Ahsaa — UMS-Wright Preparatory School Head Football Coach Terry Curtis. (The Bama Buzz)

One of the biggest names in Alabama high school football history is officially hanging up his whistle after more than five decades of coaching.

UMS-Wright coach Terry Curtis announced his retirement Tuesday morning, putting an end to a legendary career that included 361 wins and eight state championships on the football field.

Keep reading to learn more about his career + legacy.

Terry Curtis

Curtis went to Murphy High School in Mobile before heading off to play baseball at Auburn University where he earned a degree in Health, Physical Education, and Recreation. He also has a master’s degree from the University of South Alabama.

After college, he quickly returned to the Mobile area, taking an assistant coaching job at B.C. Rain High School in 1973. Curtis got his first head coaching job at Shaw High School in 1989.

In 1993, Curtis returned to his alma mater to be the head coach at Murphy for six seasons before moving to UMS-Wright.

Curtis was a head football coach at the high school level for 36 years. During his career, he accumulated:

361-105 record
20 region titles
84-25 record in 33 playoff appearances
8 state championships
4 undefeated seasons

His 361 wins currently sit in second place as the winningest coach in Alabama high school football history. Clay Central’s Danny Horn currently has 364 and Fyffe’s Paul Benefield has 360.

Curtis does sit on top of the AHSAA record books with 8 state titles, tied with Horn for the record.

Curtis was inducted into the Alabama High School Sports Hall of Fame in 2004, the Mobile Sports Hall of Fame in 2005, and was the 2013 Honorary Inductee into the UMS-Wright Sports Hall of Fame.

UMS-Wright Bulldogs

UMS Wright had one state championship to its name through the first 90 years of its football program before Terry Curtis showed up.

Curtis led the Bulldogs to the playoffs in all 26 seasons as the head coach. UMS Wright won 77 playoff games during his tenure, making:

23 quarterfinal appearances
13 semifinal appearances
8 championship game appearances

UMS-Wright won consecutive championships on two separate occasions, winning two in a row in 2001 + 2002 then winning three consecutive titles from 2017 to 2019. That would end up being the last state championship for Curtis.

While the team accomplishments are easy to see, it was also about player development. During his time with the Bulldogs, Curtis coached:

81 all-state players
19 AHSAA all-stars
8 AL-MS game all-stars
5 ASWA Linemen of the Year
3 ASWA Backs of the Year

Before his retirement, Curtis also served as the school’s athletic director since 2001. While he was the football coach, he made sure other sports got the attention they deserved as the Bulldogs won 105 total state championships with him in the AD role.

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