When the final service took place last week for longtime Tigers’ football coach Ray Lamb, it was held in the Commerce stadium that bears his name.
Friends statewide, mostly fellow high school coaches, attended, along with local citizens and two college head football coaches: Clay Hendrix of Furman and Tre Lamb of Tulsa, a grandson of the deceased and among Ray’s eulogizers.
It was a fitting sendoff for the popular and successful community leader who won a state AA football championship in 1981, which was a family affair, too. His older son, Bobby, was the quarterback, and younger son Hal, the receiver. And daughter Lynn was a cheerleader. Ray’s wife, Lynda, cooked for the coaching staff.
The Lamb family became an integral part of the fabric of the community. Teammates and classmates of the Lamb offspring were always welcome to pull up a mealtime chair in Ray’s household. Linda was as exceptional in the kitchen as Ray was on the football field.
Ray’s career was highlighted by three state championships, two at Warren County and one at Commerce, where he lived out his life.
During Ray’s successful run as coach, like so many places where high school football is king, locals considered Commerce to be the center of the universe. It’s a big part of why Friday Night Lights came to define smalltown America.
Ray was also a University of Georgia staff member, serving as director of high school relations for the Bulldogs. He was well known statewide and made a significant contribution to UGA’s football success.
He coached in the high school all-star game in 1974 and was a member of Georgia Athletic Coaches Association board, which brought the games back after a year’s absence. That was an important development for the coaches’ association, with Ray providing key leadership.
Everybody pitched in and worked hard in near-perfect harmony for a cause they all believed in: promoting high school football. Each wanted their kids to have the opportunity to showcase their talents for scholarship opportunities.
So much worthiness takes place when men like Coach Lamb give the community something to rally around, providing a positive influence and hope to see local kids excel while becoming productive students and loyal citizens.
Ray was one of those coaches who helped this state get through integration of the school systems. It wasn’t easy, but football was something kids of all stripes could join hands in to achieve a goal, whether to win football games or unite in brotherhood on the hometown team.
For years across this great country, if a miscreant student experienced discipline in sports at their local high school, that student was able to turn his life around by listening to the sage counsel of his coach.
There was always love and laughter at the Lamb household. They played all sorts of games, and when they all gathered at a place like Myrtle Beach in the summer, they rented a cluster of homes where there was something for everyone.
The men, who were all coaches, played golf. The women played bridge, other indoor games, and pickleball, and they helped supervise the children – which gradually evolved from children to grandchildren to great-grandchildren. Meanwhile, everyone pitched in to help cook, clean, and enjoy simple family togetherness. That familial influence translated to each coach’s team by establishing a foundation for success.
Each of Ray’s boys became coaches, and Lynn, the sister, married Michael Davis, who coached with Hal at Calhoun and coached Gunner Stockton at Rabun County. Grandson Taylor (quarterbacks coach at Virginia) and Tre (Tulsa) also face bright futures.
Tre invited Ray to Tulsa to see his Golden Hurricanes play; however, Ray’s doctor advised him not to fly because of a heart condition.
In his remarks, Tre noted that “Poppa,” a wishbone advocate, will now be able to see Tulsa play. However, he wondered what Ray might think when he sees Tre line up his team in the wishbone on the goal line.