Debbie Snapp
ECB Publishing, Inc.
The October meeting of the Monticello Community Prayer Breakfast was held on Thursday morning, Oct. 3, in the fellowship hall of the First Baptist Church of Monticello.
This month's guest speaker was former Florida State University (FSU) Football Coach Mickey Andrews, who delivered a captivating talk to a crowd of nearly 100. The breakfast was outstanding, and Christian fellowship filled the room.
Andrews was born in a small town in Alabama on May 20, 1941, to parents who put Christ first in their lives and taught their son to do the same. Andrews says that putting Christ first is a priority that he has not changed to this day. He will be the first to tell you that the worth of accepting the salvation of Jesus Christ as his Savior surpasses all the coaching accolades he received during his tenure as a collegiate coach.
As a student and football player at the University of Alabama, Andrews earned second-team All-America honors as a wide receiver and defensive back. He was also on two Alabama national championship teams (1961 and 1964) and played in three New Year's Day bowl games.
In college baseball, he was an All-SEC choice, and in 1964, he received the Hugo Friedman Award as Alabama's best all-around athlete.
"Success has to be a priority to be the best," Andrews shared during the community prayer breakfast. "Don't look at the problem. Look at the solution. When you make a commitment, stick to it."
After wrapping up his career as a collegiate athlete, Andrews went on to become an icon in American Collegiate Athletics as a coach.
During his coaching career, he served as the head football coach at Livingston University, now known as the University of West Alabama, from 1970 to 1972 and at the University of North Alabama from 1973 to 1976.
Andrews was also the defensive coordinator at FSU for 26 seasons, from 1984 to 2009, under head coach Bobby Bowden.
Under Andrews' coaching skills, FSU became the top producer of All-America and National Football League caliber cornerbacks in the nation. He coached two Jim Thorpe Award winners and had an All-American cornerback on the team for eight straight years, from 1987 to 1994. He had one consensus All-America selection in 2000, and seven of his defensive teams were among the top five nationally against the run.
Andrews' 1998 defensive unit ranked number one nationally in total defense and pass defense. On Nov. 3, 2009, Andrews announced that he would hang up his coaching hat after 26 seasons at FSU, and he retired, along with Bobby Bowden, at the end of the 2009 season.
During his career, Andrews earned some of the highest awards available in the coaching profession, such as the 1971 NAIA National Championship at University of West Alabama, entry into the 1994 University of West Alabama Hall of Fame, recognition by the 1996 Athlon Magazine as the year's Assistant Coach of the Year, received the 1996 Broyles Award as the nation's top assistant coach, awarded the 1998 American Football Coach's Magazine's Defensive Coordinator of the Year, and coached under Bowden in 1993 and 1999 for two FSU National Championships.
At the conclusion of Andrews' presentation to the gathered audience at the October Community Prayer Breakfast, Andrews was thanked for his informative, compelling and engaging narrative.
Community Prayer Breakfast is held from 7 to 8 a.m. on the first Thursday of each month, September through May, with a different location, guest speaker and program each month. All are welcome to come and are encouraged to bring a guest.
For more information, contact Coordinator Gary Wright at (850) 997-5705 or (850) 933-5567.
The next meeting will be hosted by Christ Episcopal Church in the Parrish Hall at 7 a.m. on Thursday, Nov. 7. Sharon Morris, of Edward Jones Investments, will be the guest speaker as she provides a personal testimony.
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