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Phil Grammer, one of Nashville's top high school football coaches for several decades and a standout player before that, died on March 23. He was 85.
Grammer was known for coaching powerhouse teams at Maplewood and for turning Hillsboro, Hillwood and Fairview into winning programs during his time as a coach (1979-1996). But before that, he was among the area's top high school players. He went on to play at Middle Tennessee State.
Final arrangements are on March 28 at Harpeth Hills Memory Garden and Funeral Home. Visitation is from 9:30-11:30 a.m., with the service following.
Grammer was a Tennessean All-Metro AAA fullback as a senior at Hillsboro in 1958 and on the honorable mention list as a junior. He played for longtime Hillsboro coach Henry Nance.
"When I was at Hillsboro, coach Nance would come to practice and sit with me," said Sean Root, a Burros student manager in 1992. "I asked him one day who his best player ever was, and he said Phillip Grammer by far. I ran into coach Grammer years later in Green Hills, and told him that, and he had no clue that was ever a thought or ever said. It really humbled him."
Grammer was one of the top fullbacks in the Ohio Valley Conference at MTSU under coach Bubber Murphy. He made the All-OVC second team in 1961 and helped the Blue Raiders go 7-4 and earn a berth in the Tangerine Bowl. He showed off his versatility in 1963, moving to defense and returning an interception 25 yards for a touchdown in a win over Eastern Kentucky.
Grammer began his coaching career as an assistant at Maplewood, where he spent 15 years. His first head coaching opportunity came at Maplewood in 1979, when Wes Elrod left the Panthers to take over at McGavock.
Grammer's first Maplewood team was among the best in the state. Led by two of Nashville's top running backs — Al Young and Thomas Goodloe — the Panthers went undefeated in the regular season and posted five shutouts before ending the season with a 14-12 loss to Montgomery Bell Academy in the quarterfinals of the state playoffs.
Grammer led Maplewood to the District 12-AAA championship and the playoffs again in 1980. Grammer also coached Maplewood's track team and led the Panthers to the Nashville Interscholastic League championship in the spring of 1981.
After posting a 16-4 record in two seasons at Maplewood, Grammer returned to his alma mater, Hillsboro just before the 1981 season and took over a program that hadn't had a winning season in seven years. It took Grammer just two years to build the Burros into a winner. In 1983 they went 6-4 and earned a berth in the Boyce Smith Bowl in Springfield.
Grammer was The Tennessean Class AAA Coach of the Year in 1983.
He remained at Hillsboro until 1986, when he moved to Hillwood, where he went 33-21 over four seasons. In his second season, he led the Hilltoppers to an 8-3 record, their best since going 8-3 nine years earlier. They ended the season with a 28-14 win over White County in the Tullahoma Lions Bowl.
In 1989, Grammer led Hillwood to a 7-4 record and a 37-7 win over McGavock in the Bellevue Baptist Exchange Bowl. That matchup was special for Grammer because it was against Elrod, one of his mentors.
Grammer retired from Metro in 1990 and finished his career at Fairview, where he coached until 1996. He led Fairview to back-to-back 8-3 records and the playoffs in 1991 and 1992.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Longtime Nashville high school football coach Phil Grammer dies at 85
Continue reading...
Grammer was known for coaching powerhouse teams at Maplewood and for turning Hillsboro, Hillwood and Fairview into winning programs during his time as a coach (1979-1996). But before that, he was among the area's top high school players. He went on to play at Middle Tennessee State.
Final arrangements are on March 28 at Harpeth Hills Memory Garden and Funeral Home. Visitation is from 9:30-11:30 a.m., with the service following.
Grammer was a Tennessean All-Metro AAA fullback as a senior at Hillsboro in 1958 and on the honorable mention list as a junior. He played for longtime Hillsboro coach Henry Nance.
"When I was at Hillsboro, coach Nance would come to practice and sit with me," said Sean Root, a Burros student manager in 1992. "I asked him one day who his best player ever was, and he said Phillip Grammer by far. I ran into coach Grammer years later in Green Hills, and told him that, and he had no clue that was ever a thought or ever said. It really humbled him."
Grammer was one of the top fullbacks in the Ohio Valley Conference at MTSU under coach Bubber Murphy. He made the All-OVC second team in 1961 and helped the Blue Raiders go 7-4 and earn a berth in the Tangerine Bowl. He showed off his versatility in 1963, moving to defense and returning an interception 25 yards for a touchdown in a win over Eastern Kentucky.
Grammer began his coaching career as an assistant at Maplewood, where he spent 15 years. His first head coaching opportunity came at Maplewood in 1979, when Wes Elrod left the Panthers to take over at McGavock.
Grammer's first Maplewood team was among the best in the state. Led by two of Nashville's top running backs — Al Young and Thomas Goodloe — the Panthers went undefeated in the regular season and posted five shutouts before ending the season with a 14-12 loss to Montgomery Bell Academy in the quarterfinals of the state playoffs.
Grammer led Maplewood to the District 12-AAA championship and the playoffs again in 1980. Grammer also coached Maplewood's track team and led the Panthers to the Nashville Interscholastic League championship in the spring of 1981.
After posting a 16-4 record in two seasons at Maplewood, Grammer returned to his alma mater, Hillsboro just before the 1981 season and took over a program that hadn't had a winning season in seven years. It took Grammer just two years to build the Burros into a winner. In 1983 they went 6-4 and earned a berth in the Boyce Smith Bowl in Springfield.
Grammer was The Tennessean Class AAA Coach of the Year in 1983.
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He remained at Hillsboro until 1986, when he moved to Hillwood, where he went 33-21 over four seasons. In his second season, he led the Hilltoppers to an 8-3 record, their best since going 8-3 nine years earlier. They ended the season with a 28-14 win over White County in the Tullahoma Lions Bowl.
In 1989, Grammer led Hillwood to a 7-4 record and a 37-7 win over McGavock in the Bellevue Baptist Exchange Bowl. That matchup was special for Grammer because it was against Elrod, one of his mentors.
Grammer retired from Metro in 1990 and finished his career at Fairview, where he coached until 1996. He led Fairview to back-to-back 8-3 records and the playoffs in 1991 and 1992.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Longtime Nashville high school football coach Phil Grammer dies at 85
Continue reading...
