Emerson Boozer is not only arguably the most accomplished player out of the Georgia Interscholastic Association, but is also seen as one of the best high school players to come out of Georgia, period. He scored more than 20 touchdowns for Laney’s 1961 GIA championship team and scored the lone touchdown to go along with 156 rushing yards in the 7-0 championship win over Washington. He also ran for 314 yards in a single game against Peter G. Appling that same season. Boozer continued his football career at Maryland State College where he was a two-time All-American and rushed for a school-record 2,537 yards with 22 touchdowns. He was selected in the sixth round of the 1966 AFL Draft by the New York Jets and in the seventh round of the 1966 NFL Draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers. Boozer signed with the Jets and won the AFL Championship in 1968 before going on to beat the Baltimore Colts in Super Bowl III, becoming the first former GIA player to ever win a Super Bowl. He was selected to two Pro Bowls in his career and led the AFL in rushing touchdowns in 1967 (10). In 2010, he became the first graduate of a GIA school to be inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.
