Photo courtesy of www.elkinhighschoolreunion.com

John Bryan Anderson, seen in his yearbook picture, will be the inducted into the Surry County Sports Hall of Fame.

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DOBSON — Elkin local John Anderson will be honored and inducted into the Surry County Sports Hall of Fame by the Surry County Parks and Recreation Department and the Surry County Sports Hall of Fame Committee for his athletic contribution to the Surry County community.

The induction ceremony will be held Saturday at 4 p.m., in the Surry Community College gymnasium.

The Hall of Fame is dedicated to preserving the history of sports for Surry County and will honor and memorialize individuals who have achieved athletic accomplishments in the Surry County region as a player, coach or administrator.

Anderson, a 1968 graduate of Elkin High School, played for the Buckin’ Elks. Anderson’s outstanding athletic ability and success as a tailback and linebacker for Elkin, soon earned him a position as linebacker at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where he graduated in 1972.

Football is known as a “game of inches,” of perseverance, of tangibles and intangibles.

Anderson will receive recognition for those attributes during the awards ceremony at the Sports Hall of Fame Ceremony.

Encouragement for the young Anderson came partly from both home and school.

“My dad played at a small college and he encouraged and coached me,” said Anderson. “A lot of folks in Elkin did.”

Anderson played under Coach John Charles, Coach Ron Cooper and Coach Billy Hickman and credited them as a huge part of his and others’ success in the football community.

Hooper and Charles pushed people to do their best, said Anderson. During that time, Anderson said Elkin’s coaches showed a lot of interest in the players.

Four football players in Anderson’s class went on to receive Atlantic Coast Conference scholarships, and Hickman, one of Anderson’s mentors, was later recruited to coach defensive backs for the Washington Redskins.

“I am honored to be considered for the Sports Hall of Fame,” said Anderson.

In 1966, the Buckin’ Elks were conference champions in football and in 1967 received the Western State Championship title.

Anderson received the honor of being chosen to play football for the East/West All-Star game during his high school years.

He then played and lettered as middle linebacker for the University of North Carolina Tarheels from 1969-1971. He played on the second-place Atlantic Coast Conference and Peach Bowl Team in 1970.

He also won the Chuck Erickson Award, named after the Tarheels’ athletic director in 1960s, while playing under Coach Bill Dooley.

The Chuck Erickson Award is similar to what is called the Hustler’s Award today, said Anderson.

Anderson recently retired from General Shale Brick Company and plays golf along with his wife Linda, who was his high school sweetheart. Thirteen is the name of their Springer Spaniel’s name who is part of the family.

“She used to fetch balls with the family,” but now mostly walks with us, he said.

The Hall of Fame monument is located at Fisher River Park in Dobson. The new names on the monument will be unveiled to the public on Saturday at 3 p.m. The crowd will then move to Surry Community College for the ceremony.

Along with the Hall of Fame athletes and coaches, the committee also will induct four new members into the Ring of Honor group. These are people who have made a significant impact in local sports even if they never played themselves.

The event will be open to the public.

Reach Tanya Chilton at tchilton@heartlandpublications.com or at 719-1921.