions.
When he arrived at GSU we had not fielded a football team in over 40 years and as a result were were lacking the rich culture, pride, and tradition we now have. He coined the term "Beautiful Eagle Creek" for the drainage ditch next to the football practice fields and when we would travel, Erk would carry a jug of the Eagle Creek water to sprinkle on the opposing team's field for good luck. Those famous old yellow school buses that the football team has used to get to the fields since the 80s were the result of a deal the coach struck with the Bulloch County School System to sell them for $1 because of a lack of funds. Lastly, after every win Erk would light up a fat victory cigar.
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The motivator.
What gave Erk Russell such success was his style of coaching. He was the kind of man a player didn’t want to disappoint; coaching with tenacity, zeal, and charisma. He would come up with gimmicks like shirts that had a big "TEAM" and a little "me," he had a motto that was to do it "one more time," and the acronym G.A.T.A. meaning "Get After Their Ass."
Russell was a player, he was known to take part in the tackling drills before games; the team was wearing full pads, he was not. This left the coach with a bloody forehead during many games. Erk was not a scary or intimidating man, but he once filled the entire team with fear shortly after an overdose death of Len Bias when he let loose an angry rattlesnake in the locker room. He warned the team: “Men, when you saw these drugs on this table you were curious. You gathered around and looked. You made jokes. But I want you to remember the rattlesnake. If you react to drugs like you reacted to that snake, you’ll never have a drug problem.” To this day the more I learn about Erk, the more I realize that every one of my high school football coaches look up to him and try to mimic his coaching strategy.
Passion for GSU.
Erk loved Georgia Southern and Statesboro; in fact, he stayed in our quiet little town until his sudden death in 2006. Being the underdog was a title that Erk wore with pride, and he had his work cut out in building a program for us. His retirement speech really wraps up the devotion for Georgia Southern University: "I'm gonna say it one more time. We're Georgia Southern. Our colors are blue and white. We call ourselves the Bald Eagles. We call our offense the Georgia Power Company... and that's a terrific name for an offense. Our snap count is 'rate, hike'. We practice on the banks of Beautiful Eagle Creek and that's in Statesboro, Ga. -- the gnat capital of America. Our weekends begin on Thursday. The co-eds outnumber the men 3 to 2. They're all good looking and they're all rich. And folks, you just can't beat that... and you just can't beat Georgia Southern. And you ain't seen nothin' yet!"
When he retired in 1989 he was right, we ain't seen nothin' yet, and since then GSU has gone on to win three more national championships and eleven conference championships. I believe that the coach’s legacy is still a primary reason why Georgia Southern football rocks. When we travel up to Athens this fall to take on the Dawgs, you can bet I will be toting along a jug of that Beautiful Eagle Creek water for old Erk.
