Cecil Hurt
Media
As a youngster, Cecil Hurt offered a few hints about what might lie ahead in the future.
“He always had this fascination with sports and with sports statistics and things,” says his older brother Cary. “He had the
Street and Smith’s baseball encyclopedia that used to come out, and he had everybody's stats memorized, and he could tell you people.s stats from the 50s or the 60s or the 70s. He was a baseball guy at the time, and then it became basketball, and then he started stringing high school football games (contributing reports to newspapers). He had a photographic memory for stats and details.”
But who could have imagined the end result?
Cecil Hurt, a Butler High grad who passed away at age 62 in November 2021, grew up to become one of the most highly decorated and widely read sportswriters in the state’s history. Hurt covered University of Alabama athletics for nearly 40 years as a writer, columnist and editor at The Tuscaloosa News. A graduate of the University, he joined the Tuscaloosa News in 1982 as beat writer for Alabama athletics. He was named sports editor in 1989 and was lead columnist for three decades. In those roles, he was a “must-read” for Alabama fans, especially after the digital age enabled his work to be enjoyed world-wide by distant fans. He was also a must-read for Alabama coaches and staff, facilitating relationships for Hurt and gaining their trust.
“I confided a lot of crucial inside information to Cecil and asked him not to tell anybody,” said former football coach Nick Saban. “He never once broke my trust. Cecil was one of the bright deep thinkers I ever met in the media anywhere.”
Hurt’s skill and worth ethic were recognized in numerous ways. He was named the National Sports Media Association’s Alabama Sportswriter of the Year in 2016, 2018 and 2019 and was selected to the Alabama Sports Writers Association Hall of Fame in 2022, and included on its list of top 50 “legends” in state sportswriting.He shared in the Tuscaloosa News’ Pulitzer Prize for its tornado coverage in 2011. In 2019, the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame named Hurt the fifth recipient of its Mel Allen Media Award, which recognizes media members who have made significant contributions to Alabama sports.
“I knew (how well-read he was) from his Twitter following, and I knew that I would get random comments from people as, oh, you’re Cecil’s brother or other,” Cary says. “But until he passed away, I had no idea of the national impact, through the calls that I got. Coach Saban to Kirk Herbstreit and Chris Fowler and all the ESPN guys sent notes or called or messaged.”
“I would argue, in modern time, no one person in the media has ever been more influential or consequential with what he said and wrote than Cecil,” Paul Finebaum said after Hurt’s death. “His words carried a tremendous amount of weight.”
“Cecil Hurt was a good friend and one of the best sports writers I have ever had the privilege of working with, not just at Alabama, but at all of our coaching stops,” Saban said. “He was a man of integrity and a fair-minded journalist blessed with wit, wisdom and an ability to paint a picture with his words that few have possessed. Cecil was loved throughout this community and state as an old-school journalist who covered the Alabama beat with class and professionalism.”
“As good a sportswriter as Cecil was, he was an even better person,” said Alabama Athletic Director Greg Byrne. “He was admired and respected here in Tuscaloosa but throughout the state, and beyond.”
One of his brother’s recollections would match those of many who shared a press box with Cecil. Seldom would he be seen without a thick, dog-earred paperback book, whether it be awaiting the beginning of a press conference or a kickoff. “He was rereading classics, and there's no rhyme or reason to what he was reading,” Cary says, “but he was always reading something.”
Since Nick Saban would typically get the last word in one of those press conferences, it’s appropriate to award him the last word here about Cecil Hurt.
“He was a role model for young writers and the most trusted source of news for Alabama fans everywhere,” Saban said. “He leaves a wonderful legacy as one of sports journalism’s best.”
--John Pruett & Mark McCarter
