Last night Graves County Football named their field after their first High School football Coach. Coach Buckley built the program from scratch when 7 small schools consolidated in 1985. He had previously won a state championship in another state before taking the Graves job. 

I am not sure when the first official Varsity season was, but he coached up until 1998. His most successful season came in 1993 when the team went undefeated during the regular season before falling to a good Warren Central team on a last second field goal. The biggest win that season was against the city school of the County, a program you may have heard of called Mayfield at War Memorial. It was the first game against one another and a night those of us around the program will never forget. It proved we could be successful. Not even a decade in, he had the program at that level.

When I say the program was built from scratch, not a single school that consolidated ever had football. Any kid before then who was interested in football or had potential to play obviously went to the city school. The school didn’t have a real practice field. The team would have to sneak onto War Memorial by crawling under the fence to practice field goals because the program didn’t even have a field goal post. And of course by 2014 the school played for a State Championship. Coach Buckley was on the sideline with the team every game that season. 

The greatest part of his legacy however, will be how he continued to support the program even after years of retirement. Each year he gives the 7th graders a chain link, symbolizing that when everyone is connected, we are stronger linked together.  

I thought those of you who love High School football would enjoy this.

Great stuff @gcbleedblue, thank you!

Awesome!

Well deserved Coach Buckley!  Great story and great program.

Well deserved honor! Congratulations and thank you!!

That 1993 team had some phenomenal athletes that went on to play college ball, and also crossed over and won 2 regional basketball championships in 1993 and 1994.

Coach had some tough years after graduating that class, but he’s a good man who taught a lot of life lessons off the field as well.