Rep. Gerald McCormick in the Ooltewah High press box. Click to enlarge.
- photo by John Shearer

As a Tennessee state representative, Gerald McCormick is the voice of Ooltewah and the other areas of District 26 in Nashville. On many Friday nights in the fall, he is also the voice of Ooltewah High at home football games.

Rep. McCormick said he has been serving as the public address announcer at the Owl games since about the 2000 season.

“Ted Gatewood (former head coach and current assistant) went to high school with my wife, Kim, at Red Bank High,” he said. “I was helping run the scoreboard and (previous announcer) Gary Pickering decided he didn’t want to do it anymore. So Ted asked me to do it.”

The state representative – who works in the real estate department for Fairway Outdoor Advertising – has his own easy style. Besides saying what happened on each play, he also announces other school-related events and accomplishments and even gives away door prizes during timeouts.

During the regular season game against Farragut, he told the audience that a Roger Staubach-autographed football was being given away. He realized that many at the game were too young to remember when he played for the Dallas Cowboys. So, he jokingly said that he played for the team with helmets and uniforms like Farragut’s.

He also took time during the Sevier County playoff game on Nov. 10 to congratulate the visiting team on its season and saluted the large number of Smoky Bear fans who traveled two hours to see them.

When describing the action on the field, he said he never tries to focus on the negative.

“My whole philosophy is that you have a bunch of 16- and 17-year-olds, so I try to never embarrass the kids,” he said. “For example, I won’t say that the quarterback threw an interception, I will say that the defensive player made the interception.”

In contrast to the serious topics he sometimes finds himself discussing behind a microphone in Nashville, he considers this form of public speaking simple fun. “I enjoy it,” he said. “There’s nothing like the atmosphere of a Friday night high school football game. I enjoy the whole atmosphere – the camaraderie, getting to meet the kids and coaches. It’s a throwback to the old days. It’s an all-American event.”

The Republican lawmaker has been connected with the program during a time period in which it has enjoyed its best success ever.

This year’s team, coached by former Cleveland High coach Benny Monroe, has been undefeated and top-ranked in Class 5A. With a victory over Farragut on Friday, Ooltewah has moved on to the state semifinals against Smyrna.

“It has been fun to see it improve over the years,” he said.

Reared in the Memphis suburb of Germantown, Rep. McCormick actually never played any high school football. But he still burned plenty of energy and stayed busy after school having to work at a service station and his father's supply firm handling pumps, piping and fire hydrants.

He later enrolled at UT-Knoxville, where he met his wife. They have now been married about 20 years.

Mrs. McCormick taught at Ooltewah High for 13 years and was also the cheerleading coach during that time, so that is how he started getting involved at the football games. Their daughter, Cooper, is currently a varsity cheerleader for Ooltewah.

Mrs. McCormick was later promoted to assistant principal at Hixson High, so she now often has to help with their home games.

In 2004, Rep. McCormick decided to run for the seat formerly held by longtime representative Bobby Wood. He had served as campaign manager for Rep. Wood and had expressed an interest in running. After being encouraged by a number of people, he decided to do it.

“I’ve been active in the community and it was a way to get active in the community and be involved in making decisions that could help the community be a better place to live,” he said.

He was elected over Democrat James Carpenter and independent Daniel Lewis in 2004 and ran unopposed for re-election earlier this month. His district includes Ooltewah, Harrison and parts of Hixson.

“I enjoy it,” he said of his legislative work. “It’s an honor to be chosen to do it. It allows you to help people who need help get assistance from the government. It is very satisfying to do that.”

And on Friday nights, he can be found giving some volunteer assistance as well to the Ooltewah football program.