The way Joe Drennan tells it, his football playing days would have ended at Picayune High in 1951 if it were not for one man — Dobie Holden, the legendary head coach at Pearl River College.
“Coach Holden came by to see me one day after my senior year in high school,” said Drennan. “I had just graduated. We didn’t have any money and since I was through with high school, I was looking for a job. He said he wanted me to come to Pearl River next year and play ball.”
Drennan, who was born in Collins and moved to Picayune in 1941, saw Holden’s offer as an opportunity to further his education. So he got a summer job at a service station in Poplarville and enrolled at PRC in the fall.
“Coach Holden was something to behold,” said Drennan. “If ever a man lived football it was Coach Holden. It was his life. He was a psychology major. He knew how to get the most out of his players. It was fantastic playing for him.”
Drennan attended PRC from 1951-53. He played both ways, as a defensive end and tight end. In 1951, the Wildcats finished 9-1 and Drennan made first team All-State. In 1952, the Wildcats finished 9-1 and Drennan was captain of the football team.
His accomplishments on the football field earned Drennan a place in the college’s Sports Hall of Fame. He was inducted Saturday, Oct. 20, during the 2001 Homecoming festivities.
“My life at Pearl River is something I will never forget,” said Drennan. “It was very relaxing. It was like high school, more family oriented than anything else. You studied and did your own thing. I remember spending a lot of time in the (recreation) hall playing ping-pong.”
Drennan’s family lived in Bassfield for a time where they opened a grocery store. In 1941, they moved to Picayune where Drennan played football, basketball and baseball.
Once at Pearl River, football wasn’t his only activity. He played basketball his freshman year and he was a member of the school’s first tennis team, while majoring in physical education. Outside of sports he served as a sports editor on the yearbook staff and a member of the student council.
But football was his first love. Offensively, the Wildcats ran a split-T offense. Players had no face guards or mouthpieces.
“I remember my first game, going down on the kickoff,” said Drennan. “I saw this guy heading toward me just as I was about to make the tackle. He reached out and punched me in the jaw. After the game, I was sitting in the dentist’s chair. I made the tackle, but I remember walking back to the huddle and thinking ‘what have I gotten myself into here?’ I have a lot of missing teeth because of football.”
The 1951 Wildcats shut out six opponents that year while scoring 279 points in 10 games. They lost to Del Mar 33-6 in the Memorial Bowl.
The 1952 Wildcats finished 9-1, shutting out six opponents. Drennan kicked extra points for the team that year.
“A lot of the credit has to go to Coach Holden,” said Drennan. “He was such a perfectionist. I remember we would run one play for an entire week in practice. ‘You gotta get it right,’ he would tell us.
“He was that much of a stickler for details.”
Pearl River will always hold a special place for Drennan. He met his wife, Dorothy, at PRC when she was a freshman and a cheerleader. They didn’t date when they attended PRC. That came later when Drennan moved to New Orleans to work for Kaiser Aluminum. Dorothy and some of her friends also worked in New Orleans.
The Drennan’s have been married for 40 years now. Joe retired from Kaiser in 1985 after more than 32 years. He went back to work in 1988 managing a chemical plant and retired again in 1997. Once it shut down, Drennan continued to work.
“My daughter tells people I have retired four times now,” quips Drennan. “Today, I spend a lot of time playing golf, fishing a little, and I love boats.”