Rubin E. Grant, a pioneer in Alabama journalism and one the of the 50 Legends of the Alabama Sports Writers Association, has died. He was 68. HIs career spanned from reporting on Paul W. “Bear” Bryant’s teams to local high school football stars like Bo Jackson, Cornelius Bennett, and Carnell “Cadillac” Williams. After 25 years of covering minor-league baseball he was inducted into the Birmingham Barons Hall of Fame. Grant was the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame’s 2021 Mel Allen Media Award recipient, for a lifetime contribution to sports through his work as a media member. The 50 Legends honor was a special tribute as part of the organization’s 50-year anniversary. In 1981, he won the organization’s Herby Kirby Award for story of the year. For the past 20-plus years, Grant described himself as both a “self-employed writer,” with articles published with various media outlets such as AL.com, The Birmingham News, Lindy Sports Magazine and the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame, and a free-lance writer and editor. He also co-authored the book “Tales from Alabama Prep Football.” Grant previously spent 25 years at the Birmingham Post-Herald where he served as prep editor, and also worked briefly at the Hoover Gazette. Out of Carver High School in Montgomery, he graduated from the University of Alabama in 1979, where he was the first Black sports editor of the Crimson White student newspaper. In 2002, Grant won first place in the Alabama Associated Press Managing Editors Competition for his columns on high school sports. Details surrounding his death have yet to be released. This story will be updated as necessary. Christopher Walsh is the founder and publisher of BamaCentral, which first published in 2018. He’s covered the Crimson Tide since 2004, and is the author of 26 books including Decade of Dominance, 100 Things Crimson Tide Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die, Nick Saban vs. College Football, and Bama Dynasty: The Crimson Tide’s Road to College Football Immortality. He’s an eight-time honoree of Football Writers Association of America awards and three-time winner of the Herby Kirby Memorial Award, the Alabama Sports Writers Association’s highest writing honor for story of the year. In 2022, he was named one of the 50 Legends of the ASWA. Previous beats include the Green Bay Packers, Arizona Cardinals and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, along with Major League Baseball’s Arizona Diamondbacks. Originally from Minnesota and a graduate of the University of New Hampshire, he currently resides in Tuscaloosa.