"Big Jim" was a 1949 graduate of Deshler High School in Tuscumbia. He was the right end on the Tiger squad that featured fellow inductee Doyle Lewis. As a high school player he was known as one of the most exciting players in the area and as one local sports writer put it "Big Jim was at his best, blocking and running like a man from Mars". After high school he played for LSU and Jacksonville State. He also coached high school football in Florida..