Julius Wistar "Pinky" Babb (born in
Princeton, South Carolina
Princeton is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Laurens County, South Carolina, Laurens County, South Carolina, United States, United States of America. The population was 62 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Gre ...
) is one of the nation's most storied
high school
A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...
football coaches. He coached for 39 seasons (1943–81) at
Greenwood High School in
Greenwood, South Carolina
Greenwood is a city in and the county seat of Greenwood County, South Carolina, United States. The population in the 2020 United States Census was 22,545 down from 23,222 at the 2010 census. The city is home to Lander University.
Geography and ...
, amassing 336 victories and nine state titles.
[Ghs Vs Emerald]
Background
Babb played college football at
Furman University and was named
all-state in 1936. He is a member of the Furman University Hall of Fame, having played on the very last Furman football team to beat in-state rival Clemson.
Using the motto "Winners never quit and quitters never win," Babb's reputation and success as a coach at Greenwood High earned him a spot in the state athletic hall of fame and the National High School Coaches Association Hall of Fame, in 1996, the first year for inductees.
At Greenwood High
Babb led the Emeralds (now called the Eagles) to an overall record of 336 wins, 81 losses and 23 ties. He is often mentioned alongside other South Carolina football coaching legends such as
John McKissick (Summerville) and
Willie Varner (Woodruff). McKissick, Varner and Babb are all among the top 20 in the nation in overall football victories. McKissick, who was born in Greenwood, has the most victories of all coaches nationally. Babb was a South Carolina Shrine Bowl coach, a North-South Game coach and the coach of numerous players who went on to play collegiately and in the professional ranks. One famous player was
W.W. "Hootie" Johnson (1945–48). Johnson is the former chairman of The Augusta National golf course, where the Master's tournament is played each year.
Other successes
Babb led the
baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...
team to the 1966 state championship, and he was also a successful
American Legion baseball coach for Post 20. For his football efforts, he received some great praise when legendary Clemson football coach Frank Howard gave his introduction speech for
Ara Parseghian
Ara Raoul Parseghian (; hy, Արա Ռաուլ Պարսեղյան; May 21, 1923 – August 2, 2017) was an American football player and coach who guided the University of Notre Dame to national championships in 1966 and 1973. He is noted for br ...
, former Notre Dame coach, when Parseghian was named coach of the year. Howard told Parseghian at a special event, which Babb attended: "You and me are lucky to be on the same program with Pinky Babb. We sure as heck can't coach like him." In 1982, a year after Babb retired and the year before his death, the stadium at Greenwood High was named in his honor. The Greenwood Touchdown Club and The Index-Journal Newspaper in Greenwood have named a J.W. "Pinky" Babb Coach of the Year every year since 1996, the first year of the All-Lakelands Team, which honors players from four counties.
References/citations
*https://web.archive.org/web/20070927233922/http://www.hscoaches.org/halloffame.php?year=1996
*https://web.archive.org/web/20080513005306/http://ghs.gwd50.org/Babb_%20Stadium.htm
External links
*https://web.archive.org/web/20080808120115/http://ghs.gwd50.org/HALL_OF_FAME_AUG27_2004_PICS_PG_1.htm
*http://indexjournal.simplepc.net/mm2001b.html
{{DEFAULTSORT:Babb, Julius Wistar
High school football coaches in South Carolina
People from Laurens County, South Carolina
People from Greenwood, South Carolina
Furman Paladins football players