LIBERTY, Miss. (AP) - Among the many side effects of World War II was shutting down high school football programs as boys left to join the military, some even lying about their age to get in.

When the war ended in 1946, football rebounded with a vengeance - especially at Liberty High School.

Those were some of the best days of my life, said Charles T. Dixon, 83, of Liberty. I really wouldnt take nothing for it - not just because I played football but from all that I learned.

In 1946 the school didnt have much to work with. The football field - located at the present site of the old Kellwood Building on Main Street - was low and boggy, sometimes mucky with overflow from the schools large septic tank.

The school hired Coach Harold Dickerson to resurrect the program, and one of the first orders of business was building up the field.

Wed bring shovels with us from home, Dixon said.

Dump trucks would haul dirt to the site, and boys would do much of the work with shovels.

I remember when that old field was just a field, and they graded that off and it became a football field, and that was when the boys came back from service, said the Rev. Ernest Whittington, 83, of Liberty.

There were no age restrictions, and Whittington said boys even in their 20s who had suspended their schooling returned from the war to play ball.

There were some real powerhouses, said Whittington, whose small size landed him the job of manager. Coach Dickerson asked me to be the water boy. Of course, they gave me the title of manager.

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Liberty High football rebounds post-war