He coached football at UT Martin just three years, but George MacIntyre’s influence earned him a permanent place in the university’s history. It also brought 30 of his former players back to Martin, 30 years later, to celebrate his induction into the UT Martin Athletics Hall of Fame.
Nearly 200 guests attended the 24th annual Hall of Fame Induction held Oct. 13 in the Alumni Gym. At seven, it was the largest class of inductees since 1989.
Dennis Suiter (’70), a pioneer in women’s basketball officiating and standout athletes Jody Fuller (’02, baseball), Michael Hart (’96, basketball), Chris Pierce (’90, golf), the late Jim Willing (’85, tennis) and Dana Witten (’72, football) were honored with hall of fame inductions alongside MacIntyre.
Willing, a native of Winchester, Mass., died at the age of 41 in a scuba diving accident in 2002. He played tennis for UT Martin from 1982 to 1985 and is the school’s all-time career singles winner with a 92-32 record. Willing won Gulf South Conference singles titles four consecutive years, the first person ever to do so, and helped UT Martin advance to the NCAA Division II national championships his senior year.
“UT Martin gave Jim a new family of friends and a stage for competition,” said his father, Bob, who accepted the award on behalf of his son. Willing's widow, Kelly; mother, Sally; and sisters, Debbie and Patsy, also attended the ceremony.
MacIntyre, who coached at UT Martin from 1975 to 1977, led the Pacer football team to an 18-14 record and back-to-back winning seasons in 1976 and 1977. He later coached at Vanderbilt, where he was named the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year in 1982.
It wasn’t necessarily MacIntyre’s gains on the gridiron that brought 30 UT Martin football alumni back to Martin, however, said Donny Sherman (’79).
“The reason people are here—they’ve come from Texas, they’ve come from Florida, they’ve come from South Carolina, they’ve come from Georgia—is because of the difference that George MacIntyre, as a coach, made in their lives.”
Sherman, who played for “Coach Mac” and later coached with him at Vanderbilt, introduced MacIntyre at the ceremony.
MacIntyre’s son, Matt, accepted the honor for his father, who was diagnosed with an aggressive form of multiple sclerosis in 1998 and was unable to take the stage himself.
Speaking to the players, Matt said, “You are the reason why he loved what he did and why he was good at it. He never once talks about ‘I did this or that.’ He talks about what the players did.”
MacIntyre, seated next to his wife, Betty, smiled and nodded from his table near the stage.
Matt also said, “He would tell you this. What you’ve become today, successful in your life, is what makes him happy. Not that you threw 15 touchdowns or made a bunch of great tackles—he was glad you did it—but what you’re doing today is what makes him proudest.”
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