AMERICAN Cast Iron Pipe Company’s Skip Benton, assistant division manager of AMERICAN Ductile Iron Pipe, and wife Cathy were recently featured in an al.com story about their connection to football legend Tony Nathan, the main character in the recently released movie “Woodlawn.” The biopic focuses on the 1973 Woodlawn High School Football team and its dedication to love and unity during a time of racial tension. The team makes a run at the playoffs, leading to the biggest high school football game ever played in Birmingham and the rise of a star African American running back Tony Nathan.

Skip and Cathy Benton were classmates of Tony’s at Woodlawn, and Skip played right guard on the football team during the playoff win over Huffman. In the game, Nathan’s “tear away” football jersey became so ripped all that remained was the number 22 on the front. During the celebration of the win, Tony removed what was left of his jersey and gave it to Cathy.

Through high school, college, marriage and various career changes, the Bentons kept that old torn jersey for 30 years. Tony went on to play under Paul Bear Bryant at the University of Alabama and then with the NFL. The Bentons reunited with Nathan and returned his jersey to him during his recent book signing at Alabama Booksmith in Homewood.

According to Skip, it was at this location that Bob Carlton learned of the Bentons’ connection to Tony Nathan. “We were talking to another high school friend about the tear away jersey and the news reporter overheard the conversation,” Skip said. “He had heard stories of the tear away jerseys that Tony went through, but he had never seen one.”

Skip said he felt honored to have been a part of this experience. “It was a special time with a special group of guys. It just shows that God uses our ordinary commitments in extraordinary ways.”

Read Bob Carlton’s article “How Tony Nathan got his old Woodlawn football jersey back, 42 years later” about the friendship between the Bentons and Tony Nathan.