Former Erwin Eagles football coach James E. “Jim” Jefrey of Hoover, Alabama, died Friday, Feb. 25, 2011. He was 74.

A native of Chattanooga, Tennessee, he attended City High School. He was highly recruited for football and chose Auburn University, where he was a member of the 1957 Auburn National Championship Football team and played in the Blue-Grey game and Senior Bowl.

Although drafted for professional football, he decided to be a coach/teacher. His undergraduate degree at Auburn in Education/Social Studies led to a Master’s Degree in Administration/Traffic Safety at the University of Montevallo. He was a coach at Tuskegee High School, T. R. Miller High School, E. B. Erwin High School, and Vestavia Hills High School.

He retired after 37 years in education in 2005. He was also was an instructor for the Court Referral Program and was the Director of Headquarters for 30 years at Alabama Boys State a member of St. Peter’s Catholic Church.

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