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1964 Fort Payne 

1964 Fort Payne 
 Record: 9-1
 Head Coach: Vernon Wells
 
 The 1964 Fort Payne  were chosen as Class 3A  State Champions by the Associated Press.
 Summary:
 


 Site  PF   Opponent  PA   W/L/T 
H 6   Huntsville 0 W
H 7   Jones Valley 0 W
A 19   Pell City 0 W
H 6   Gadsden 14 L
H 26   Guntersville 7 W
A 7   Scottsboro 6 W
A 33   Albertville 13 W
A 33   Talladega 13 W
A 41   Boaz 13 W
A 34   Cherokee County 6 W
  
2129-1-0 72
 Final Poll                           11/26/1964
 Rank   Team   Record   Votes   Source 
1       Fort Payne  91  AP
2       Shelby County  90  AP
3       Wetumpka  82  AP
4       Hokes Bluff  43  AP
5       W.S. Neal  37  AP
6       Hartselle  35  AP
7       UMS-Wright  34  AP
8       Haleyville  28  AP
9       Russellville  26  AP
10       Satsuma  15  AP
10       Fayette County  15  AP


1964 Fort Payne All-State Players
 Vernon WellsCoach 1  AP
 Dwight BrisendineB Sr.180 1  AP
 Jimmy HarrisE Sr.172 1  AP
 Jimmy HarrisE Sr.178 1  BN
 Rudy WomackT Sr.212 2  BN
 Dwight BrisendineB Sr.180 HM  BN
 Dwight BrisendineB Sr.180 1  BPH
 Jimmy HarrisE Sr.172 1  BPH
 Gehrig GilesB HM  BPH
 Rudy WomackT Sr.212 HM  BPH


1964 Fort Payne All-Star Players
 AHSAA-University of Alabama All-Star Game   
 Dwight Brisendine S Sr. 6-2 180 Auburn  


Fort Payne began the 1964 season as the top ranked team by the AP voters and with the exception of week four held on to the ranking throughout the season to win a state championship. They were coming off 9-1, 9-0-1 and 8-2 seasons the past three years so expectations were high for the 1964 season.

They closed out a brilliant season with an impressive 34-6 victory over Cherokee County that solidified their top ranking. The Wildcats fell behind early but came back to command a 206 halftime lead. The win was necessary as Shelby County finished just a single point behind in the final poll on November 26.

The biggest victory may have come in week six when the Wildcats defeated Scottsboro for the first time in 54 years by a slim 7-6 margin. In a 41-13 win over Boaz, quarterback Dwight Brisendine completed 12 of 14 passes for 225 yards and six touchdowns. He also added five PATs for a total of 41 points.

Brisendine would finish the 1964 season completing 72 of 96 passes for 1,220 yards and 19 touchdowns. He also averaged 5.5 yards a carry running the ball. He connected on 18 of 22 PATs and punted for a 38.5 yard average.

The Wildcats would not finish the season undefeated as they fell to a good Gadsden team 14-6 in week four. Four starters did not play in the game. Gadsden was a higher classification and a larger school at the time.

Fort Payne was coached by Vernon Wells with John Holtzclaw serving as his assistant. Coach Wells came to Fort Payne from Butler in 1958 and would remain there through the 1967 season before moving on to Plainview and Albertville. He would finish his career with a record of 210-135-11.

1964 was the first season the Associated Press would produce a poll that included all four classifications. The voters were made up of sports writers from around the state and was the predecessor to the current ASWA. Fort Payne also was selected as champions by the Birmingham Post-Herald.

1964 Fort Payne Roster
NO. NAME POS.
83 Peter Little  
82 Jimmy Harris  
72 Wayne Stephens  
76 Benny Freeman  
60 Jim Keith  
50 Glenn Dilbeck  
61 Dewey Sparks  
78 Rudy Womack  
85 Joe Griggs  
84 James Shankles  
64 Butch Fergusin  
51 Dick Groat  
13 Geno Shirey  
32 Mike Holtzclaw  
30 Robert Purdy  
24 Gehrig Giles  
12 Dwight Brisendine  
25 Dwight Goza  
35 Eugene Prestwood  
63 Terry Reed  
75 Robert Houston  
71 Shelly Powell  
  David Crow  


Great Moments in Alabama High School Football History

In 1925 Langdale tied a record by defeating Milltown 125-0. Hamilton had set the record by thrashing Fayette 125-0 in 1915.