Augusta orthopedic surgeon John Savage Jr. created the sculpture for the Ray Guy Award for the nation's top collegiate football punter. MICHAEL HOLAHAN/STAFF

The guy behind Guy

Augusta surgeon creates sculpture for award named after famed punter

Web posted October 8, 2000

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 Ray Guy Award

By Alisa DeMao
Staff Writer

The punter hangs poised, on tiptoe, back curved and hands spread for balance as one foot aims at the sky, setting the trajectory of the football.

He has a support rod buried in his back. The rod will help safeguard this clay sculpture of punter Ray Guy as its creator hand-carries it on an airplane and to a Florida foundry for casting in bronze.

``I'm grateful to have the opportunity to do this,'' said John Savage Jr., an Augusta orthopedic surgeon who sculpted the figure in a light, open studio connected to his Summerville home. ``It's sort of a once-in-a-lifetime chance.''

The statue will be used for the Ray Guy Award, honoring the country's top collegiate punter. Mr. Guy, a Thomson native, played for the Oakland Raiders after being drafted out of Southern Mississippi, where he was an All-American. He has been called the greatest punter in the history of the National Football League.

Mr. Guy has promoted the idea of an award for college punters, who have not had an award until now. Awards are presented for almost every other position.

The first Guy Award will be presented Tuesday, Dec. 12.

Dr. Savage was commissioned to create the sculpture by the Greater Augusta Sports Council, which sponsors the award. In looking for a sculptor, the sports council asked around on Artists' Row downtown and was directed to Dr. Savage, said program manager Dawn Lenzie.

The son of artists, Dr. Savage grew up in Atlanta creating things with his hands, from Play-Doh sculptures to re-creations of The Discus Thrower made from metal he picked up from an art class his mother taught. He followed in his grandfather's footsteps to become a doctor, but he chose a specialty that allowed him the tactile work he enjoyed in his art.

``I had an aptitude for sculpting,'' Dr. Savage said, leaning against the work table in his airy studio, where some of his sculptures share table space with metal and plastic artificial hips. The work of his painter father - still lifes and a portrait - line the walls.

Punter Ray Guy. SPECIAL

``I could take three-dimensional things and reproduce them. That's why I like orthopedics. I could picture the three-dimensional aspects of things. ... Hypertension, diabetes - all that stuff was nebulous. I had to work with my hands. You're sculpting when you're cutting bones to fit the prosthesis. You have to shape them just right.''

The same attention to detail has gone into the sculpture of Mr. Guy, down to the creases in his palms, the texture of the football uniform's socks (created with the serrated edge of a butter knife), the Raiders insignia on his helmet, the cleats on the bottom of his uplifted shoe, the musculature in his outstretched arms. The number ``8'' stands out in relief on the sleeves of the uniform, and the jersey and pants fall into folds where the body bends - intricate detail for a figure only a foot high.

Dr. Savage worked with photos to create the clay sculpture. It will be cast using the ``lost wax'' method - a rubber mold will be made of the sculpture, and a wax replica will be made from the mold. A ceramic mold will be made from the wax replica - which will melt away during the firing process. The ceramic mold will then be used to create the bronze sculptures for the award each year.

Ray Guy Award

What: Award honoring the country's top collegiate punter. Criteria include total average yards per kick, net average yards per kick, number of times ball downed or out of bounds inside opponents' 20-yard line

When: First presentation by the Greater Augusta Sports Council will be Tuesday, Dec. 12

Statue stats

Artist: Orthopedic surgeon John Savage Jr.

Sculpting time: Four weeks

Height: 16 inches

Cost of casting: about $2,500

Ray Guy's career

Led the NCAA in punting in 1972 at Southern Mississippi

Played for the Oakland Raiders 1973-1986

Career average: 42.4 yards per kick

Punted 619 times without a block

Six straight Pro Bowl appearances (seven total)

Played on teams that won Super Bowl titles in 1977, 1981 and 1994

Named to the National Football League's all-time Super Bowl Dream Team

Co-founder of the Ray Guy Kicking Academy, based in Kentucky

Reach:Alisa DeMao at (706) 823-3223.

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