Things You Need to Know

At the age of ten, I would slip into the Perry gym through the rear basement. One Saturday I went there to play.  I heard a ball bouncing inside and wondered who it was.  Once inside, I met a short, chubby man with a tam on his head who was shooting baskets.  He threw me the ball, saying, “Hey, boy, you want to shoot with me?” 

This began my friendship with Bill Holland.  Growing up in Perry, I played basketball with Bill in practically every backyard in Perry. We played in Tommy Mobley’s backyard where Bill would shoot atop a tree stump 30-feet away and ring the goal repetitively. We played at Bert Bozeman’s house where Bill would deliver a twirling 360-degree shot and knock the bottom out of the net. At the Powell house, Bill would ricochet the ball off overhanging tree limbs and swish the net.  

Bill had an insatiable fascination with basketball.  He loved to launch a basketball 25-30 feet from the goal and watch it come crashing down through the net. I usually teamed with Bill to set him up for spectacular shots. When Bill attended school at Perry, the high school team did not have a gym—they played outdoors. Bill arrived at school soon after sunup and start shooting baskets. Old-timers say that Bill could eat his breakfast sandwich in one hand, shoot with the other, and never miss a bite.

William Harrison remarked: “I’ll always remember Bill’s funny-looking cap, a tam!   He worked for years for his brother-in-law, Phelan Andrews at the Ice House on Highway 41. Bill lived north of Houston Lake. Bill attended every Perry home game. Coach Staples arranged for him to attend free. Someone would usually give Bill a ride to out-of-town games. If not, he rode the school bus. 

He was the Perry Panther’s number one fan.  He always sat next to the cheerleaders who enjoyed his company. The Perry fans loved Bill.  He will never be forgotten. 

Perry Mayor Jim Worrall stated: “My recollection of Bill was his insistence that I carry a rabbit’s foot for good luck. On several occasions at basketball games, he would come up the seats to ask me to show him the rabbit’s foot he gave me.” “Bill usually gave the Perry players a victory handshake before the games,” My brother, Dwayne Powell, said: “Bill insisted we shake with both hands but with our arms crossed. Bill’s magic always worked.”

Seeing Bill sitting among the cheerleaders cheering with all his heart, shouting encouragement over his megaphone, and brandishing a string of lucky rabbit feet was an inspiration to Perry teams and their fans alike. I shall never forget Bill’s enthusiasm for basketball, but the attribute that impressed me most was his faithful church attendance. When the doors of Thorpe Memorial Church on Highway 41 opened, Bill was there. He was a mainstay in the church choir. Always smiling and affable, Bill never met a stranger and never spoke an ill word about anyone. 

Near the end, Bill lived with his sister, Mrs. Phelan Andrews, on Highway 41 North. A basketball goal stood in the backyard. On the day that Bill died, Mrs. Andrews said: “On the afternoon before Bill died, he worked in the garden and then shot baskets until the sun went down.” 

That night God called Bill home and he stepped inside the Eastern gates of Heaven to begin his first ten-thousand years with the Lord. I know where Bill is today. The Master said, “In My Father’s house are many mansions.” Bill is shooting baskets in Heaven and, if that hallowed old gym is there (burned down in 1969), he’s lighting up the scoreboard.

Others who attended Perry’s basketball games were Gunrod (janitor at Bank of Perry) and O.W. Waddell (a local painter). These men usually sat on the Perry side near the scoreboard in the old gym. Perry was a basketball town. Out-of-town games would see caravans of cars leaving Perry to see the game. 

Contributing heavily was Perry’s basketball coach, Eric Staples, the winningest coach in the nation. His teams won 83 percent of their games, often against higher classification schools. Staples’ teams won 8 state championships in 15 years. Coach Paul Hartman’s team won a 9^th state championship in 1969. No state championships since. For verification, ask U.S. Senator Sam Nunn or Georgia House Majority Leader Larry Walker or Judge George Nunn, all of whom played for Coach Staples. A book by Billy Powell is titled “Pride of the Panthers.” You can order from Amazon. It contains the foregoing and much more.