MOULTRIE — The three seasons Anthony Bridges spent playing cornerback for Louisville from 1991-1993 were not particularly pleasant ones for the former Colquitt County star.

He never got along with Howard Schnellenberger and his staff and after three seasons left and played his final collegiate season at North Texas.

But one would never have known Bridges was unhappy by the way he played.

He was named the Cardinals outstanding defensive back as a sophomore and as a junior intercepted seven passes — still tied for third-best in a single season at Louisville and had 71 tackles while being named a second-team All-American.

His three-year career was impressive enough that he was inducted into the Univesity of Louisville hall of Fame last fall.

Colquitt County fans were not surprised by his outstanding play.

His started 33 straight games from 1988-1990 and intercepted 17 passes — several at crucial junctures — during his career.

After playing at Colquitt County and Louisville, he played parts of five seasons in the Arena Football League.

The community where he learned to play football, first under Bennie Ray Bullard in the Moultrie Recreation Department’s 10-year-old Terrors program, will honor Bridges next month when he is inducted into the Colquitt County Sports Hall of Fame.

The induction banquet will be held on Thursday, Oct. 2, at the high school cafeteria. Tickets are $15 and are on sale at the Moultrie-Colquitt County Chamber of Commerce and Modern Cleaners.

It is not often an athlete who has gone on to compete at the professional level credits a youth coach for what he has achieved.

But Bridges does.

“I attribute all my success to Coach Bullard,” Bridges said recently. “I wish every child could play under him. They’d be better football players.

“He’s my favorite coach.”

As a 12-year-old, he played running back in the Midget League all-star game and remembers Packers coach Jim Hughes telling him after the game that he would be too small to play that position at he high school level.

So he became a defensive back, playing for Roy Saturday on the eighth-grade team and for James Stancil on the ninth-grade team.

As a sophomore, he was starting for the varsity Packers and intercepted two passes.

His best season came as a junior in 1989 when he intercepted nine passes, returning them for 106 yards.

Three of those interceptions stopped opponents inside the Packers 5-yard line.

One was a leaping catch on the Colquitt County 3 in the thrilling 7-0 victory over Valdosta at Cleveland Field.

Bridges had at least one interception in each of the last five games as the Packers went 8-4.

“Defensively, that was the best team I ever played on,” Bridges said.

That team also included linebacker Darius Dawson, who also will be inducted into the Colquitt County Sports Hall of Fame next month.

Also playing in the secondary that season were Daniel Dalton, Pat Harper and Quessie Bridges.

As his junior season wound down, fewer passes were thrown to his side of the field.

So as a senior he moved to free safety to play the middle of the field.

In his final season for the Packers in 1990, he had six interceptions, including two in the end zone in a 20-17 victory over Lowndes.

“He was the absolutely best cover corner we ever had,” said Hughes, who coached the Packers from 1983-1999. “He played the thrown football better than anyone else I ever coached.

“His instincts were always better than the instincts of a receiver.”

His interception statistics were more remarkable because teams did not throw the football as much as they do now.

And although he was only 5-foot-9 and about 175 pounds, he was an excellent tackler.

“He was undersized, but I don’t know that he ever missed a game,” Hughes said.

“And a better coach might have used him more on the other side of the ball.”

An injury to Chris McCranie did enable Bridges to play wide receiver some as a senior and he caught 15 passes, including two for touchdowns.

And before it was popular, Bridges had what Hughes called”swagger” on the field.

“he was enormously confident,” Hughes said. “But he was definitely not a Deion Sanders, me-me-me kind of guy.”

Bridges was selected to play in the 1991 Georgia-Florida High School All-Star Game in Orlando and then took a recruiting visit to Louisville.

At the time, he was unaware Louisville played football.

“I thought they only played basketball,” he said.

His visit to Louisville came right before the Cardinals went to the Fiesta Bowl, where they defeated Alabama.

“I thought it was the perfect match for me,” Bridges said.

But he never got along with the coaching staff while at Louisville, despite his outstanding performances.

When Louisville defensive backs coach James Bell left to become head coach at North Texas, Bridges followed.

“That was awesome over there,” Bridges said of his time at North Texas. “It was 100 percent better. I wish I could have played all four years with that staff.”

Bridges was unable to play a full season at North Texas, suffering a broken pelvis.

He was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals, but never reported.

“I didn’t love the game then and if you don’t love the game, it’s hard to play football,” Bridges said.

So he sat out a year and a half, working in a homeless shelter in Louisville, coordinating activities for youngsters.

“It was something I enjoyed doing,” he said.

His agent talked to several National Football League teams about tryouts, but nothing materialized.

When he heard about an opportunity to play in the Arena Football League, he jumped at the chance.

“That was more fun,” he said. “You could play football for four months, then go home and live the rest of your life.

“I liked it too. You never had time to get bored. They passed it all over the field.”

Bridges played two seasons with the Anaheim Piranhas and two with the Grand Rapids (Mich.) Rampage.

In 2000, he played one game with the Buffalo Destroyers, but tore up a knee and retired.

While playing in the Arena Football League, he was active in helping organize a players union.

When his playing days were over, the United Food and Commercial Workers Union recruited him and he has been with the organization since.

“Organizing new unions is my primary job,” he said. “I’ve always been the kind of person who likes to stand up for those who can’t stand up for themselves.

“I still like helping people who can’t help themselves.”

He has lived in Atlanta and Detroit and in 2005 moved to Indianapolis, where he lives now.

Bridges is divorced with two boys, ages 11 and 12, and still visits Moultrie occasionally.

He still has fond memories of playing for the Packers.

“I tell folks that I had the most fun playing at the high school level,” he says.

“I could have played that forever.”