Batesville gave Charlie Strong a true hometown welcome Friday night, November 6, as the championship football coach and 1978 Batesville High School graduate was honored as the Batesville School District’s Hometown Hero.
Fans, families, students, former classmates and longtime friends lined up to meet Strong and take pictures with him in front of a big orange-and-black “Welcome Home Charlie Strong” banner at the free meet-and-greet before the game. Strong, wearing a Batesville Pioneers hoodie, smiled and posed with young athletes, Lady Pioneers, families and Pioneer supporters of every age.
The celebration was held on Senior Night, as the Pioneers hosted the Valley View Blazers at Pioneer Stadium in their final 5A conference game of the regular season. Batesville has already earned a playoff bid.
“One of our favorite sons, Charlie Strong, of course, a legendary college coach,” Batesville Athletic Director Coach Stu Smith said ahead of the event. “We’re excited to have him here. We’ve been trying to get him here.”
Photos: Batesville Welcomes Charlie Strong Home
A Night Planned Around a Hometown Hero
The free meet-and-greet was scheduled from 5 to 6 p.m. in the new Performing Arts Center cafeteria on the Batesville High School campus, with food and drinks provided. Batesville Mayor Rick Elumbaugh was set to officially introduce Strong at 6 p.m.
Plans also called for Strong and his family to be recognized at the 50-yard line before kickoff, with Strong serving as an honorary Pioneer captain for the coin toss before heading to the press box for an interview. Senior football players, band members and golfers were also honored on Senior Night.
From Pioneer to Head Coach
Strong was born in Batesville on August 2, 1960. He played football for the Pioneers, then played defensive back at the University of Central Arkansas, lettering from 1980 to 1983.
He went on to become one of the top recruiters in the country, serving as defensive coordinator for Lou Holtz at South Carolina and helping Urban Meyer’s Florida Gators win national championships in 2006 and 2008.
Strong was head coach at Louisville, where he went 37-15 in 4 seasons, won 2 Big East titles and beat Florida 33-23 in the 2013 Sugar Bowl. He later led Texas, where he was the first Black head football coach in school history, and South Florida. His career record as a head coach is 74-53, and according to Smith, he has coached 12 first-round NFL draft picks.
Read our earlier story: Charlie Strong Returns Home as Batesville’s Hometown Hero
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