The 1960's were a turbulent time in America and Tifton
was not immune. The Korean War was ending and
Vietnam was becoming more than just a place on a map.
Racial tension was coming to a head and radical pop
culture was reaching all the way down to southwest
Georgia.
The interstate
was constructed. Tifton High gave way to Tift
County High and Wilson High integrated slowly into the
county system despite remaining a football power among
black schools.
Clearly, the
60's brought a lot of changes to Tifton.
The structure
known now as the county's administration building
housing Tifton High from 1917 until the spring of 1962.
The school on Eighth Street opened its doors in the fall
of 1962. The new school combined the old Omega
school and other surrounding schools and would forever
be called Tift County High School.
The school,
which elected to keep the Blue Devils nickname,
continued to play its home games at a field that borders
Second Street where Burgess and Conner Parks now reside.
Tift County Stadium was opened for the 1966 season.
(See History of Brodie Field)
The 60's opened
with a new coach, Kermit Perry. Perry's team went
6-3-1 in his first year in Tifton. In four years,
Perry guided Tifton through some lean years and left
after a 3-6-1 year in 1963.
In 1964, Tommy
Guillebeau took over the Blue Devil program after
getting the Ware County football program on its feet.
He would eventually serve as the head of Georgia High
School Association for years.
In 1965,
Guillebeau got Tift County to the 1-AA playoffs.
The Devils went 7-2-1 and faced Thomasville in the
postseason. the Bulldogs beat Tifton 27-7, but the
game marked the Devils' first trip to the postseason in
nine years.
In 1966, Tift
County High had grown so much that it joined the big
boys for good. The Blue Devils entered 1-AAA that
season and have played in the toughest football region
in America ever since.
In that region
were teams like Valdosta, Moultrie, Willingham (Macon),
Lanier (Macon), Baker (Columbus), Albany, and the brand
new Dougherty County High.
After a pair of
road games, Tift County opened what would become known
as The Devils' Den on September 16, 1966 against
Moultrie.
Bud Willis'
Packers were ranked No. 1 by "The Atlanta Journal,
but quarterback Hugh Gordon, and tackles Mayo
Tucker and Roger Womack led a stunning 19-14 upset that
christened Tift County Stadium in style.
The Moultrie
Observer wrote that "9,000 frenzied fans" were on
hand to cheer the Devils to victory that night.
Tift went on to finish third in the region during their
first campaign in 1-AAA with a 7-3 record.
While 1967 was
losing a season at 4-6, any year Tift beats Valdosta is
a good one. Tift topped the Cats 13-7 on a very,
VERY happy homecoming Friday night in 1967.
In 1968, the
Devils went 7-3 in Guillebeau's final season at Tift.
Tift's losses came to Valdosta, Moultrie and Albany, but
some new faces joined the region. Lowndes, Coffee,
Wayne County, Monroe Albany and Ware County all joined
1-AAA.
New coach Ray
Dalton ushered out the 60s with a disappointing 4-6
campaign. It included a loss to Coffee that gave
the team then known as the Comets their only win against
19 losses in two years in 1-AAA.
