Daniel Hamilton Magill Jr. (January 25, 1921 – August 23, 2014) was an American journalist and sports administrator, known for his association with the University of Georgia Bulldogs.

Early life, education and family

Born and raised in

Athens, Georgia Athens is a consolidated city-county in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. Downtown Athens lies about northeast of downtown Atlanta. The University of Georgia, the state's flagship public university and an Research I university, ...

, Magill's association with the Bulldogs began with his job as bat boy for the baseball team and manager of the tennis courts while in high school. While at the

University of Georgia The University of Georgia (UGA or Georgia) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Athens, Georgia, United States. Chartered in 1785, it is the oldest public university in th ...

, he competed as a varsity athlete for the tennis team and swim team and volunteered his services as assistant football coach to

Harry Mehre Harry J. Mehre (September 18, 1901 – September 27, 1978) was an American football and basketball player and coach. He served as the head football coach at the University of Georgia (1928–1937) and the University of Mississippi (1938–1945), ...

. He was a member of

Chi Phi Chi Phi () is considered by some as the oldest American men's college social fraternity that was established as the result of the merger of three separate organizations that were each known as Chi Phi. The earliest of these organizations was forme ...

fraternity and earned his Bachelor of Arts in Journalism ( ABJ) from the university's prestigious

Henry W. Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication The Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication is a constituent college of the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia, United States. Established in 1915, Grady College offers undergraduate degrees in journalism, advertising, public re ...

in 1941 before entering the

Marine Corps Marines (or naval infantry) are military personnel generally trained to operate on both land and sea, with a particular focus on amphibious warfare. Historically, the main tasks undertaken by marines have included raiding ashore (often in supp ...

where he obtained the rank of

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

and served in the

Pacific theater of World War II The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War or the Pacific Theatre, was the Theater (warfare), theatre of World War II fought between the Empire of Japan and the Allies of World War II, Allies in East Asia, East and Southeast As ...

. Magill married the former Rosemary Reynaud of New Orleans and had three children, five grandchildren, and nine great grandchildren.

Professional career

Following his time in military service, Magill wrote for the

Atlanta Journal ''The Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' (''AJC'') is an American daily newspaper based in metropolitan area of Atlanta, Georgia. It is the flagship publication of Cox Enterprises. The ''Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' is the result of the merger ...

, serving as the Prep Sports editor of the newspaper that "Covers Dixie Like the Dew." A natural promoter, Magill built up the Georgia high school all-star football game each year and watched as it drew record crowds. Magill also managed to bring pitchers from the previous year's

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...

game (

Spud Chandler Spurgeon Ferdinand "Spud" Chandler (September 12, 1907 – January 9, 1990) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed starting pitcher and played his entire career for the New York Yankees ...

of the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...

and Whitlow Wyatt of the

Brooklyn Dodgers The Brooklyn Dodgers were a Major League Baseball team founded in 1883 as the Brooklyn Grays. In 1884, it became a member of the American Association as the Brooklyn Atlantics before joining the National League in 1890. They remained in Brook ...

, both former Bulldogs) to manage the teams in a Georgia high school all-star baseball game. In 1949, Magill returned to Athens to take the job of

sports information director A sports information director is a type of public relations worker who provides statistics, team, and player notes, as well as other information about a college or university's sports teams to the news media and public. Abbreviated as "SID," sports ...

for the university. His passion for the Bulldogs was evident as he personally covered every sport on campus. In the 1950s, the Bulldog football team was struggling under legendary coach

Wally Butts James Wallace Butts Jr. (February 7, 1905 – December 17, 1973) was an American college football player, coach, and athletics administrator. He served as the head coach at the University of Georgia from 1939 to 1960, compiling a record of 140– ...

. And as the wins became fewer, so did the number of people in the stands. To help out his alma mater, Magill traveled all over

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

, setting up Bulldog Clubs along the way. He also founded ''The Georgia Bulldog'' newspaper in 1950. Before long, nearly half of Georgia's counties had local chapters of Magill's club, and interest in the Bulldogs soared. Magill continued to serve as executive secretary of the club for decades. In 1954, Magill became Head Coach of the struggling Bulldog Tennis program. He held the title for the next 34 years, building the program with a 706–183 record (most wins by any coach in

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

history), 13

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central United States, South Central and Southeastern United States. Its 16 members in ...

outdoor championships, 8 SEC indoor championships, and 2

national championships A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or competition, contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the be ...

