John L. Beard

John L. Beard, Marshall County High School Class of 1939, played tight end on the football team. He and his brother “Happy” Beard were Wildcat teammates. The Beard Brothers were leaders on Coach Henry Cochrane’s unbeaten 1938 Wildcats. This team scored 173 points while giving up 6 and is one of two Wildcat Football Teams to go unbeaten in the last 67 years. All five Beard brothers played football for MCHS. Their sister, Virginia “Sis” Beard Roberts, starred in basketball for the Wildcats.

John L. earned a football scholarship to play for legendary Coach “Scrappy” Moore and the Chattanooga Moccasins. His position coach, Ferron Shoemaker, also coached basketball, counting Beard as one of his stars.

The Chattanooga Times described Beard’s football play as “playing end, when he crashed, he would crash with all his power.” In a basketball game against Howard, the newspaper said he “continued his fighting, aggressive basketball to become the star. He stole the ball, faked, dribbled, forced tie-ups and made himself a nuisance in general.”

Beard’s leadership role was developed even more at Chattanooga where he served as president of Phi Delta Sigma fraternity.

Four of the Beard brothers served in the military during World War II. John L. served in the Army Air Force where he was a crack cager for the MacDill Air Force Base team. Sergeant Beard’s outfit was in the European Theater 29 months and made many important raids on Belgium, France, Holland and Germany.

In 1947, Beard accepted a position as head football and basketball coach at Stevenson. The next year he married Dottie Holloway of Chattanooga. His teaching/coaching career continued at Crossville. He then operated a service station in Guntersville until his election as tax collector for Marshall County.

John L. the football/basketball star would be even better in politics ... unbeaten! He ran for county office four times and never lost an election. His first victory was in 1954 as tax collector. He served a total of 24 years in public service as tax collector and probate judge. He was the first probate judge in Marshall County to serve as president of the Alabama Probate Judges Association.

Beard was one of Marshall County’s most popular politicians and community leaders. He served as vice chairman of the state leukemia board and coached Little League baseball.

The grandchildren, Hannah and Tyler Martin, and Jay and Hillary Beard, all have been a part of Wildcat athletics. Tyler Martin, a 2002 star lineman for the Wildcats, is attending Tusculum College on a football scholarship. The Beard athletic and football tradition that started in the 1920s continues in 2005.