Tribute to Coach Willie Jeffries

TRIBUTE TO COACH WILLIE JEFFRIES -- (Extensions of Remarks - November 17, 2004)

Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to a trailblazer, an athletic legend and a dear friend-Coach Willie Jeffries. Coach Jeffries has dedicated much of his extraordinary career to my alma mater, South Carolina State University in Orangeburg, South Carolina. But his impact has been felt far beyond that campus.

Coach Jeffries is a man of humble beginnings. He was born in Union, South Carolina. His widowed mother raised him in a two-room house in this segregated Southern town. Earning money by working various jobs at the local white-only country club, he got to see how the other side lived.

He graduated from South Carolina State University with a bachelor's degree in civil engineering and a master's degree in guidance and counseling. Having played football and baseball for the historically black college, Coach Jeffries secured coaching jobs at segregated high schools in Lancaster and Gaffney, South Carolina. After compiling a 6-year 65-7-2 record with three consecutive State AAA championships, North Carolina A&T came calling with an assistant coach's job, which started Coach Jeffries in college coaching. He was next lured to Pittsburgh as an assistant coach. There he tasted coaching against big-time college football schools such as Florida State, UCLA and West Virginia.

But when his alma mater sought him out, the 36-year-old Coach Jeffries jumped at the chance to come home and lead his beloved Bulldogs. In six seasons as his alma mater's head coach, he compiled a 50-13-4 record and became a hot prospect for other head coaching positions. It was an offer from Wichita State in Kansas that enticed Coach Jeffries to leave S.C. State. It was historic. Coach Jeffries became the first African American to serve as the head football coach of a predominantly white university. At Wichita State, he led a team that had lost 14 of its last 15 seasons to an 8-3 season after 4 years of rebuilding. After 5 years, he left the program, which later folded, and became the head coach for Howard University, where he spent another 5 years.

In 1989, another tug from S.C. State brought Coach Jeffries back to the place where his love of football began. He coached another 13 years, before retiring following the 2001 season to become the director of athletic fund raising for the Bulldogs. During his 29-year coaching career, Coach Jeffries amassed a 179-132-6 record. This tremendous record included six Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAL) championships, two national titles, several post-season appearances, and numerous coaching awards. He holds the title for the most wins of any S.C. State coach and the most MEAC victories.

Coach Jeffries has been inducted into the South Carolina State University Athletic Hall of Fame, the South Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame and the MEAC Hall of Fame. He has been honored with South Carolina's Order of the Silver Crescent, the State's highest award for community service. He has received the Black Coaches' Association Lifetime Achievement Award and is enshrined in the Palmetto State's Black Hall of Fame. Since 2002, he has served on the NCAA Football Rules Committee.

Mr. Speaker, I ask you and my colleagues to join me in commending Coach Willie Jeffries for his extraordinary contributions and courage. He is a legendary football coach that has touched many lives on and off the playing field. He is an inspiration to young people who aspire to rise above their current circumstances and even break barriers. This humble man from humble beginnings is a role model, a resilient leader, and a renowned motivator. In short, Coach Willie Jeffries is a national treasure.