. In addition, he built UGA's tennis complex and brought the

Intercollegiate Tennis Association The Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) is the governing body and coaches' association of United States college tennis, both an advocate and authority, overseeing men's and women's varsity tennis at all levels – NCAA Division I, NCAA Divi ...

(ITA) Collegiate Tennis Hall of Fame to Athens, which was named in his honor. He persuaded

Kenny Rogers Kenneth Ray Rogers (born Kenneth Donald Rogers) (August 21, 1938 – March 20, 2020) was an American singer and songwriter. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, Country Music Hall of Fame in 2013. Rogers was particul ...

and Marianne Rogers to donate the funds for the Hall of Fame building. He was inducted into the

Georgia Sports Hall of Fame Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

in 1976.

Controversy

Magill was also central to a controversy surrounding the 1943 and 1944 football games played between Georgia and Georgia Tech. Georgia Tech soundly defeated Georgia in 1943 by a score of 48–0 and in 1944 by a score of 44–0. Many years after the games were played, Dan Magill ruled that the games should not be counted because the Georgia teams were depleted by World War II and Georgia Tech used players from a nearby U.S. Navy officer training school. On the record books of Georgia the games are not counted, whereas they are counted in the record by Georgia Tech. Georgia still recognizes all other games played by the 1943 and 1944 Bulldog squads, but not the games against Georgia Tech.

Retirement and legacy

After coaching, Magill was Director of Tennis. He officially retired from the university in 1995, leaving behind a legacy like no other. In his honor, the press box at Georgia's famous

Sanford Stadium Dooley Field at Sanford Stadium is the on-campus playing venue for football at the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia, United States (also known as UGA). The 93,033-seat stadium is the ninth-largest American football stadium in the NCAA ...

was named for him and a plaque with his biography is mounted alongside Bulldog greats such as

Vince Dooley Vincent Joseph Dooley (September 4, 1932 – October 28, 2022) was an American college football coach. He was the head coach of the Georgia Bulldogs from 1964 to 1988, as well as the University of Georgia's (UGA) athletic director from 1979 to 2 ...

Fran Tarkenton Francis Asbury Tarkenton (born February 3, 1940), nicknamed "the Scrambler", is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons, primarily with the Minnesota Vikings. He is wi ...

, and

Frank Sinkwich Frank Francis Sinkwich Sr. (October 10, 1920 – October 22, 1990) was a Croatian American football player and coach. He won the Heisman Trophy in 1942 while playing for the Georgia Bulldogs, making him the first recipient from the Southeastern ...

, to name a few. His seat assignment in the press box reads, "Dan Magill - Legend." Uga V, Georgia's mascot from 1990–99, carried the official name of "Uga IV's Magillicuddy II" in honor of Magill. The bulldog was featured on the cover of

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with a circulation of over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellen ...

in 1997 and was named the best mascot in college sports in the same publication. Uga V had previously garnered national attention when he lunged at Auburn football player Robert Baker in a four-overtime Georgia victory in 1996. Perhaps one of the greatest testaments to Magill's contribution to the University of Georgia is that today nearly 50 people do the jobs that he once did on his own. His successor as tennis coach, Manuel Diaz has continued the high quality of the tennis program. Magill's passion for the school continued as he served as curator of the Dan Magill ITA Collegiate Tennis Hall of Fame and personally gave tours of the complex. He also wrote regular columns for the Athens Banner Herald (and provided each sports department staffer with a Claxton fruitcake at Christmas), maintained his health by playing tennis regularly, and was well known for his gardening abilities (he received a commendation from the

Garden Club of America The Garden Club of America is a nonprofit organization made up of around 18,000 club members and 200 local garden clubs around the United States. Founded in 1913, by Elizabeth Price Martin and Ernestine Abercrombie Goodman, it promotes the recordi ...

). Magill's interest, dedication, and passion for gardening was evident in the grounds surrounding his home in the Athens area.

Death

Magill died at the age of 93 at an assisted-living facility in

, on August 23, 2014.

References

External links

Georgia State Legislature commendation of Dan Magill (1995)Dan Magill Tennis Complex at the University of GeorgiaAthens Banner-Herald's Magill Columns pageGeorgia Sports Hall of Fame

Dan Magill
at the

{{DEFAULTSORT:Magill, Dan 1921 births 2014 deaths Georgia Bulldogs men's tennis coaches Georgia Bulldogs men's swimmers Georgia Bulldogs men's tennis players United States Marine Corps personnel of World War II Sportspeople from Athens, Georgia Tennis coaches from Georgia (U.S. state) Tennis players from Georgia (U.S. state) Burials at Oconee Hill Cemetery