Alfred "Spritter" Adkins earned 12 letters in four sports (football, track, basketball, and baseball) between 1924 and 1927. His major claim to fame, however, came in football and basketball, where he was a captain in both. In the 1920s, the captain was looked upon as a coach on and off the field.
Adkins played football in an era when the Tigers played many of the top colleges in the South. In 1926, his senior year, Adkins led Hampden-Sydney to a 5-2-3 record. Big wins came over Richmond, 20-7, and Davidson, 12-0. The Tigers tied Florida, Virginia, and Marshall. The team's right halfback, "Spritter" was a true pioneer and legend in his time. He was one of the first players to letter four years.
After football season, Adkins turned his attention to basketball. As a captain in 1927, Adkins led the team to the Virginia State Championship. In the spring, he pitched for the Tiger baseball team and ran hurdles in track.
Adkins was president of his sophomore class, a member of the German and the Monogram clubs, and vice-president of his senior class. He was also a member of the Pi Kappa Alpha social fraternity. As a senior, he was awarded the Gold Key of ODK, the highest honor on campus.
Following his graduation from Hampden-Sydney, "Spritter" was hired as head coach of all sports at the famous Greenbrier Military School in West Virginia. A native of Richmond, he attended John Marshall High School. After retiring from Greenbrier, he returned to Richmond, where he died in July 1973
