[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 54 (Thursday, April 28, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E835-E836]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    RECOGNIZING JULIUS HARPER DAVIS

                                 ______
                                 

                   HON. CHARLES W. ``CHIP'' PICKERING

                             of mississippi

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, April 28, 2005

  Mr. PICKERING. Mr. Speaker, recently, Millsaps College in Jackson, 
Mississippi dedicated Harper Davis Field to a man who coached there for 
25 years, and who has built a lifetime legacy of service to sport and 
his fellow man across the state. Coach Harper Davis called the 
rededication of Millsaps' Alumni Field to him the ``greatest honor of 
my life.'' And while leading the Millsaps Majors he built a record of 
138-79-4 including an undefeated season in 1980, his life has much more 
to honor.
  At age 17, Harper Davis left his Delta home in Clarksdale, 
Mississippi and enlisted in the U.S. Marines Air Corps as a pilot to 
serve his Nation in World War II. After the War was over, he was met at 
Texas Grand Prairie Air Station by Mississippi State University 
assistant coach Phil Dickens who had the Bulldogs' playbook in hand. 
Two days later they arrived in Starkville for two practices before his 
first game where Davis scored two touchdowns as MSU defeated Auburn 20-
0. Two days of study and 2 days of practice were followed by 2 
touchdowns. In addition, during those 2 days, Harper Davis met Camille, 
his future wife. He would go on to be named to the All-SEC team while 
at State where he also ran on the school's track team. He was co-
captain of the football team, voted Best Athlete, President of the 
``M'' Club and named ``Mr. Mississippi State University.'' Additionally 
he was a member of the Kappa Sigma Fraternity, Omicron Delta Kappa, 
Blue Key and the Colonels Club.
  He graduated from Mississippi State with a bachelor of science degree 
in business finance and mathematics in 1948, in 1962 earned a master's 
degree in education administration.
  After leaving Mississippi State University, Harper Davis was a first-
round draft choice of both the Chicago Bears of the National Football 
League and the Los Angeles Dons of the All-American League. Harper 
Davis played one year with the Dons before the league folded and then 
went on to play with the Bears as well as the Green Bay Packers. Many 
considered him the fastest man in the NFL.
  Over the years, Harper Davis has coached the backfield at his alma 
mater as well as head coach at West Point High School, and

[[Page E836]]

Columbus High School before arriving at Millsaps College. He has been 
inducted into the Mississippi State Sports Hall of Fame and the 
Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and was named Mississippi Sportsman of 
the Year in 1976. He has been honored nationally for his contributions 
to the sport of football and his work with the Cystic Fibrosis 
Foundation.
  Harper Davis is a member of Christ United Methodist Church and with 
his now departed wife, the former Camille Hogan of Starkville, has 3 
sons, Michael, Andrew and Patrick with 4 grandchildren, Morgan, Drew, 
Paul and Brad.
  Mr. Speaker, Harper Davis has now been coaching football for over 50 
years and he continues today at Jackson Academy, where 4 of my sons 
attend. His gentle firmness and wise lessons continue to build young 
men in Mississippi. I am glad to recognize him today and honor a 
lifetime of service.

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