The Columbus Kiwanis Club welcomed an old friend “back home” Wednesday during its regular monthly luncheon at Lions Hills Center and Golf Club.
While Billy Brewer, 79, is widely known as the colorful former coach of the Ole Miss football team, he remains one of Columbus’ favorite sons, a star athlete at Columbus Lee in the 1950s and later as the Generals’ successful coach of nine years before moving on to the college ranks.
Today, Brewer lives in Oxford, his home for more than 30 years since he took over as Ole Miss coach in 1983.
Although it has been more than 20 years since his coaching career ended, it is clear from his talk Wednesday that he remains an insightful observer of the game, often marveling at the differences between the modern era and his days on the sidelines.
Brewer said he is thrilled with the success both Ole Miss and his former rival, Mississippi State, are enjoying this season. He was especially lavish in his praise of the Bulldogs.
“I think Mississippi State is better than Alabama,” Brewer said, despite the Bulldogs’ 25-20 loss to the Tide on Saturday. “(MSU quarterback) Dak Prescott threw three interceptions. You throw two interceptions, (you might win). Throw three and you get beat every time.”
He said he is amazed at the growth of both MSU and Ole Miss programs, noting with pride the qualities of facilities. He is most amazed at the money being spent, not only by the schools but by fans.
“They’re building a parking garage at Ole Miss, next to the stadium,” Brewer noted. “You know how much a parking space there is going to cost you? $5,000. I tell you, I just don’t know where people are coming up with the money for this stuff. But they do.”
Brewer said he is cheering for Mississippi State to retain its current position in the College Football Playoff ratings, even at the expense of his Rebels.
“If Mississippi State wins out, they’re in the final four and that would be great,” he said. “They have as good a team as I’ve ever seen at Mississippi State. They’re really talented, fun to watch. They’ve got a chance to get in that playoff and I’d love to see them do it.”
That is not to say that Brewer believes MSU will have an easy path.
“This Egg Bowl, boys, is going to be a dilly,” he says. “It’s going to come down to who makes the fewest mistakes, turnovers, penalties. It’s probably going to be the biggest Egg Bowl in history.”
Brewer also made note of the precarious state of the coaching industry, something he noted hasn’t changed all that much.
He referenced this week’s announcement that Florida coach Will Muschamp will not coach beyond this season.
“That’s the way it goes: One day you’re drinking the wine, the next day you’re picking the grapes,” Brewer said.
While Brewer focused his talk on current issues, the question-and-answer period after his speech guided the conversation back to his days in Columbus, with many of his former Lee High players on hand to listen.
Among the topics:
■ Camp Pratt, where he revived an old tradition of taking the team for a one-week “training camp,” that was anything but a vacation.
“We did some things that you couldn’t do today,” he said, eliciting laughter from his audience. “Every one of those kids got a lick every night, whether they had done anything or not. Those kids were tough as nails. We didn’t give ’em water…but, hey, we didn’t abuse them. I’ll tell you that much. But from that time on, you didn’t want to come play (Lee) at Magnolia Bowl; they would light you up. We didn’t have a losing season in our nine years.”
■ Mayor Robert Smith, who played for Brewer and Lee High before going on to play at Mississippi Valley State. “Robert didn’t play at the black (high school) before coming over the Lee High. I tell you what he was. He was one of the best prospects I’ve ever been around in all my years. Had he had another year of high school football, Ole Miss, State, Alabama — everybody would have been after him. They just didn’t know about him.
“But he could run. He was a defensive end and he ran a 4.5 in the 40. Heck, we didn’t have any backs that could run a 4.5. So he runs that 4.5 and then he tells coach Robert Youngblood, ‘Coach, when I get my thighs broke in, I can run even faster.'”
■ On coaching during the early years of integration. “You know how many problems we had with integration at Lee High School? Zip. None. I knew all those kids growing up. I knew their mammas. I knew their daddies. I played with them. I used to play down here at the sawdust pile on 14th Avenue. I was the only white boy that could play. I understood them because I knew them. We didn’t have any problems.”
Slim Smith is a columnist and feature writer for The Dispatch. His email address is [email protected].
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