It was one of those moments in life that those around at the time will always remember.

April 8, 1974. Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium. The Atlanta Braves versus the Los Angeles Dodgers. Fourth inning. Al Downing pitching for the visiting Dodgers. And a sell-out crowd is cheering for a man to make history.

After the first pitch is taken out of the strike zone, the next pitch from Downing is a fastball. There would be no doubt of the result: A towering drive deep into the Atlanta night off the bat of Hank Aaron. Aaron hits career homerun number 715. Bedlam ensues in the “Capital City of the South.” Babe Ruth's mark of 714 career home runs is no longer the record.

At the time, a young boy in the north Georgia town of Ellijay is watching with his father. The young man was Greg Frady, now the head coach of baseball at Georgia State University.

“I grew up in Georgia and followed the Atlanta Braves all my life,” said Frady. “They've always been my team. And when I was growing up, Hank Aaron meant so much to me as a young player.”

Fast forward 33 years. Now, the tables have been turned and it's Aaron who is seeing his mark of 755 career home runs being challenged. For Frady, it seemed that this was a time to accentuate the positives of everything Aaron represented.

“I felt Hank Aaron has done everything the right way and in a time that it wasn't easy to do,” said Frady. “Now, our team wants to show its support toward Hank Aaron for all he's meant to the city of Atlanta and the state of Georgia.”

But what exactly could be done? The answer was simple: uniforms.

“We wanted to support Hank Aaron as a team. The best way to honor someone was to make a total tribute to him,” Frady stated. “I went back and looked at the uniform he was wearing when he hit 715, and we were able to replicate those uniforms with our uniform supplier.”

Those uniforms include a white front chest panel with “Panthers” inscribed in the same font that “Braves” was inscribed on the 1974 Atlanta Braves uniform. In addition, the player numbers are also in the front in the same style of the uniform of yesteryear. Blue panels on the sleeves are done in the same style of the 1974 uniform. Instead of an Indian feather on the sleeve, the Panther head is on one side, with the Colonial Athletic Association logo on the other.

The hats are also similar to the Atlanta Braves hats of 1974 as well. Much like the 1974 hat was blue with a white center panel in front, the Panthers hats look exactly the same. While the Braves hats had a cursive “A” on the front, the front of the Georgia State hats instead include the Panther head logo.

But what would the team think?

“I thought it was a great idea,” said senior first baseman Charlie Pelt. “We had been talking about doing it last year, so it was great to be able to get to do it this year.

“My dad (Peter, a Georgia State graduate) was actually there when Hank Aaron hit his 715th homer, so I've always heard all about that night when it actually happened.”

After the uniforms were ordered and the tribute planned, Coach Frady asked the Sports Information Office at Georgia State to try to arrange a meeting with Aaron.

"First and foremost, I wanted to start off by showing my team that baseball is baseball,” Frady stated. “From Hank Aaron down to a college baseball player, the game is still the same. We didn't want to ask for autographs; no hard questions or anything of that sort. We just wanted to meet him and really show our appreciation to him.”

 

 

Aaron was asked to meet the Georgia State baseball team and pose for a picture with them in front of his statue at Turner Field. It seemed like a natural fit as Georgia State and the Atlanta Braves have been intertwined since the Braves moved from Milwaukee in 1966. Turner Field is a few blocks from the Georgia State campus, and Georgia State students have been attending Braves games ever since. Panther baseball players have also been drafted by the Braves organization. In more recent years, students have been parking at Turner Field and taking shuttle buses that short distance between Turner Field and the Georgia State campus.

To all of the Panthers' joy, Aaron accepted the invitation and agreed to the request.

“I really couldn't believe we were going to get to meet him,” said sophomore outfielder Michael McCree. “He's one of the legends of baseball. I was just blessed to know I was going to have that opportunity.”

On January 12, at 7:45 a.m., Hank Aaron drove up to meet the Georgia State baseball team. What he saw impressed the former slugger.

“When I drove up and saw all of you guys in your uniforms, I thought it was a bunch of Braves out there,” said the man who was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1982.

Aaron posed with the team for a picture, which is used on the front cover of the 2007 Georgia State Baseball Media Guide. The caption underneath reads: “Atlanta's Baseball Icon ? Atlanta's College Team”.

After the pictures were taken, Aaron visited with the team for a brief time to answer any questions they might have. The Panthers, who had been very talkative before Aaron arrived, were now standing in stunned silence in front of a true baseball hero. “When they asked for questions, I really didn't have any,” said Pelt. “I really never thought I was going to get to meet Hank Aaron. There was definitely a feeling of awe.”

 

 

 

Aaron spoke with the team after the team picture was taken.

“I was standing there thinking to myself, ?This is the guy that hit that homerun that I've been watching since I was a kid,'” said McCree. “I was looking at him and thinking of all the great things he's done.

McCree has a special perspective on Aaron, as the Lawrenceville, Ga., native is one of three African-Americans that is on the active roster, in addition to a player that is redshirting this season. “When I play, I have to deal with a few little things here and there. But [Aaron] went through life-threatening issues just to be able to play the game,” said McCree. “It's because of him that I get to enjoy baseball as a game.

“He stood up for a lot of people and a lot of ideals. He just has a tremendous amount of courage.”

When the team finally did ask questions, Aaron was more than happy to answer the questions which ranged from the best player he ever competed against to best pitcher he had to face. Coach Frady also presented Aaron with a Georgia State Baseball polo as a small token of appreciation.

“I really am honored that you are dedicating this season to me,” said Aaron. “I really do sincerely appreciate this kind gesture.”

It's a moment in life that the Georgia State baseball team will always remember.