Bob Sawyer did it all during his years at Greensboro’s Grimsley High School…Got the word last night that Coach Sawyer has passed away…Here is just a look at all he did over the years, with his entire career as a student and a teacher/coach, being spent at Grimsley HS…Only one true way to describe Bob Sawyer….
LEGEND….
(He was still driving buses for Grimsley Whirlie athletic teams up until say two years ago)…
Not sure about Coach Sawyer’s age, but this man/Legend put his time in, and MORE…..
A look back at the career of Bob Sawyer, from Grimsley High School…..
Bob Sawyer, Guilford County Sports Hall of Fame inducted 2007:
The longtime coach and athletics director at Grimsley High School, Coach Bob Sawyer, remains a legend in North Carolina high school athletics. While attending Grimsley, Sawyer was an individual state swimming champion under the legendary Bob Jamieson winning the overall state title in 1954 and 1955. In 1957 and 1959, Sawyer was the national (NAIA) champion in backstroke and was named All-American in 1959 at East Carolina. In 1961, Sawyer returned to Grimsley for 30 years where his swimming teams won 16 consecutive conference championships and an unprecedented 15 straight NCHSAA state titles. Sawyer also coached track, cross country, and junior varsity football. In 1974 Sawyer was inducted into the East Carolina University Hall of Fame and in 1996 he was enshrined in the North Carolina High School Athletic Association Hall of Fame.
Bob Sawyer going into the North Carolina High School Athletic Association Hall of Fame, in 1996:
Bob Sawyer put together an amazing career as an athlete, teacher, coach and athletic director, all affiliated with one school.
Bob was an individual state swimming champion on teams under the legendary Bob Jamieson that won the overall state title at Greensboro Senior High in 1954 and ‘55. He continued his brilliant swimming career at East Carolina, earning all-America honors and winning two national championships in the backstroke.
He returned to his high school alma mater in 1961 for a 30-year run at the school , which was later renamed Grimsley High, and achieved incredible success as a coach. His teams won 16 consecutive conference championships and an unprecedented 15 straight NCHSAA state titles in swimming. He also coached track, cross country and junior varsity football during his career.
Sawyer has helped to host and direct countless NCHSAA state tournaments and events in several sports. A charter member of the East Carolina University Sports Hall of Fame, he guided Grimsley athletics as athletic director to numerous Wachovia Cup state titles, symbolic of the best overall interscholastic program in the state. He has also been an active member at Morehead United Methodist Church in Greensboro for well over half a century.
Bob was inducted into the NCHSAA Hall of Fame in 1996.
East Carolina University Hall of Fame…Bob Sawyer
Hometown: Greensboro, N.C.
Sport: Swimming (1955-59)
Coach: Dr. Ray Martinez
Between the years of 1955-1960, Robert Sawyer dominated swimming at East Carolina.
In 1957 and ’59, Sawyer was the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) backstroke champion and a member of East Carolina’s NAIA championship teams.
A Co-Captain for the East Carolina team for three years, Sawyer won the North Carolina Collegiate backstroke championship in 1958.
The 1959 season saw the Pirate swimmer gain All-America status and accept the East Carolina College John B. Christenbury Trophy.
On the Bob Sawyer Award:
The Bob Sawyer Award began in the fall of 2013 for Guilford County High School football players. This award is in honor of long-time coach, athletic director and Greensboro Rotarian, Bob Sawyer, who remains a legend in North Carolina high school athletics. Leading Grimsley High School’s swimming teams to 16 consecutive championships and an unprecedented 15 straight NCHSAA state titles, Sawyer was inducted into the East Carolina University Hall of Fame in 1974, and was enshrined in the NC High School Athletic Association Hall of Fame in 1995.
from WFMY News 2:
GREENSBORO, N.C. — Longtime coach and Grimsley High School supporter Robert R. Sawyer died Sunday afternoon, the school announced.
Funeral arrangements are incomplete, and the school said details will be released once they are finalized.
Grimsley officials asked the community to keep the Sawyer family in their thoughts and prayers.