Former CCU AD, Conway HS alum Sasser named to SC Athletics Hall of Fame

For all its growth over the years, its rise onto the national scene in several sports and its development of a number of notable professional athletes, Coastal Carolina has not had any representation in the South Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame ... until now.

That changes in May when former Chanticleer athletic director George F. “Buddy” Sasser will be formally inducted into the Hall as part of an eight-person class.

And those with deep perspective on the university and its sports history feel Sasser is the perfect choice to establish a presence for the Chants in that regard.

“His legacy is the fact that he really helped build a lot of what we’ve established at Coastal and laid the foundation not only here but also with his role as the commissioner of the Big South Conference,” Chants athletic director Matt Hogue said. “He’s a cornerstone of Coastal athletics, I think that’s probably the best way to say it. ... And beyond all that, he’s a legend in Conway.

“So I can’t think of anybody that’s probably had as much of a fingerprint on not only Coastal’s success and growth, but really sports in this area. I think that’s what this honor exemplifies.”

Sasser, who served two stints as Coastal Carolina’s athletic director and was the second commissioner of the Big South, will be inducted with a class that includes three-time Super Bowl champion Troy Brown, former Clemson and NBA player Greg Buckner, former South Carolina basketball standouts Art Whisnant, B.J. McKie and Martha Parker Hester, former Citadel baseball star Richard Wieters and former Clemson and Major League pitcher Flint Rhem.

The official ceremony is May 16 at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center.

“When you start getting old, they feel sorry for you,” Sasser joked of his inclusion in the Hall of Fame. “This is nice because I’ve been involved in athletics all my life. I know a lot of people on this list, never thought I’d get on it. They called me several years ago, got some stuff from me and I had never heard from them since, but I got a call from them [last] Monday.

“I was honored. When you get my age, you figure they passed you over, they’re not going to get to you.”

Sasser’s place in Coastal Carolina history has remained ever present as the school named its own athletics Hall of Fame after him while the Big South awards the “Sasser Cup” to the athletic department with the most success each year. He was inducted into both the university’s and conference’s respective Hall of Fames in 2003.

As Hogue noted, Sasser’s legend predates his time with the Chants.

He was born in Conway and starred in football and basketball for Conway High School before playing quarterback in college at North Carolina. He returned to serve as Conway’s head football coach and athletic director from 1963-70 while amassing a 66-17-5 record before becoming an assistant coach and assistant athletic director at Appalachian State. Later, he served as head football coach at Wofford from 1977-82 and East Tennessee State from 1982-86.

He then found his way back to Conway yet again to serve as Coastal Carolina athletic director from 1986-89 while overseeing the Chants’ transition to the NCAA Division I level. During his second stint in that position, from 1996-99, he was a key figure in laying the groundwork for the school to add football.

In between, he served as the Big South Conference commissioner from 1989-96.

“They sent this list of all these things I had done and I had forgotten most of them,” Sasser joked.

Sasser remains close to the university and a close friend and mentor to Hogue, whom he initially hired to work in the school’s sports information office.

Through the years, he’s marveled at the school’s growth and feels pride knowing he was a part of it.

“I’ll never forget when Coastal Carolina went from a two-year school to a four-year school and went to where [it is now]. They started with one building there,” Sasser said. “I never thought back in the ’60s that it would be 10,000 students. ... I feel very close to it because I was there when it started growing, and I became the commissioner of the Big South Conference and went back to Coastal Carolina in 1996 to help start football. We never anticipated it would grow this fast.”

Longtime Coastal Carolina baseball coach Gary Gilmoreshared his own thoughts on Sasser’s legacy and impact on the school.

“Well his legacy for me is that he didn’t fire me that second year,” Gilmore said, laughing. “ I’ll still never forget, I was sitting across from his desk and he’s looking down, he had just become our AD that year, and he looked at me says, ‘Coach, you realize we’re used to winning in baseball at this school?’ I’m sitting there going, ‘Holy cow, this guy might fire me right now.’

“But I’ll tell you what, [there’s] not a finer gentleman I’ve ever worked for. He was a great mentor for me from that point on. He really did some great things in our athletic department and really gave us some stability in that area and gave us a person who provided great direction and guidance. He’s just such a good person. Honestly, he’s one of the finest gentlemen I’ve ever been around.”

Sasser is the first Coastal Carolina connection to the state Athletic Hall of Fame, but Hogue – who is on the Hall of Fame’s board – hopes there will be more in the near future.

“I think it’s taken some time. We’ve reached a point where we’ve got some great stories and we’ve got some great sports figures in the context of South Carolina,” he said. “I think you’ll see more folks who have been associated with Coastal as the years go on who receive this honor.”

As for Sasser, he too noted that he feels this is an honor not only for himself, but for the school and the area.

“Being part of this Hall of Fame, it means a lot to me,” he said. “But I think it also means a lot to Coastal Carolina and Conway and Conway High School.”

This story was originally published March 1, 2016 at 8:39 PM with the headline "Former CCU AD, Conway HS alum Sasser named to SC Athletics Hall of Fame."