In 1966, The AMERICAN REBELS, a Semi-Pro Football team from Butler, Alabma traveled to Hammond, Louisiana with 16 players. Hammond's team dressed 66 players (and even had a band). Paul Glosson scored two touchdowns in the first half and the Rebels lead 13-0 at Half-time. In the second half, Hammond scored immediately, then got a safety. The score was 13-9 with almost all of the second half to play. The second half was played inside the Rebels' 30 yard line. The Rebels won the game 13-9.
This is a newspaper account of a player who played in what I believe is THE GREATEST FOOTBALL GAME EVER PLAYED...It's kinda long, but well worth reading...Lathan


THIS STORY APPEARED IN THE "THOMASVILLE (ALABAMA) TIMES"
Little did Harold Agee know that by following his grandson, Andrew Parten, to the Dixie Pre-Majors World Series he would be taking a trip down memory lane as well? But as is the case many times in the world of sports, things happen when you least expect them to. That’s why the experience that Agee had less than two weeks ago, although a surprise, doesn’t stagger one’s emotions.

With their grandson Andrew making the trek to Pontchatoula, Louisiana as a member of the Thomasville team representing South Alabama in the World Series, it was a certainty that Paw Paw and Granny would be going along to offer their support. Joining numerous others who had made the trip over, the Agee’s emotions ran the gambit from disappointment at a first game loss to South Carolina to tremendous excitement and pride as the team rebounded with wins over Virginia and Georgia in successive days. With the two wins the Thomasville squad had positioned themselves to get back into the thick of things with a win over their next opponent which happened to be Tennessee.

As fate would have it, when the team selected Paul’s Cafe’ in Pontehatoula as the site for their lunch meal before their match-up with Tennessee on Tuesday, August 2, a set of circumstances were created that would make history come alive for Agee and his family and reunite two competitors from a sporting event that had occurred 39 years before. While telling his family and friends about his remembrances of the last time he was in Hammond, Louisiana, Agee captured the interest of several local diners who also happened to be eating lunch at Paul’s Cafe’ that day. As he recounted playing for the American Rebels in a semi-pro football game against the Hammond Eagles in the fall of 1966 one local gentleman seemed to take special interest in what he had to say. After hearing Agee’s comments about that game and the game the two teams had played earlier in the fall of 1966, Richard Stilley introduced himself and revealed that he had been a member of the Hammond team in 1966 and had played in both the games. Stilley was quick to point out that Agee might not remember him since he was listed in the program at 195 lbs and in reality only weighed in at about 140 lbs.

Within a matter of minutes the two former competitors were fast friends and spent most of the meal time recounting things that happened in the games the two teams had played that fall. They talked about how the Hammond team had traveled to Butler, Alabama and put a 34-6 shellacking on the team from west Alabama in their first meeting that season. Stilley noted how he and his teammates didn’t think much of the football abilities of the American Rebel team at that point. They recalled how the tables were turned in the second meeting of the two teams when seventeen members of the American Rebel team traveled to Hammond and beat the home standing Eagles, who dressed out sixty-two, by a score of 13-9 ending a two year unbeaten streak that the Hammond team had enjoyed. As a side note, Agee mentioned that as the team arrived at the stadium that night back in 1966 a local policeman, perhaps feeling sorry for the Alabama team that appeared to be so out numbered, volunteered to play defensive end for them. After sizing him up they issued him the uniform of one of their players who was sidelined with a fractured leg at the time. As the evening progressed they were glad they did as he contributed to the team a lot that night.

If it weren’t coincidence enough that the two former football combatants would be in the restaurant at the same time, Agee discovered that Reggie Pevey, one of the men who officiated that game thirty-nine years ago was also there that day and was reunited with him too.

As the men continued to reminisce about that game it was confirmed to Agee that the Pontehatoula Athietic Park where his grandson Andrew was now playing in the World Series was the same field where he had played football almost four decades ago. This just added one more coincidence to the growing list that was part of that day.

When he looks back on all that happened on August 2, 2005 and considers what the odds must have been that all of those things could happen, there is no doubt in Harold Agee’s mind that God is in control and that this is indeed a small world after all.


Foot Note: The American Rebel football team was a semi-pro football team based in Butler, Alabama but was made up of players from many towns and communities in the surrounding area. The team played a schedule often 10 games a year against teams of a similar nature from Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi. They began play in 1966 and continued through 1969. Some of those from Thomasville who played with Harold Agee on the team during its years of existence include; his brother Trenton Agee, Charles Hill, Penn Hall, Larry and Randy Knight, Johnny “Pro” Ott, Willis Slade and Evans “Red” Wilson.

Geez, I thought the greatest game ever played was my junior year at BBC when we had 19 players dressed and Jacksonville took up half the entire football field to warm up.(Morris Higginbotham, head coach) We (BBC) won 44-12, with the craziest beginning of a game I have ever witnessed or been a part of. On the opening kickoff Jack Bennett and Earl Hatchett, trying the old reverse handoff fumbled the ball on Comer's 20 yard line and a Jacksonville player picked it up and ran for a touchdown. 8 seconds off the time clock and the score Jax 6 Comer 0. Jacksonville kicks off again and BBC runs it back to the 20 yard line. First play from Scrimmage, Layton hits Jack Bennett for an 80 yard touchdown pass. 23 seconds off the clock, score BBC 7 Jax 6.
BBC kicks off, Jacksonville runs it back to the 28 yard line. On Jacksonville's first play, they run an option down the line and the QB pitches back to a runner when Rodney Aderholt intercepts it and runs it down to the 1 yard line. Next play, Dale Layton sneaks it over for a TD. 58 seconds off the time clock. Score BBC 14 Jacksonville 6. (No first downs, two plays ran from scrimmage)! BBC calls time out with one second left in the half. Layton hits Bennett with a 79 yard TD bomb again. Jacksonville had less than 50 yards rushing for the entire night...

There have been a bunch of GREATEST GAMES. I still believe that from an Underdog standpoint that this will go down as one of the guttiest performances ever. They had the ball on our 1 yard line with first and goal. Charlie Hill and Penn Hall were two big old linemen - out of shape - slow - older than most of us. They just wouldn't let 'em in or across our goal line.
I remember players coming off the field, throwing up, grabbing their headgear and going back in the game. It was a serious gut-check. I intercepted a pass on our 10 yard line with the whole field in front of me and got so excited that I fell down. A true, true story

Lathan, I don't know if you knew it or not, but Charlie Hill died last year. I think he had cancer. Thought you might want to know. unk Paul

I really liked Charlie. I remember him making two or three consecutive stops in that game on the goal line. So sorry to hear about him.