Coach Blakeney selected for College Football Hall of Fame
Will be inducted with Nick Saban!
Note: I just received this press release from Troy University sports information director Adam Prendergast, who did a fantastic job with this story.
As an editorial comment, I was the 25-year-old sports editor of The Troy Messenger when Coach Blakeney was hired.
Whoever pushed hard for Troy to hire Coach Blakeney (it was probably Troy’s late veterinarian Dr. Doug Hawkins), made one of the greatest hires in Troy University history.
It was a pleasure to work with Coach Blakeney and to consider him a friend for so many years.
He was, and remains, a true gentleman. Coach Blakeney had an extremely challenging job guiding Troy from Division II to Division I status. His sustained success at each level is a testament to his skills as a coach and manager of people.
Being inducted into the College Sports Hall of Fame is the highest honor in this sport and an honor that’s much-deserved.
Coach Blakeney also recruited DeMarcus Ware to Troy. DeMarcus is of course now in the NFL Hall of Fame.
The other night I saw DeMarcus in a nationally-broadcast TV commercial. DeMarcus was wearing a Troy T-shirt!
Coach Blakeney also helped our city receive that national publicity.
Lastly, Adam’s article notes that Coach Blakeney, like many former Trojans, is also a member of Alabama Sports Hall of Fame.
In my opinion, more former Trojans should be inducted into that prestigious Hall of Fame, starting with long-time Troy basketball coach Don Maestri.
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By ADAM PRENDERGAST
Legendary Troy football head coach Larry Blakeney will be enshrined into the College Football Hall of Fame as a member of the 2025 class, the National Football Foundation announced Wednesday.
The all-time winningest coach in both Troy and Sun Belt Conference history, Larry Blakeney led the Trojans to eight conference titles while becoming one of only two coaches in history to guide a program from Division II ultimately to the Football Bowl Subdivision.
The Birmingham native now becomes the first-ever player or coach in Troy history or Sun Belt Conference (tenure came during SBC membership) history to enter the College Football Hall of Fame.
“I think one of the most important appointments at Troy University in athletics over the last four decades was when we selected Coach Larry Blakeney to head our football program,” Troy Chancellor Dr. Jack Hawkins Jr. said.
“His record speaks for itself. He’s a great coach, but even a better man. It has been an honor to work with him over a long period of time, and in my estimation, there is no one more deserving of this recognition than Larry Blakeney. He is the epitome of what a coach should be.”
Blakeney will be joined by Urban Meyer, Nick Saban and Larry Korver as the coaches in the 2025 class, while 18 former players were also selected for induction.
The 2025 class will be officially inducted during the 67th NFF Annual Awards Dinner on December 9, 2025, at the Bellagio Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. The inductees will also be recognized at their respective collegiate institutions with NFF Hall of Fame On-Campus Salutes during the fall.
Their accomplishments will forever be immortalized at the Chick-fil-A College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta.
“Coach Blakeney’s roots are intertwined with the history and tradition of Troy Football, and there is nobody more deserving to grace the halls of the College Football Hall of Fame than him,” Troy Director of Athletics Brent Jones said.
During his 24 seasons as the Troy head coach, Blakeney won 61.1 percent of his games, posting a career record of 178-113-1. He led the Trojans to five bowl games, securing victories in the 2006 and 2010 New Orleans bowls and appearances in the 2004 Silicon Valley Bowl, the 2008 New Orleans Bowl and the 2010 GMAC Bowl.
Prior to Troy’s transition to the FBS, he guided the Trojans to seven FCS playoff appearances in eight seasons.
He remains the all-time winningest coach in Sun Belt Conference history, holding a 20-win advantage over the next closest competitor.
He guided Troy to eight conference championships, including three in the Southland Conference, before leading the Trojans to a Sun Belt-record five consecutive titles from 2006 to 2010.
His teams regularly competed against and defeated Power Five opponents, including a signature 24-14 victory over No. 17-ranked Missouri in 2004. He also notched Power Five wins against Mississippi State and Oklahoma State.
He was named conference Coach of the Year four times, twice in the Southland and twice in the Sun Belt. He was a two-time AFCA Regional Coach of the Year in 1999 and 2000. In 1993, during the program’s first full year at the FCS level, he led the Trojans to a 10-0-1 regular-season record, the first undefeated regular season in school history.
In 1995, his team finished 11-0 in the regular season, marking the first undefeated and untied season in program annals.
Blakeney mentored 14 First Team All-Americans, including 1999 Buck Buchanan Award winner Al Lucas, and he coached 2000 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Nick Colbert. His tenure included 86 First Team All-Conference selections, including three Sun Belt Players of the Year.
He oversaw significant renovations to Veterans Memorial Stadium, increasing its capacity from 12,000 to 17,500 in 1998 and later to 30,000 in 2003. Troy named the playing surface at Veterans Memorial Stadium "Larry Blakeney Field."
He is one of only two head coaches, alongside UCF’s Gene McDowell, to successfully lead a program from Division II to the FBS.
Blakeney has been inducted into the Wiregrass Sports Hall of Fame, the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame, and the inaugural class of the Troy University Sports Hall of Fame.
Beyond coaching, Blakeney remained active in civic service, earning the Chilton County Auburn Club “Unsung Hero” Award. A frequent speaker at local events, he has dedicated his time to numerous organizations.
A former Auburn quarterback, Blakeney made history as the first sophomore to start at the position for legendary Hall of Fame coach Shug Jordan.
My addition:
Blakeney was also a key member of Auburn Coach Pat Dye’s staff during the era when Coach Dye made Auburn a national power. Blakeney was the only assistant coach from the previous staff retained by Dye.
Congratulations, Coach Blakeney!
QUICK UPDATE:
Adam just emailed this link, which is an interview with Coach Blakeney about today’s huge news. I haven’t watched it yet, and am not sure if the link works or not. Readers are invited to share their Coach Blakeney memories and tributes in the Reader Comments section.
https://sunbelt.cimediacloud.com/r/Iu4paHLDftn2
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*** (Note: Get ready for a flurry of high-interest local human interest feature stories. My batteries are fully-recharged!) ***
I took a break from writing that ended up being longer than I planned. However, one big project with my "national" Substack is now done and I am fired up about the series of original local interest stories that will be coming on a daily basis. I appreciate my readers giving me so many excellent story ideas.
I'll continue to add interesting pieces of "local history" from the archives of original print Troy Citizen and catch-up on local news briefs and keep searching for interesting "filler photos" I find on social media or take myself.
BTW, Jack's basketball team, The Cavs, started the season with an impressive 16-4 victory last night. I'm an assistant coach. We sure do have a great youth recreation program in Troy.