Junction Boy and Alabama Offensive Line Coach Dead at 85
Former Texas A&M 'Junction Boy' and Alabama offensive line coach Dee Powell has passed away at the age of 85. Powell played for legendary football coach Paul "Bear" Bryant at Texas A&M as senior in Bryant's first year. He coached the offensive line for the Crimson Tide and helped Bryant win three national championships.
Powell was a senior during Bryant's first season at Texas A&M and took part in the famed "Junction Boys" camp of 1954. He is one of the 38 players to have finished the camp and begin the change in the Aggie program.
The players practiced in brutal heat and the Aggie program for hours on end to prepare for the new season. Bryant's callous tactics ran off over half the team but he ultimately brought Texas A&M the 1956 Southwest Conference championship.
Bryant was hired at Alabama in 1958 and brought on Powell as an offensive line coach in Tuscaloosa. Powell stepped away after just one season but returned to the Capstone from 1963-64 and then for a third stint from 1974-82. Powell helped Bryant win three of his six national championships, in 1964, 1978 and 1979.
He retired from coaching and went into development working on both sides of the Iron Bowl rivalry. He leaves a legacy at Auburn where, as assistant vice president of development, he raised millions of dollars for the new library.