By Loyd McIntosh
The Third Annual Leadoff Dinner and Vestavia Hills Sports Hall of Fame ceremony drew a star-studded crowd, including keynote speaker Paul Finebaum, to the Vestavia Hills Civic Center on January 15. The evening culminated with the dedication of the new Vestavia Hills High School baseball complex in honor of longtime Alabama State Senator and Vestavia Hills resident J.T. “Jabo” Waggoner.
The event was spearheaded by Vestavia Hills City Councilman Rusty Weaver and emceed by longtime local sports television and radio personality Jim Dunaway. Also speaking was Gene Hallman, legendary sports entrepreneur responsible for the annual Senior PGA event at Greystone Golf and Country Club and for transitioning Birmingham into a viable sports event destination.
Hallman introduced Finebaum, recalling their first meeting during an interview at WAPI MAM 1070 in the early 1990s. He highlighted the humble environment from which Finebaum broadcast his show in those days, in contrast with his national success on ESPN, while having a little good-natured fun at his friend in the process. “I went into the studio, and literally, Paul had to turn sideways so I could sit down. The walls of the broadcast booth were soundproofed by shag carpet from the 1970s,” said Hallman. “Now, he is the face that’s made for radio, that’s the face of the ESPN’s SEC college football coverage. “When I first met Paul, he lived in a one-bedroom apartment in Irondale. Now, he lives in the biggest house in Mountain Brook.”
The first speaker of the night was current Vestavia Hills head baseball coach Jamie Harris. A 1996 graduate of Vestavia Hills, Harris played on several of the Rebels’ state championship teams in the 1990s under the late legendary coach Sammy Dunn.
Standing at the podium with images of the new baseball complex on the screen behind him, Harris said the new baseball stadium will carry on Dunn’s tradition of excellence while also honoring Senator Waggoner for his efforts representing Vestavia Hills during his long and distinguished career in the Alabama legislature. “When it’s done, it’s going to be fantastic. It’s going to be a great building that you’ll be proud of, and, even better, we’re getting to name it after a special man and a special family,” said Harris. “What has he not done for our community?
We’re honored that you’re here and that we’re getting to name a building after you. So, thank you for all you’ve done for us.”
Finebaum spun yarns from his 40-plus-year career covering sports. He remarked about his time covering Paul “Bear” Bryant during the twilight of his tenure at the University of Alabama, bookended by the Nick Saban era, and how lucky he has been to witness two of the greatest coaches in action. “I covered Coach Bryant at the very beginning of my career, and I remember saying to some people that I knew that it would never be like this again. I will never cover anyone as great as Paul Bryant,” said Finebaum. “Just about two years ago, I was sitting in my studio in Charlotte, when my producer started screaming in my ear. We went to the break, and when we came back, we had broken the story that Nick Saban was retiring at Alabama. I was wrong. I was actually able to cover the two greatest coaches in college football history.”
He went on adding anecdotes about his time covering former Auburn head coach Pat Dye, the craziness of the phone call with Harvey Updyke, in which he admitted to poisoning the oak trees at Toomer’s Corner, the 1984 “Wrong Way Bo” Iron Bowl and the collapse of the Crimson Tide on New Year’s Day to Indiana in the Rose Bowl. He added that the unpredictability of sports has been a hallmark of his career in sports media. “What is great about athletics? Unlike the WWE, it’s not staged,” Finebaum said. “You never know what you’re going to get. You don’t know if the greatest football player I’ve ever seen is going to run the wrong way at the end of the Iron Bowl. If you had told me at any point in my career that you will be able to cover the University of Alabama losing by 35 points in the Rose Bowl to Indiana, I would not have believed it.”
At the end of the evening, Dunaway introduced Waggoner, who kept his comments brief but poignant as he spoke from the heart about his love for Vestavia Hills and what this honor means to him and his family. “I was asked before the dinner tonight if I wanted to make a few remarks, and I said, ‘Well, I’m not going to make a speech, I simply want to thank the people in this room,’” Waggoner said. “The City Fathers, the Board of Education, the coaching staff, there are so many people I could thank tonight to make this possible. I’ve lived on Mission Road right behind this building since 1968, and I would not want to live anywhere else. What a great community.”
