Glenn McCadams was one of first coaches I met when I started covering High school football in 1995.
It is with a very heavy heart and with a lump in my throat that I write my personal eulogy for him.
My high school Marion County had just won their fourth state title back in 1995 and one of the first coaches to congratulate my dad, Don, an assistant coach with Marion was McCadams.
I was introduced and a great bond to the Dean of Nashville coaches was born.
On February 23 of this year, I saw him at a Cool Springs coaching clinic and I had an opportunity to sit down and talk shop with Coach McCadams.
He looked good as we sat down for roughly 30 minutes to talk football, life, kids and grandkids. Coach "Mac" was his usual self, his sense of humor came through as we discussed the 2013 Mustang team and who could be some teams to watch in Class 4A.
It never occurred to me that this would be the last time I would speak to one of the best coaches in the state and more importantly my friend.
I am very lucky to be able to call Glenn McCadams my friend and I think that all of his friends are better people because of just knowing him.
Now 26 days later, he has left us as he succumbed to complications of cancer at 1:30 am this morning.
His credentials you can't ignore: 319-112 overall record and three state titles (1994, 2002 and 2007 as the Mustangs made seven title game appearances.
His win total places him sixth on the all-time coaching list for the Volunteer State.
In his 31 seasons at Lipscomb Academy, he posted a 288-100 record and the Mustangs made the playoffs 21 times including 18 straight years from 1993-2010.
He won like he lost games with dignity and class, in an age when public and private schools don't see eye to eye, you can't find a coach that wasn't touched by Coach "Mac".
Talking to coaches over the years, I've never heard one coach say a bad word about Coach McCadams and there's a big reason for that.
He was always the same guy, very complimentary either in victory or defeat and that earned him so much respect with his coaching brethren.
But Glenn McCadams was more than a football coach; he was a friend to many.
In a time where football coaches are all about football, McCadams wanted his coaches to be husbands and fathers first.
He wanted his coaches to get away from football from time to time to recharge their batteries.
Away from the field McCadams could often be found swinging away on the golf course or casting away from on a boat, fishing.
In a time where journalists are supposed to be impartial and not have favorites, it's really hard not to cheer for Lipscomb Academy in 2013.
My thoughts and prayers are with Coach McCadams' family, his team and the Lipscomb Academy family as they come to grips with his sudden loss. Coach "Mac" touched thousands of lives over his many years and he will be sorely missed.
I pray that Lipscomb Academy makes the right decision because the next head coach has gigantic shoes to fill, Glenn McCadams was larger than life and anyone who knows him is hurting today.
I know I am.
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