Grand Marshals Announced: 2023 West Alabama Christmas Parade

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. –Tuscaloosa County Park & Recreation Authority (PARA), announces the selection of two individuals to serve as Grand Marshals of the 47th Annual West Alabama Christmas Parade. The Parade is the largest of its kind in the state of Alabama and is scheduled for Monday, December 4, in downtown Tuscaloosa.

Criteria for Grand Marshal(s) nominations is as follows:

• Significant community contributions 
• Lifetime achievements with a lasting community impact
• Career accomplishments

A Grand Marshal Selection Committee comprised of community leaders reviewed all nominations and is pleased to name the following individuals who have agreed to serve as Grand Marshals for the 2023 parade. 

“The Grand Marshals selected for the 2023 West Alabama Christmas Parade are Cecil W. ‘Hootie’ Ingram and Kareem McNeal,” said Heather Shipley, parade spokesperson. Both individuals are not only beloved former Alabama Crimson Tide football stars, but longtime Tuscaloosa residents and hometown heroes who have greatly contributed to and inspired our community. 

Cecil W. “Hootie” Ingram was a three-sport standout at Tuscaloosa High School and then a two-sport star at The University of Alabama, winning three letters each in football and baseball. He won acclaim as an Alabama Crimson Tide football player from 1952-1954 and was selected as All-SEC defensive back in 1952. After his time as a player, he coached in Tuscaloosa at the high school level and then worked as an assistant football coach at several colleges, including Wake Forst, Virginia Tech, Georgia, and Arkansas, before becoming head coach at Clemson from 1970 to 1971. He is famed for introducing their iconic tiger paw logo. He then moved into administration with the Southeastern Conference in the 1970s and later served as the athletic director at Florida State University (1981-1989) and The University of Alabama from 1989-1995. Ingram hired Gene Stallings as Alabama’s football coach, and the Crimson Tide won the college football national championship in 1992. Ingram was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame (1991) and Orange Bowl Hall of Fame (1999). He was also honored in 1992 as a second-team defensive back on Alabama’s “Team of the Century.” In 2007, he was presented with The University of Alabama National Alumni Association’s Paul W. Bryant Alumni-Athlete Award, recognizing athletes whose accomplishments since leaving the University are “outstanding based on character, contributions to society, professional achievement and service. After his time in administration, he served as a consultant in Florida to schools without football programs and helped colleges such as Florida Atlantic and Florida International start their own. After celebrating his 90th birthday in September, Ingram remains active in his church and enjoys spending time with his six grandchildren, all graduates of The University of Alabama. 

Kareem McNeal is also a former University of Alabama football player. He played as an offensive tackle for coach Gene Stallings. In 1995, just before his senior year, McNeal was in a car accident that left him paralyzed from the waist down, ending his dreams of moving on to a professional football career. Kareem is married, a father of four children (two sets of twins), and a full-time faculty member in UA’s College of Human Environmental Sciences. He credits his faith in God, his mother, coach Stallings, and his wife Rene as factors in helping him stay motivated despite adversity. He graduated from The University of Alabama with a Bachelor of Science degree in human performance in 1996 and earned his master’s in health education in 1999. Stallings encouraged McNeal to work as a graduate assistant at Tuscaloosa’s Rise School, which led to a more than 20-year career as a beloved wellness instructor at Shelton State Community College. In the Fall of 2021, he returned to his alma mater as a teacher and advisor in UA’s College of HES and has taught courses such as stress management during a time when students undoubtedly needed it the most. One of his passions is cooking, and his famous mouth-watering cheesecakes can be found on the menu of local Tuscaloosa establishments such as The River restaurant and Cravings store downtown.  

The 2023 parade theme is “A Hometown Christmas.” For a complete listing of Grand Marshals since 1968, sponsorship opportunities, parade entry registration, parade route map, and other information and details, please visit https://www.tcpara.org/west-alabama-christmas-parade. 

The deadline for participants (bands, vehicles, floats, horses, or walking groups) to register is Wednesday, November 15^th at 5:00PM. Sponsorship opportunities including media mention and parade signage are still available to local organizations and businesses. 

PARA invites the community to kick off the holiday season by attending the 47th Annual West Alabama Christmas Parade on Monday, December 4. The Tree Lighting on the steps of the Tuscaloosa County Courthouse begins at 5:15 p.m., and the Parade begins at 6:30 p.m. in downtown Tuscaloosa. 

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