ATLANTA – After 24 years of investigation, authorities have arrested Clarence George, 63, of Alabama, in connection with the murder of Julie Ann McDonald. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) and the Walker County Sheriff’s Office announced that George has been charged with murder and aggravated assault in McDonald’s death.

George was arrested on Thursday, August 22, 2024, at approximately 11:30 a.m. by the U.S. Marshals Service in Birmingham, Alabama.

The case dates back to June 11, 2000, when the body of Julie McDonald was discovered in her home on Arnold Lane in Lafayette, Georgia. Despite diligent efforts by the Walker County Sheriff’s Office and the GBI at the time, the case remained unsolved for many years.

Significant progress was made between 2015 and 2016 when a Walker County detective and a GBI Special Agent reviewed the case and resubmitted evidence for testing. Although these tests did not identify a suspect, the investigation continued.

Between 2023 and 2024, renewed efforts by a Walker County Lieutenant and a GBI Special Agent led to the reexamination and retesting of evidence. Their work ultimately resulted in the charges against George.

Clarence George is currently being held at the Jefferson County Jail in Birmingham, Alabama, awaiting extradition to Georgia to face the charges.

Kyle Larson is currently leading the Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington, but he couldn’t do it without his pit crew, which includes front tire changer Blaine Anderson.

Anderson is a former walk-on football player at Alabama, where he was part of a national championship squad.

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The USA broadcast highlighted Anderson on Sunday night, putting a spotlight on a guy who normally does a lot of the gritty work behind the scenes for one of NASCAR’s best drivers.

“Blaine was a football player at Alabama, actually walked on for coach (Nick) Saban and these shots are from the 2015 national championship game,” the broadcast noted as it showed pictures of Anderson celebrating a title. “He was a safety and also a special teams player.”

Now he’s a front tire changer for Larson, hauling heavy tires and slinging them around on the track. It’s a job that takes a lot of physical ability.

To that end, Blaine Anderson has been well prepared.

“But he gives credit to Scott Cochran, who he tells me is the most famous strength coach in college football,” the broadcast said. “He said he’s the one who told me try NASCAR after your football career, and he’s still here years later.”

Not only is he still here, he’s competing for one of the top teams in NASCAR. And Kyle Larson will have playoff aspirations following this weekend.

It’s a different kind of playoffs for Blaine Anderson, but he knows a thing or two about preparing to be on the big stage.

Saban made sure of that.

“I asked him the No. 1 lesson you learned from Nick Saban, he said, ‘Honestly, discipline,’” the broadcast said. “I said, ‘With what?’ He said, ‘With everything.’ No doubt about it.”

An Alabama biography for Blaine Anderson online did not list him as recording any statistics for the Crimson Tide. He appeared on the roster in 2015 and 2016.

Paul Finebaum was notably intrigued by how Alabama would look with Karen DeBoer leading the way following the Nick Saban era.

The Crimson Tide began 2024 with a dominant 63-0 win over Western Kentucky in which they led 42-0 at halftime, and Finebaum certainly took notice.

“It was a pretty flawless beginning,” Fineubaum said.

Joining Matt Barrie, Finebaum went on to say that he was perhaps most surprised that the aforementioned Saban was in attendance at Bryant-Denny Stadium.

“The fact that Nick Saban was there may have been the biggest surprise to me,” the ESPN commentator said. “I figured he would show up when he had to, but he and Miss Terry were there.”

Finebaum did emphasize that a win over Western Kentucky ‘doesn’t make any difference’ and is just a part of the overall process of DeBoer implementing his culture.

The Crimson Tide finished with 600 yards of offense in the win, with quarterback Jalen Milroe completing just 7 passes for a whopping 200 yards and 3 touchdowns. The Hilltoppers were held to just 42 yards on the ground as the Alabama defensive front dominated all night.

DeBoer & Co. welcome South Florida to Tuscaloosa on Saturday, looking to avenge the upset scare the Bulls gave the Tide in Tampa last fall.