KEN SWILLING

Ken Swilling, the lone consensus All-American off Georgia Tech’s 1990 National Championship team, was a versatile high school athlete at Stephens County. He made First-Team AJC All-State as a defensive back and First-Team GACA All-State as a running back as a senior in a wishbone offense in 1987. In his most memorable moment, Swilling caught a 40-yard Hail Mary pass, out-jumping four defenders as time expired, to secure a 13-10 victory over Villa Rica in the Class AAA quarterfinals to put his team in the semifinals for the first time in 28 years. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution named Swilling the state’s No. 3 college prospect. Swilling went on to become a four-year starter, two-time All-ACC pick and 1990 All-American at Georgia Tech, and helped lead the Yellow Jackets to a 1990 UPI National Title. He was nicknamed “Captain America’’ for his efforts on the gridiron. "If you were to draw a picture of a football player in a uniform, you'd draw Ken Swilling," Tech coach Bobby Ross said in a Sports Illustrated interview. Swilling was a seventh-round NFL Draft pick in 1992 and played one season with the Cleveland Browns. He was inducted into the Georgia Tech Sports Hall of Fame in 2001 and was named to the ACC’s 50th Anniversary Team in 2003. Swilling was honored as an ACC Legend at the ACC Championship Game in 2012.