Published On: 02.27.24 | 

By: Solomon Crenshaw Jr.

Lettermen of the USA honors veterans and Alabama Crimson Tide over-the-top hero Major Ogilvie

Former Alabama Crimson Tide star Major Ogilvie, right, poses for a photo with Russ Russell, the self-appointed president of his fan club, at the Lettermen of the USA's One Yard at a Time Gala, where Ogilvie was the honoree. (Solomon Crenshaw Jr. / Alabama News Center)

With no disrespect to his friend, Cornelius Bennett says Bo Jackson didn’t create the over-the-top touchdown dive for which he is so well known.

The former Alabama linebacker first remembers Major Ogilvie making that iconic move.

“Everybody thinks of Bo Jackson in ’82, over the top against Alabama,” Bennett said at Friday night’s One Yard at a Time Gala. “The original Over the Top was Major from my childhood memory.

“Not taking away anything from Bo, the greatest athlete ever, but that’s my first memory of a guy going over the top,” he continued. “I don’t know if that’s where Bo got it from. It could be, ’cause Bo was an Alabama football fan before he went to Auburn.”

Friday, Ogilvie demonstrated that he can still go over the top, although not on the football field. The former Crimson Tide great helped Lettermen of the USA (LotUSA) go over the top in raising money to benefit veterans.

2024 Lettermen of the USA One Yard at a Time Gala from Alabama News Center on Vimeo.

The Gala at The Club in Birmingham annually raises money to support the organization’s various initiatives to benefit those who fought for their country.

“It was so amazing this year to have Major as our athletic honoree,” LotUSA founder and President Darryl Fuhrman said. “From the bottom of our hearts, our board of directors and volunteers, thank you, Major, for what you did for us tonight.”

The festivities included a silent auction and live auction benefitting the nonprofit. And LotUSA doled out funds as well, presenting $4,000 to Chris Batte, whose Honoring Veteran Legacies provides veterans trips back to the foreign lands in which they served.

“I could not believe it. I had no idea. None,” Batte said. “It’s amazing because it’s $3,500 per veteran, so that’s even more than a sponsorship for one of our World War II veterans to go back to Normandy for the 80th anniversary of D-Day. I was very taken aback and amazed and thankful.”

Springville’s Brian Gierlatowicz, who served in the Marine Corps from 1964 to 1970, has scarcely missed attending the gala, which was not held one year because of the COVID-19 pandemic. He keeps coming back because of his appreciation for veterans and the work done by LotUSA, which brings former football players from Alabama and Auburn together for a common cause.

Darryl “makes sure that the veterans are not forgotten,” Gierlatowicz said. “When they need help, they’re going to get it. Everything started with an Alabama-Auburn touch football game. They are Alabama. They are Auburn. They are Americans.”

Since its inception, LotUSA has initiated several programs to bolster veterans. Those include Autographs for Heroes, Laptops for Heroes, Utilities for Heroes, Homes for Heroes and Interiors for Heroes.

Gierlatowicz is especially excited about the latest project, Heroes Village. Forty-four acres of farmland in Jefferson County near the St. Clair County line will be used to build 120 tiny homes for homeless veterans.

The plan is for the site to include an education center and assisted care for Korean War and Vietnam veterans.

“I’ve looked at the placards on the side over here and that really explains what they really want to do in the future,” Gierlatowicz said. “It’s just a good fundraiser for veterans. They do help many veterans who are really in need, either homeless or they’ve been disabled in some way, or they’ve lost their jobs or homes or fire, some disasters. They raise money to help support these veterans who are in need.” The Alabama Power Foundation has supported Lettermen of the USA initiatives.

While he had a brief stint with the San Francisco 49ers of the NFL, Ogilvie’s last action on the football field was in 1980. He admits that the game today bears little resemblance to the game he played more than 40 years ago.

“Across the board, it’s a changed game,” he said. “Speed. Size.  Strength. The whole nine yards. Offenses. Defenses. It’s changed a whole lot.”

One of those changes is allowing college athletes to be compensated for the use of their name, image and likeness (NIL). Ogilvie downplayed what his value would have been if NIL existed in his playing days.

“I’d hate to speculate,” he said, “but I don’t think it’d be very much. We had a lot of fun.”

Huntsville’s Russ Russell, the self-appointed president of the Major Ogilvie Fan Club, offered a different assessment.

“I Googled and AI’d that, and it’s $3.5 billion per season with a 3% escalator,” he laughed, admitting that his fandom likely inflated that figure. “I would think he would get about $470,000 to $475,000 per season.

“It was a different age and Bear Bryant liked to run the ball north-south,” Russell continued. “We had that beautiful wishbone going. It was an awesome thing, the most exciting offensive format in college football history.”

Learn more about Lettermen of the USA and its initiatives at lotusa.org.