Regular Plant City Times & Observer readers know that, every so often, I like to seek out Plant City’s most notable past athletes and write about what they’ve been up to lately.
As a sports history nerd, this is always fun for me. It’s mostly been about football and baseball players, but it’s always enlightening. And, in my case, it’s neat when you talk to someone who you’ve played as in sports video games over the years.
But, my efforts aren’t always successful. Some people haven’t returned my calls, and others simply don’t want anything to do with the media. That’s fine.
There is, however, one guy that I’m dying to get in contact with. In fact, the reason I’m writing this column now is because I’m looking for any solid leads I can get.
Plant Citians that grew up in the late 1960s and early 1970s might remember hearing about a guy named Bennie Coffee. I learned about Coffee last year, when I was compiling photos and information for a historic feature in the 2015 Football Guide and immediately became interested in his story.
He starred for the Marshall High Dragons and, later, the Plant City Raiders. He went on to play linebacker at Florida A&M University and made a name for himself as one of the greatest Rattlers ever. He then made it to the NFL, signing with the Detroit Lions organization.
Since then, I’ve been trying to get a hold of him.
I’ve had no luck.
Among several sources, we’ve only been able to come up with one phone number — which wasn’t working. I’ve even spoken with his coach from the Plant City High days, Hank Sytsma, and I still wasn’t able to get a hold of Bennie.
I took a break after a while, planning to start again sometime this year. My plans for his story have changed, but my desire to speak with him has not.
I’m beginning work on a long feature about Plant City football’s most notable alumni that made it to (or just missed out on) the NFL. We live in an area that hasn’t lacked for athletic talent and, even in the handful of years I’ve been here, I’ve seen some incredible football players come through.
So I want to know the stories of the guys who parlayed their high school careers into something more or what could have happened had they been physically able to do so.
Whether it’ll be featured in our regular paper or in the 2016 Football Guide is still up in the air.
I’m not hurting for a list of athletes to talk to, or even for sources that should have their contact info.
For the moment, I’m just chasing one guy: the one guy that’s eluded me for months, figuratively speaking.
If you know Coffee and you know how I can get a hold of him, I would greatly appreciate it if you were to email me some updated contact info (besides an 850 phone number, with which I’ve had no luck). I can’t do what I do without help from my readers, after all.
Contact Justin Kline at jkline@plantcityobserver.com.