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Putting it on paper
Published November 7, 2008
In high school football circles, John Meadows’ achievements are legendary.
Meadows, who coached at Scottsboro High School from 1959 through 1965, has written a book titled "Back to the Basics: Winning is more than X's and O's."
While the book is a primer for coaches wanting to develop a winning program, it contains countless pages chocked full of tips on how to be successful in dealing with people and at life in general. It describes how to rally a school and a community around a common cause. And Meadows, with the help of former assistant coach Doug Styles, does it all in his down-home, country boy style.
Coach, as he is known to all who played for him and many who didn't, will host a book signing at the Scottsboro Rec*Com, Sunday, Nov. 9 from 2 to 4 p.m. Copies of his 189-page book will be available at $19.95 each. It can also be ordered online at www.amazon.com under the name of John L. Meadows.
Meadows and Styles worked on the book for two years, meeting once a week to discuss the details and put thoughts into words. Styles, who did most of the composition work, suffered through several bouts of illness during the process.
"I'm excited about coming to Scottsboro," Meadows, whose daughter and son-in-law, Judy and Steve Hamlet, still live in the town, said. "I'm looking forward to meeting some of my old athletes and seeing how much better they are today than they were. You know the older they are the better they get."
"Back to the Basics" is dedicated to Meadows' wife, Glenda, who he calls his "steady companion and wonderful wife...who has patiently shared almost six decades of living with this old coach." It includes an introduction by former award winning Huntsville Times Sports Editor John Pruett, foreword by U.S.A.F. Colonel, Retired, Edward Ward and an introduction by Styles who coached with Meadows for 16 years.
"I'm going to bring a truckload of books to Scottsboro," Meadows said with a laugh. "I expect to sell-out and have to reorder."
In the book's preface Meadows, after providing a brief history of his life, says he hopes the reader will find "at least one small thing that will make them better equipped to compete." Meadows, now 84, acknowledges that coaching is a tough but enjoyable profession and that building a winner requires lots cooperation in and outside the school setting.
"You have to have the support of the community," he said. "Somebody has to back you up. And, to win, you have to have some athletes to coach."
Meadows led Scottsboro High School to its only state football championship in 1965 before moving on to Butler High School in Huntsville. The 65 Wildcats finished 10-0 and allowed only 5.8 PPG while scoring 27 PPG. They were named 3A's top team by The Birmingham News in an era before the playoff system began.
"That 1965 team was a tough bunch of kids. They played hard," Meadows said. "I believe we were better than anybody in the state and that we could have beaten anybody in the playoffs."
The old coach remembered that the 1965 team was invited to play in the Civic Bowl in Tullahoma, Tennessee at the end of the 1965 season against Notre Dame of Chattanooga, one of the Volunteer state's top teams.
"Everybody thought that bunch out of Chattanooga would beat us pretty bad. Our bunch pretty much whipped them all over the field," said Meadows.
Scottsboro won easily, 33-7, when "off tackle John" as Meadows was known because of his conservative, run it straight at you offense used the passing game early in the contest.
"You would have too," Meadows said of passing, "when you saw how many guys they lined up in the box. Then we were able to run it."
In seven seasons at Scottsboro Meadows' teams compiled a 55-9-5 record. His 1960 team was also undefeated and finished second in the state.
In 34 years as a head coach Meadows' record was 271-76-7. He won at Hanceville, Gordo, Scottsboro, Butler and Lincoln County, Tennessee where he became one of only a few coaches to win state championships in two states when his 1982 squad captured the title.
In two years at Hanceville Meadows coached teams were 17-1-2. He was 16-1-2 in two years at Gordo, 92-33-1 in 13 years at Butler and 87-27-6 at Lincoln County.
Meadows was named Alabama Coach of the Year five times. He won the same honor in Tennessee twice and was name Tri-State Coach of the Year (Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee) in 1960. He is a member of the Alabama High School Sports Hall of Fame, Jacksonville State University Gamecock Hall of Fame, Huntsville-Madison County Sports Hall of Fame and the Cullman, Morgan and Pickens County, Alabama Sports Hall of Fames.
As a player at Jacksonville State University Meadows earned Little All-American honors in 1949. He was named a member of the school's Centennial Team (1883-1983) representing the best 100 athletes at the school. He was also honored as Alumnus of the Year in 1969.
"Back to the Basics," highlights the essential elements in developing a championship program, provides insight on the coach as a counselor and describes the character traits found in a true leader.
The book does devote some space about the X's and O's of offensive and defensive fundamentals. It describes a few tips to victory and devising a winning game plan, including how to visit the hometown of the next opponent, incognito of course, to gain valuable insight or a "tidbit" of useful information. But all that information is secondary to the philosophy and principles found within the book's pages. As Meadows' said, "you can find offenses and defenses on the internet." It's the whole package that matters most.
Meadows describes the principles of wisdom and how each should be applied in the coaching profession. He describes the elements necessary in developing a winning attitude beginning with academics and dedication and ending with discipline.
Each area, including the ones devoted exclusively to the X's and O's of the games, include short stories and anecdotes from the stops Meadows made along the way in his coaching career.
Book sales have gone well so far, according to Meadows. The coach has visited Lincoln County and Cullman, where he served as an assistant early in his coaching career. He has also sold books in towns at each coaching stop he made.
"We had one superintendent of education order 31 copies of the book. She gave one to every coach from middle school through high school," he said.
Meadows said offensive and defensive know how isn't what is most important in developing a winning team. He says coaching the X's and O's takes a back seat to evaluation and organization.
"It's satisfying when you take your kids and place them in a position to win with them. When you get the kids in the right position," Meadows said. "It's good when they look good and win because of organization."
"Everywhere I went provided a different challenge," said Meadows. "I enjoyed every stop I made and I definitely got an education in coaching."
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