Commentary | Some local sports figures deserve a thank you on Thanksgiving Day
Manatee County sports fans have a lot to be thankful for -- and a lot of local sports figures to thank.
It would be impossible to mention everyone, but here are just a few who come to mind.
Curt Bradley: He took over the Braden River football program when it was down three years ago and guided it to a district title and 10-1 record. With most key players returning next season, this is more than just a one-hit wonder. The program was financially bankrupt, and he got it back into the black with fundraisers he conducted with players. "He was the first coach I ever had who made good on all the promises he made," former Braden River athletic director Bob Bowling said.
John Harder: Lost four starters and key reserves off his third state girls basketball championship team last year at Southeast, but again he has a quality team. Harder's greatness is measured by more than his on-court success. He has been a father figure to many girls during his 30-year reign running the program and has amassed 718 victories.
Tony Cothron/Perri Hankins: Just a few years ago, volleyball in Manatee County was little more than an afterthought. But these two coaches changed that. Cothron guided Manatee High to a state title this season, and Hankins took Lakewood Ranch to its second state final four in three years.
Johnnie Lang: Local fans will passionately argue this is where the real "Johnnie Football" resides. The Manatee junior running back reminds you of hall of famer Emmitt
Smith and is just as productive with 2,011 rushing yards. It's safe to say he is the MVP on the area's only football team still alive in the playoffs.
Jim Phelan: The Manatee High defensive coordinator has put together a defense that would make Lovie Smith proud. Under his guidance, the Hurricanes have 21 takeaways built on 14 interceptions and seven fumble recoveries. He also is a guy who will go an extra mile to help his kids off the field. In coaching circles, he is considered a genius.
Dick Vitale: Though he gained his fame as a college basketball TV analyst, Vitale is the area's resident philanthropist with his tireless work raising money to fight pediatric cancer. Vitale is an emotional guy who is not afraid to cry in public. If he and Bucs quarterback Josh McCown got together, they might set the Guinness record for tears. Just kidding, Dickie V., we love you.
Kristina Bratton: One of the area's all-time great track athletes. She starred at Bradenton Christian, was a standout at the University of Florida and then ran professionally. Now she has the Lakewood Ranch girls performing at high levels in track and cross country.
Tina Hadley: She is in the process of turning the Lakewood Ranch girls basketball program into an area power, something that would've been considered impossible just a few short years ago.
Joe Maddon: The former Tampa Bay Rays manager has left to pursue the 100-year ghosts of a World Series past in Chicago, but we would be remiss not to say thank you to the guy who labored in the cavernous confines of Tropicana Field for the past nine years.
Eddie Shannon: A Thanksgiving in this these parts could not pass without mentioning the little general. Now in his 90s, Shannon produced some of the area's top football players when he was head coach at Lincoln during segregation. However, he is most noted for playing an instrumental role at Manatee High when schools were integrated in 1969.
Ray Bellamy: The former Lincoln star broke the color barrier for major college football in the South when he signed with Miami in the early 1960s, opening up the doors for many great area African-American players.
Joe Kinnan/Paul Maechtle: Kinnan and Manatee and Maechtle and Southeast are synonymous with greatness. Fans will never forget the championships and sending all those kids to high-level college programs.
Bob Bowling: The recently retired Braden River athletic director describes himself as a old-school guy, but when Bowling was head football coach at Palmetto he was flinging the ball over the yard before it became popular for high school teams.
Five Turkeys 2014
Everybody wants to eat turkey on Thanksgiving, but nobody wants to be a Turkey. Here are some individuals who unfortunately were the real Turkeys in 2014:
Roger Goodell: Public enemy No. 1 among NFL fans and players. The only people happy with the commissioner are NFL owners because he keeps lining their pockets with all that green.
Alex Rodriguez: He didn't play last year with his suspension, but when his confession to the DEA that he was a longtime PED cheater became public, negativity continued to swirl around the Yankees third baseman. Media reports that he urinated on the wall of his cousin's house didn't help his image.
Jameis Winston: He might be the most vilified player in college football history, the FSU quarterback has nobody to blame but himself. Right now he has NFL GMs hoping he is gone before they pick in next year's draft so they don't get caught in a no-win situation.
Dennis Rodman: We used to laugh at the antics of the eccentric former NBA rebounding champ until he got chummy with ruthless North Korea leader Kim Jong-un.
Lane Kiffin: This one-time boy wonder coaching prodigy has turned into a runaway freight train after stints with the Oakland Raiders and at Tennessee and USC. Maybe the late Al Davis was right when he fired Kiffin as Raiders head coach, saying he was a guy you couldn't trust. Fortunately for Kiffin, he was rescued by Alabama's Nick Saban. Now that's another story.
Alan Dell, Herald sports writer, can be reached at 941-745-7056. Follow him on Twitter @ADellSports.
This story was originally published November 27, 2014 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Commentary | Some local sports figures deserve a thank you on Thanksgiving Day ."