As the UNA football team unloads the buses on a football Saturday in Florence, they begin the Lion Walk as students on party hill welcome them to historic Braly Stadium. The road that these traditions take place on lost its namesake Feb 26. Grady Liles, longtime president of the UNA Sportsman Club, was 81 when he passed away.

Liles was a member of the UNA Athletics Hall of Fame and was named the 1987 Shoals Citizen of the Year.

Lana Nale was working for UNA when Liles became the president of the Sportsman’s Club in 1972. She was the Sportsman’s Club’s secretary for many years while Liles was there.

“He was the type of person that if there was something that was on his mind, he would get it done,” Nale said. “He was a fun-loving, caring person; his blood ran purple and gold; he loved this university and loved this town.”

Don McBrayer, a physical education professor, also knew him for many years and was part of a regular coffee gathering at McDonald’s.

McBrayer talked about how caring of a person Liles was:

“We would have a group that would go to McDonald’s and drink coffee. And the reason I started going was Grady. We had a good group of about eight or 10 and if there was ever anybody who needed a cup, Grady would get it for him. Even when he was getting sick, he would still try and get up and get somebody a cup if they needed one.”

Liles was a driving force behind getting the Division II Football National Championship to Florence.

The game used to be played in McCallum, Texas, a place Nale described as “out in the middle of nowhere.”

“We went there to play football and Grady said, ‘We can do a lot better than this and the people of Florence can do a lot better than this,’” McBrayer said.

Nale said Liles had the type of attitude that if he wanted it done, he would not stop until it was done. And that was the attitude that brought the championship game to Braly Stadium.

“If he got it in his mind and it was good for the community, he would get it done,” Nale said.

Liles was an athlete himself. As a boxer, he won the 1947 Golden Gloves championship.

Nale also said Liles’ personality was very caring and loving.

“He would always come by my office every morning,” Nale said. “You could hear him come in with his whistle. I could always recognize that whistle. He would come in and we would just talk about things. He would go to town and get the mail. He just kind of spoiled me. He was a great friend.”

McBrayer echoed Nale when it came to Liles’ character.

“He was one of the best people you could ever be around,” he said. “Grady, he cared about people. A lot of cases, he would take care of people before himself. He was the most generous person. He would give you his shirt off of his back.”

Liles was the type of person people try to be more like.

“I have caught myself emulating him,” McBrayer said. “You can’t help being around him and him rubbing off on you. He is just so kind and generous. Somebody asked me a couple of weeks ago, ‘Who would you compare Grady to?’ I said people compare themselves to Grady, and Grady does not compare to anybody else. Grady Liles is Grady Liles, and that’s it.

“This city and this university have lost a very good friend. We have lost a great man and he will be terribly missed.”