Bobby Buford

Robert G. “Bobby” Buford was born on May 26, 1954, in Huntsville, Alabama, in Madison County to Bill and Doris Buford. He has an older brother, John, who was also an outstanding basketball player at New Hope High School and David Lipscomb University. He was inducted into the Huntsville-Madison Athletic Hall of Fame in 1999.

Bobby lettered in basketball and baseball at New Hope High School and was selected All-County, All-Area and All-State in both sports. In Buford’s senior season, Coach Gilmer Ellis’ Indians finished the basketball season with a 22-4 record and the 1971-72 Madison County Championship with Bobby averaging 20.5 points and 10 rebounds per game. He also pitched for the Indians’ baseball team and played in the 1972 Alabama East-West All- Star Game. During his senior season, Bobby was chosen by the Atlanta Braves in the sixth round of the professional baseball draft.

Bobby signed a baseball and basketball scholarship with Calhoun State Junior College following the 1972 basketball season. In the spring after baseball season he signed with David Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tennessee, to play baseball for legendary Coach Ken Dugan. Bobby decided to sign with the Braves a week before college started.

From 1973-77, Bobby played professional baseball with the Braves organization, with stops in Wytheville, Virginia; Greenwood, South Carolina; winter baseball at Sarasota, Florida; Lynchburg, Virginia; and Clinton, Iowa. Some of his teammates included Dale Murphy, Larry McWilliams, Terry Harper, Brian Doyle and Pat Rockett. Notable opponents included Willie Randolph, Clint Hurdle, Lee Mazilli, Jim Rice, David Clyde, Eddie Murray and Butch Hobson. In 1973, Bobby was selected the MVP for the Wytheville Braves, playing for Paul Snyder and Eddie Haas. He also played for managers and coaches Bob Veale, Harry Dorish, Chuck Estrada, Hoyt Wilhelm, Wayne Terwilliger, Bob Hartsville and Tommy Aaron.

Bobby left the Braves in 1977 and signed a scholarship to play basketball for Hall of Fame Coach John Kitchens at Snead State. He was selected to the All-Conference Team. After one year at Snead, Buford signed to play basketball at Athens State for legendary coaches Oba Belcher and Harrell Murrell. He was selected MVP for the 1979 Athens team.

After graduation from Athens in 1979, Bobby was hired as Junior Varsity basketball and Head Varsity baseball coach at the Kate Duncan Smith DAR High School in Grant, Alabama. In four years as the JV Basketball coach, the Patriots had records of 20-6; 23-2; 27-1; and 25-0 for an overall record of 95-9 and three Marshall County Championships. In 1984, Bobby was promoted to be the Head Varsity basketball coach. Over the next five years, his teams had an overall record of 108-52; won 4 Area Championships; and made 4 trips to the Alabama State Basketball Tournament. Twice, his teams were runner-up in the state championship game, losing by 1 to Holy Family and 6 to Hazlewood.

In 1989, Bobby left coaching to become the principal and athletic director at Douglas High School. Since then, he has served as principal at KDS DAR Elementary School, Brindlee Mountain Middle School, Asbury High School and the Marshall County Alternative School. He is currently the At-Risk and Secondary Coordinator for the system. Buford has been employed by the Marshall County School System for the past 29 years, 20 of those as an administrator. In 1997, he was inducted into the Huntsville-Madison County Athletic Hall of Fame.

Bobby and his wife, Louise, currently reside in Guntersville. They have three children, Dr. Julie Buford of Red Bank, New Jersey; Tyler Buford of Gainesville, Florida; and Mary Buford, a nursing student at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa.