The 2022 Class of the Gordon Wood Hall of Champions was inducted Friday during a banquet at the First United Methodist Church’s Christian Life Center. This year’s inductees included Jes Rathke, Benny Garza, Lee Grimes, Kenny Vaccaro, and the 1970 Brownwood Lions state championship football team.
In a ceremony emceed by Dallas Huston, the inductees shared their fondest memories of their time at Brownwood High School and the impact being part of the Lion athletic program has made on their lives.
Rathke, a 1991 graduate of Brownwood High School, was a three-sport letterman for three years in football, baseball and track.
In football, Rathke earned all-district defensive lineman honors twice. In track, Rathke threw shot put and discus. He earned a trip to state in both his junior and senior years in the discus, placing sixth as a junior and winning first place as a senior on his last throw.
In baseball, Rathke earned numerous honors, including newcomer of the year, first-team all-district catcher, and first team all-district pitcher. He was selected to play in the 1991 Texas High School All-Star Game, the last one played in the Astrodome, and was drafted in the 19th round of the 1991 Major League Draft by the Atlanta Braves.
After high school, Rathke received a scholarship to play baseball at McLennan Community College. Plagued by injuries, he had to cut his baseball career short after his sophomore year.
Rathke, along with Huston, paid tribute to Jes’ father Wayne Rathke, who was in attendance and is a former coach who survived a stroke two years ago most thought would claim his life.
Rathke called his father his “dad, best friend, and hero,” and went on to state, “that man right there made a lot of people Brownwood Lions. Two years ago we didn’t think he was going to be here and he’s come a long way. I owe everything to my mom and dad. I’ll always be a proud Brownwood Lion and I appreciate everybody for this opportunity. It is a great day to be a Brownwood Lion.”
Garza, a 1993 graduate of Brownwood High, earned first-team all-district honors as a defensive tackle his junior season, averaging 10 tackles per game, recorded 9 sacks, forced 4 fumbles while recovering 3 fumbles, blocked 3 extra points, 3 field goals, and 4 punts.
During Garza’s senior year, he produced 12 tackles per game, 12 quarterback sacks, and forced 5 fumbles, recovering 4. But most impressively, Garza blocked 4 extra points, 5 field goals, and 7 punts to establish Brownwood Lion single season records in each category.
Garza never missed a game in four seasons as a Lion, and went on to attend Howard Payne University.
“During my first varsity football game I remember my heart was racing and all the energy I was feeling,” Garza said. “I knew at that moment I wanted to the best Brownwood Lion football player there ever was.”
Garza spoke of growing up with a language barrier between himself and his father, who was from Mexico, and how Garza’s football success brought the two closer together and created a deeper bond.
“I always wanted to make my dad and family proud,” Garza said. “When I started to receive more accolades with my name being mentioned on the radio or in the newspaper, my dad began to take interest in what I was doing. He then began coming to my games and watching me play, and he finally got to see his son shine on the field. I could not get enough of his attention.”
Garza also posed the following question to Brownwood Lions head coach Sammy Burnett prior to concluding his speech, “I know there’s not a No. 57 on the roster, is there anyway I get that jersey and help you beat down Big Spring tonight?,” which resulted in the loudest ovation of the event.
Grimes, a 2005 Brownwood High graduate, was a three-year letterman in both football and track and field. During his senior season, he won the state championship in the discus. Grimes was later named to UIL All-Century Offensive Team for the period of 1910-2010.
Grimes went on to play for Texas A&M where he earned four varsity letters while being named 2nd team All Big 12 his senior season. He was also named to the All-Decade team for Texas A&M.
He had a brief stint in the NFL with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and San Diego Chargers in 2010. Following his playing career, Grimes decided to begin his coaching career. Currently, Grimes coaches at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida.
Grimes attributed an encounter between his mother, Gisele, and the late Coach Wood, for the path of his football career.
“I went to Early early on in my childhood, that’s where my mom taught, and the man himself, Gordon Wood, stopped and talked to her at the Winn-Dixie one day,’ Grimes said. “If it wasn’t for that, I might not have ever been a Brownwood Lion.”
