The following comes from the Alabama High School Athletic Association.

The AHSAA was saddened to learn of the untimely passing of Alabama High School Sports Hall of Fame Coach Don Creasy, 79, who died in a car accident Tuesday, October 4, at Sheffield.

“Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Creasy family,” said AHSAA Executive Director Alvin Briggs. “Coach Creasy was an outstanding coach who truly had a major influence on the lives of the many student-athletes placed in his care. His legacy will live on.”

Inducted into the Alabama High School Sports Hall of Fame in 1998 and the Colbert County Sports Hall of Fame in 2003, Creasy compiled a 186-76-3 football coaching record over 23 seasons. He graduated Colbert County High School in 1961 earning All-State honors as a senior. He also played in the North-South All-Star Game in 1961 and then moved to Florence State College (University of North Alabama) where he was a three-time letterman and named the most valuable lineman in 1964.

He served as an assistant coach at Sheffield for three seasons after college, then moved back home to Leighton where he serve four seasons as an assistant coach for Coach Manley – including serving on the staff of the 1972 team which went 13-0 and produced future collegiate stars Ozzie Newsome, Phil Gargis, and Thad Flanagan. The 1972-73 period at Colbert County High School is arguably the greatest single year in AHSAA history. The Indians won the Class 3A state basketball championship in the winter of 1972 with future Alabama Sports Hall of Famer Leon Douglas and his younger brother on the squad.

The next fall, Colbert County finished undefeated to win the Class 3A state football crown, and in the spring of 1973, the Indians’ baseball team reached the state finals falling to Chilton County 6-5, 9-6 in the Class 3A championship.

Creasy spoke on numerous occasions about that group of kids.

“I don’t think any other school in this state has ever had such an incredible run of athletes and success as Colbert County did during that time period,” he told The Birmingham News in 1989.

Creasy, who followed Manley as head coach at Colbert County in 1978, compiled a 126-25-1 record over the next 12 years reaching the state finals and finishing as Class 3A state runner-up in his first season (1978), tying Jackson 0-0 in the to earn a co-championship in 1979, winning the Class 5A state title in 1985, reaching the semifinals in Class 5A in 1987, in Class 4A in 1988, and reaching the 4A finals in 1989 falling to Pike County 20-19. His 83.2 percent winning percentage was among the leaders during that stretch. Colbert County won 32 regular-season games at one stretch from 1981-1984.

He also had head-coaching stints at Central-Florence, Coffee, and Mountain Brook. Creasy’s son Allen Creasy followed his dad into coaching. He compiled a 100-88 record in 12 seasons as head football coach at Athens High School.

“Growing up as a kid, you always wanted to play for him, you always wanted to just be around him,” former player Lee Craft told the Florence Times Daily. Craft is now Colbert County High School’s athletic director.

“He was a man of few words, but when he spoke, everybody listened.”

Colbert County plans to honor Creasy at this week’s home game Friday against Colbert Heights at C.T. Manley Stadium, Craft said.

To read more about the impact of Coach Don Creasy’s life, check out the story written by sports editor Stacy Long in the October 5 edition of the Times Daily.