Sports

UGA’s Bailey to be honored at East Hall

Georgia defensive end Sterling Bailey (58) celebrates with hands full of grass after Georgia defeated Georgia Tech in double overtime 41-34 on Saturday, November 30, 2013, at Bobby Dodd Stadium in Atlanta.
Georgia defensive end Sterling Bailey (58) celebrates with hands full of grass after Georgia defeated Georgia Tech in double overtime 41-34 on Saturday, November 30, 2013, at Bobby Dodd Stadium in Atlanta.
By Chip Towers
Oct 21, 2014

Georgia junior defensive end Sterling Bailey will be back home in Gainesville on Friday night as a special guest of his alma mater, East Hall High School.

The school plans a presentation ceremony before the game in his honor. They’ve framed his No. 52 U.S. All-America team jersey and plan to add it to the team’s trophy case.

That’s all well and good, but Sterling’s outspoken father, Kevin Bailey, has even bigger plans. He has made a deal with the school principal. If the Bulldogs win the SEC championship and then the national championship, East Hall High will permanently retire Bailey’s No. 52 school jersey.

“We’re going to shock the world and do it, too,” Kevin Bailey said with a laugh on Tuesday.

Sterling Bailey, a 6-foot-3, 282-pound junior defensive end, has played in all seven games for the Bulldogs this season, starting once. He has 12 tackles, three quarterback pressure and two pass deflections. He has started nine games so far in his career and played in 22.

About the Author

Chip Towers covers the Georgia Bulldogs for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

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