Legendary Kappa Sigma Brought Back to Life on the Silver Screen

Brother Beau Turpin (Kappa-Zeta, Georgia South- ern University, ’04) has taken on the challenge of bringing a legendary Kappa Sigma back to life on the silver screen. University of Georgia and Georgia South- ern University coach Erskine “Erk” Russell, Jr. (Beta-Eta, Auburn University, ’47) certainly left a powerful legacy with the people whose life he touched and Turpin feels that it would be an injustice to keep those memories at bay and not let younger generations experience Erk Russell’s teachings.
Turpin states, “There will never be another Erk Russell. His non-traditional methods and uncanny ways of motivating people are truly something to be admired. He had the ability to make his players believe that they were better than they actually were, to exceed their prior expectations of themselves and give Coach Russell everything they had on and off the field. His successes at the University of Georgia and Georgia Southern University speak for themselves but the real heart of his story is with the relationships he developed with his players. Many former players have told me the same thing. If Coach asked them to run through a brick wall, they would have figured out a way to run through that wall. He was able to make the best out of whatever hand he was dealt, regardless of the situation. I think his most admirable trait was, that even though he set so many records as a football coach, his number one priority was to build character within his players to prepare them for the real world. He was a maker of men.”

Football was Turpin’s ticket into the film industry. While still an undergraduate he was cast as a football player in We Are Marshall. After that experience he decided that making movies is what he wanted to do for the rest of his life. But not before finishing his edu- cation at Georgia Southern University.
Turpin states, “I’m glad I chose the path I did. My education and college experience was a priceless expe- rience for me and so were my experiences in Kappa Sigma on a local and national level.”
Turpin represented the Southeast chapters of Kappa Sigma by serving on the Undergraduate Advisory Committee (UAC). He also concluded his undergrad years by serving as Grand Master for Kappa-Zeta. Immediately after graduating in May 2009 he began working on The Blind Side as the As- sistant Football Coordinator. After working in Atlanta for a few years and moving out to Los Angeles, he feels that the time is right to make this movie.
“I met with another Georgia Southern University graduate James Kicklighter and through our conversa- tion we realized that we both wanted to tell the Erk sto- ry. After that we hit the ground running. We first went to the family for their blessing then began many months of interviews with the people involved with Erk’s journey in order to properly develop the screenplay.”