The Gordon Wood Hall of Champions inducted five new members Saturday during the organization’s annual banquet.  This year’s inductees include former Brownwood Lions Jesse Smith, Hut Allred, Brad Butler, Ricky Stokes, and Gary Barron (pictured above from l to r).   Each new member of the Hall of Champions reflected on their days playing high school football in Brownwood and the impact it had on their lives.

Plaques honoring the new inductees will be hung in the Gordon Wood Hall of Champions Museum which is located on the second floor of the Depot Harvey House located at 600 E. Depot Street in Brownwood.

The induction ceremony also featured University of Texas Head Football Coach Mack Brown as the keynote speaker for the event held at the First United Methodist Church.    Brown focused on the responsibilities of coaches and players and connected the legacy left by Coach Gordon Wood to his life through similarities to his own grandfather.  See Brown’s full speech in the video below.

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Jesse Smith

Jesse Smith is a 1982 Graduate of Brownwood High School, was Captain of Coach Wood’s seventh state championship team.  Jesse, a three year letterman, was a two-way starter for the Lions at tight end and defensive tackle.  Jesse received All District and All State honors at tight end in 1981, and was a 1981 Centenary Prep All American.  Jesse was also an outstanding basketball and track athlete at  Brownwood High School.

After graduation, Jesse went on to play football at Texas Tech University, where he was a three year letterman and a starter at offensive tackle.  Jesse was named to the All Southwest Conference Football Academic Honor Team in 1985 and played in the 1986 Independence Bowl.

After receiving his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Texas Tech, Jesse pursued a career as a Structural Design Engineer in the aerospace industry, working on projects and programs for companies such as LTV, General Dynamics, Lockheed, Bell Helicopter and Lockheed Martin.

Jesse and his wife, Mary Ellen, have three children, Kyle, Courtney, and Garrett.

Rickey Stokes

Rickey Stokes was a three year letterman for Coach Wood’s Lions and a member of the 1967 and 1969 State Championship Teams.  When Ricky was a sophomore, he told Coach Wood that nothing in his life was more important to him than being a Brownwood Lion.  His hard work and performance on the football field proved his words to be true.  Ricky was a tough, hard-nosed player, always sure to make a positive impact on the outcome of every game.  There’s perhaps no greater proof of this than his performance in the 1969 State Championship Game, when Ricky recorded a season high 16 tackles against a big, talented West Columbia football team.

Ricky was selected by Coach Wood as the middle linebacker on his Gordon Wood All-Time Football Squad.  He was All District, All West Texas and All Area at middle linebacker in 167; All District, All West Texas and Second Team All State at middle linebacker in 1968 and All District (middle linebacker and pulling guard), All West Texas, All Area and All State at middle linebacker in 1969.  Ricky received a full scholarship to Oklahoma University in 1970 and was named Captain of the Sooners’ 1970 freshman team.  Ricky lettered for OU in 1971 and was a member of the Varisty “O” Club.  Members of the Varsity “O” Club must letter and graduate.  Ricky received a B.A. in Journalism from OU in 1975.  Ricky is currently President of Sooner Well Supervision, Inc.

Brad Butler

Brad Butler, a 1990 Brownwood High School graduate, played quarterback for the 1988 and 1989 Brownwood Lions football teams.  As a junior, Butler played quarterback for the 1988 District Champion Lions.  He was selected All State, All West Texas Super Team, All Big Country and All District at the conclusion of his junior year.  As a senior, Brad was Dave Campbell’s Class 4A Cover Boy.  His senior year he quarter backed the Lions to the District Championship and Area Round, earning All District, All West Texas Super Team, All Big Country, All State and Honorable Mention All American honors.  Brad completed 223 of 404 passes for 3,400 yards and 39 touchdowns for the Lions and was named to the All Decade Football Team.

Butler graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree from Texas A & M University in 1994 and was a member of the 1990 Holiday Bowl Championship Team.  Brad also earned a Master’s Degree in Education Administration from Prairie View A&M in 1995.  Brad and his wife, Lisa, a school principal, have three children, Duke, Juliet and Victoria.  Brad coaches Texas high school football.  He has coached in Klein and Magnolia and is currently the Assistant Head Coach at Manvel High School.

Gary Barron

Gary Barron played on Brownwood’s 1968, 1969, and 1970 State Championship Teams.  He was a Captain of the 1970 State Championship Team.  He was also the leading rusher in the 1970 season.  Gary was an integral part of the track team, being a part of the sprint relay and mile relay teams.  After high school, Gary went on to continue his football career at Howard Payne University.  He played college ball from 1971-1975 and was a three year starter.  During his years at Howard Payne, the Yellow Jackets won the Conference Championship in 1971 and were ranked fourth in the nation in 1973.

Gary is married and has four Children.  His professional career started in 1976 in the beverage business in San Antonio and then transitioned in 1997 into the trucking business in Dallas.  Gary’s son, Jason Barron, earned All State Honors at Brownwood High in the 1990s and continued his football career at the University of Texas.  Another son, Donnie, played football for Howard Payne University, following in his father’s footsteps.

Hut Allred

Hut Allred, a 1994 graduate of Brownwood High School, was an outstanding athlete in all sports, but is best remembered for his accomplishments on the football field.  The speedy Allred delivered a highlight reel of memories for all Brownwood Lions football fans.  At the conclusion of his career with the Lions, Hut left with the record as Brownwood’s all time leading scorer with 62 touchdowns.  Hut was the Lions’ Captain, was first Team All State in both polls, District 6-4A MVP and All West Texas MVP.

Hut earned an athletic scholarship to the University of North Texas, where he continued to excel on the football field.  Hut was a four year Letterman, Team Captain and was named Southland Academic All Conference, Big West All Conference and was the Doak Walker nominee as one of the top Division 1A running backs.  He concluded his career as North Texas’ fourth all time leading rusher with 1,997 yards.

In 2000, Hut became certified as a personal trainer by the American Council on Exercise.  In 2002, he founded his own company, New Wave Fitness, Inc.  Hut and his staff provide fitness training throughout the Dallas/Fort Worth area.  Hut has authored three books on fitness and nutrition, contributes articles regularly to E-fitness and other health related sites and has published articles in two national magazines and several local publications.  Hut lives in Irving, Texas and continues to focus on expanding his company and engaging in public speaking, writing and consulting.