Grimes sent in a video as he was not able to attend due to his coaching responsibilities in Florida.
“To receive this honor is something I don’t take lightly. I wish I could be there to accept this award,” Grimes said. “This is what set me on a path to be a football coach. I remember coming out of the tunnel at Gordon Wood with the music playing, the smoke going, the strobe lights, and then the gate starts lowering down and it’s something I’ll never forget. Gordon Wood Stadium is still sacred ground,. I got to go back there and coach a couple of times when I was at East Texas Baptist. I love you Brownwood, and I can’t thank you enough for this. It’s an honor.”
Vaccaro could not be in attendance as he was called away to a last-minute business meeting in San Diego, California. Bart Johnson, Jr. read comments from Vaccaro on his behalf.
“When I received the call from Coach Mitch Moore and he told me I was going to be inducted into the Gordon Wood Hall of Champions, it was a dream come true and filled a void in my heart. This honor means so much to me.”
Vaccaro played three seasons at Brownwood High School before transferring to Early for his senior year, which was addressed in the comments read by Johnson.
“A lot of people in the community don’t understand the situation I was in as a 17-year-old kid and think I quit on the Lions and left the team. Due to circumstances beyond my control, I was forced to transfer to Early. People think I left the team but I would die for the Brownwood Lions. Even when I was at UT, it pained me to see in the football program and games on TV that my high school was not listed as Brownwood. I’ve always loved Brownwood and being a Brownwood Lion. I am thankful for the things I learned from the program and how they helped me shape my life.”
Vaccaro went on to play football at the University of Texas from 2009-12. During his senior season, Vaccaro was chosen as a first team All-American by Pro Football Weekly. He was also voted for the defensive captain.
The New Orleans Saints selected Vaccaro in the first round (15th overall) of the 2013 NFL Draft. After five seasons, Vaccaro signed with the Tennessee Titans, where he concluded his eight-year career.
During his NFL career, Vaccaro recorded 574 tackles, 11.5 sacks and 10 interceptions while playing in 110 games over eight years.
After losing 20 seniors from the Brownwood Lions’ 1969 state championship team, 1970 was supposed to be a rebuilding year. Instead, the Lions recorded a 12-1-1 record to mark the only time Brownwood won state titles in consecutive seasons.
The Lions defeated playoff underdog Cuero, 14-0, in the championship game after playing to a scoreless tie through the first half. Five members of the team were named first-team all-state – Gary Barron, Gene Day, Tommy George, John Isom, and Garry Moore.
Day spoke on behalf of the team Friday, and recalled his desire to become a Lion originated from the maroon blazers the team wore on game days – a tradition that continues today as the 2022 Lions were in attendance donned in their jackets.
“I thought man, I’ve got to have one of those. I’ve got to be a Brownwood Lion. That’s all I wanted,” Day said.
Day, who was also a member of the 1969 state championship, recalled prior to that season when his father was fighting cancer in a Houston hospital, a pastor asked him about the upcoming football season.
“He asked, ‘Son, are y’all going to have a good team this year?’ In my mind, I was going to say, ‘Yes sir, I think we’re going to be pretty good.’ But that’s not what came out of my mouth,” Day said. “What came out of my mouth was, ‘Yes sir, we’re going to win the state championship,’ and it shocked me and I was totally amazed. And I realized right then that the Lord had taken a hold of my voice and put words in my mouth and I knew He was with me, and those were His words and not mine.
“We won state that year in 1969, and then 1970 comes along and no one thought were going to be that good. The reason I am telling you this is because Proverbs 16:9 says, ‘A man’s heart plans his way, but the Lord ordains his steps.’ We knew we were special, all our coaches told us we were special. When you put on the maroon blazer you’re not an average student. You’re going to be held to a higher standard, you’re going to do a lot extra and that’s going to separate you. We were special and the team knew it. We had a destiny and we stepped in to it.”
Bios and additional information for each of the inductees can be found at the following link: https://www.brownwoodnews.com/2022/09/27/gordon-wood-hall-of-champions-class-of-22-to-be-inducted-oct-7/
