Farewell, Drew Hill. We will always have 1978 in Athens.

Long before Calvin Johnson roamed Grant Field, there was little Drew Hill, a scrawny receiver from Newnan with suction cups as hands and shifty, sneaky speed for returning kick-offs. Drew Hill was a member of the Pepper Power GT gang from the 1970s along with Eddie Lee Ivery, Bucky Shamburger, Lawrence "Sweet N" Lowe, Don Bessillieu, Kent Hill, Ben Utt, and Ivey Stokes.

They were a blue-collar, colorful group, and tough enough and talented enough to beat South Carolina, Miami, Auburn, and Florida in 1978... in consecutive games no less.

They were Gods to me as a wide-eyed 12-year-old mesmerized by these fearless men who wore the White and Gold and ran on to Grant Field chasing the Ramblin' Wreck.

Drew Hill was 5'9" and 170 pounds, but he ran precision routes and rarely dropped a ball. He had four quarterbacks during his playing years at Tech from 1975 to 1978 (Mike Kelley '78, Gary Lanier '76-77, Danny Myers '75, Rudy Allen '75). He made the Tech record books in several categories, including T-15th for receiving yards in a season with 708 in 1978.

When I was at Tech in the mid-80s, I remember seeing Drew Hill and Kent Hill (O-line, Rams) working out together on campus during the spring and summer, preparing for the upcoming NFL season. They would often lift weights together at SAC (Student Activity Center), where the Phi Delts used to play pick-up basketball with the football players and other fraternities. 

Although drafted in the 12th round in 1979, Drew Hill played 14 seasons in the NFL, with the Rams, Oilers and Falcons.

One of my all-time favorite plays in Georgia Tech history involved Drew Hill. It happened at the 1978 Georgia Tech-Georgia game in Athens. Georgia's Scott Woerner had just returned his second punt for a touchdown and the Dawgs took a 21-20 lead late in the third quarter. I was sitting in the upper deck at Stanford Stadium in a sea of raucous red. I was the only Tech fan in the entire section. My parents were sitting one section over using a pair of tickets. I got stuck with the solo. To make matters worse, I was wearing my "Pepper Power" gold-and-white long-sleeve T-shirt and I had a large, velvet and yellow GT cowboy hat on my head that Georgia fans kept knocking off of me.

When Woerner scored his second TD, I felt exposed and vulnerable as the stadium rocked back and forth from the deafening noise. I stood with the crowd and watched the ensuing kick off that landed in Drew Hill's hands 1-yard deep in the endzone. I held my breath as he followed his blockers up the sideline and then cut back into the middle and raced for daylight and glory. I screamed, I screamed, I screamed, I screamed. "Drew Hill! Drew Hill! Touchdown Drew Hill! 101 yards! Drew Hill! I love Drew Hill!"

Today was a solemn day on the campus of Georgia Tech as friends and former players gathered to say good-bye to Drew Hill. Dead at 54, struck down by two massive strokes.

I will never, ever forget you, Drew Hill. You are one of my favorite Georgia Tech players of all time. Thanks for the moment in Athens when I was 12. We will always have that… Rest in peace, buddy.