AMERICUS — Dennis Felton found out some good news prior to Thursday night’s Steak and Stake banquet.

He learned that his 13-year-old son Jazz and his Malcom Bridge Middle School football team had knocked off a team it had previously never beaten. Sounds like a similar story for the father in a way.

Rumors of Felton being on the hot seat as the head men’s basketball coach at the University of Georgia surfaced last season, and it was going to take a miracle for him to keep it.

Felton, 45, and the Bulldogs put the rumors to rest when they won the SEC Tournament by winning four games, including two on the same day in March.

Felton used some of his experiences growing up that has helped him become the coach he is today in his keynote speech that was focused directly to the kids. With the theme “A tool kit for life,” Felton described nine different principles that can lead down the road of success.

“I’m pretty active in the Boys & Girls Club in Athens and Atlanta, so it’s something I’ve always believed in, and I’m always excited about any chance I get to support it,” said Felton. “I’m a simple guy, and whatever I’ve been able to accomplish in my life, I’ve based it on simple principles. You do the right thing and make the most of your opportunity and be a good person.”

Born in Tokyo, Felton’s father was in the Air Force, and he grew up for the most part in Europe. He said no one in his family was involved in sports, but one day he saw a flyer for a basketball camp and asked his father if he could attend. He said yes, and the rest is pretty much history.

Felton spent most of his time in the gym when he wasn’t involved in school, and he played on his high school basketball team. From there he went on to a community college and then to Howard University where he graduated cum laude. He told the crowd Thursday that he didn’t even know what that meant.

Felton was an assistant at seven different colleges before being selected for his first head-coaching job at Western Kentucky. In his five seasons there from 1998-2003, he was 100-54 (76-20 since 2001) and took the Hilltoppers to three-straight NCAA Tournament appearances.

After the 2003 season, Felton was hired at Georgia. Prior to this season, the Bulldogs were 39-49 under Felton. And as many times as he’s given pep talks to his basketball team, Thursday’s message left the entire crowd, and not just the kids, thinking how it could use the tools mentioned.

“It was motivating and uplifting,” said Boys & Girls Club of Sumter County President Larry Jackson. “I started thinking of different ways to help my community be those tools and the examples the kids came up with. It think he really kind of hit the nail on the head. He hit right home what it takes to be successful. I think everybody left there with a sense of knowing it was a motivational speech. It was something to stick with you and carry with you.”

Felton’s two sons, Jazz and Nile (11 years old), are both involved with the Boys & Girls Club in Athens. In a two-week span last year, Felton and the basketball team put together a Christmas party for 100 kids. Senior Terrance Woodbury even dressed up like Santa Claus.

“That was really special,” said Felton. “We had presents for all the kids and we had a great time with them. We want to grow it into something where we can serve 1,000 kids. I think this is just the beginning, and we hope this is something that explodes into something major in our community for our children.”

He said any opportunity to get to speak to children is something special to him. He said they are the future, and that’s part of the reason why he chose a tool kit as his theme.

“They really need to be supported. I can’t imagine what it’s like to grow up in today’s age,” he said. “With all the distractions and various things that can knock you off stride and keep you from realizing your dreams, sometimes you just need a safe haven and place to go where it’s constructive and conducive to achievement.”

Felton said his mother would make him do his homework in pen and any time he came back with things marked out, he would have to redo it until there were no mistakes. He said that helped teach him the value of education, and he encouraged the kids to get as much education as there was available.

The tools in his message included: Identifying heroes for role models; finding mentors; valuing education, finding inspiration; look at most things as being competitive; embracing and appreciating diversity; always strive to be a leader; treat others like you’d want to be treated; and being honest.

Then Felton caught the audience off-guard when he asked the kids to interact and tell him what kind of tools they thought were important. It was quiet for a while until Jacob Harrell, the son of South Georgia Tech women’s basketball coach Brandan Harrell, spoke up and said “be respectful.”

Kids throughout the gym then raised their hands and wanted their tool heard. Courage, sportsmanship, confidence, teamwork, loyalty and dependability were all mentioned. Then one adult stood and finished the tools with giving back to the community.

Felton was on a recruiting trip before coming to Americus, and as the Bulldogs prepare for the upcoming season, Felton will be using all these tools in continuing to build the basketball program.

He said they are just getting started in Athens.

“I always do expect success,” he said. “We’ve picked ourselves up and dust ourselves off and now we’re going to get moving forward.

“The SEC will be just like it’s been over the last five to 10 years, the best conference in the country. The SEC championship was a great shot in the arm, and we’ve had a great spring and summer and a great fall. We anticipate a great season.”