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Taking Names and Keeping Score
He was corning to the University with 30 years coaching experience at the collegiate level, twelve as an assistant and eighteen as a head coach. Along with all his experience he was bringing a closet full of hardware that signified all the honors that had been bestowed upon him during his coaching career. On the other hand he was coming into a situation at West Alabama where the football program hadn't had a winning season since 1992 and hadn't enjoyed any measurable success since the tenure of Coach Frank North from 1979 through 1984. He was facing the unenviable task of taking over this program that had gone 2-9 for the past three seasons and begin the process of returning it to the level of play it enjoyed in its glory days of the early to mid 1970's when the 1971 football team became the first Gulf South Conference member school to win a National Championship and the 1972 and 1975 teams participated in the NCAA Collegiate Playoffs up to the semi-finals. As I also told you then, the enthusiasm and positive energy Coach Wallace was bringing to the program could only be rivaled by the enthusiasm and excitement that was running rampant on the campus and in the Livingston community. Since that report I have had an opportunity to attend a couple of games on campus and have been able to keep up with what's been going on in each of the other games the team has played through the University's Sports Information Office. With the 2006 season just beyond the mid-way point the UWA Tigers find themselves in somewhat unfamiliar territory currently holding a 5-2 season record and a 2-2 mark in the Gulf South Conference. Their 24-14 home win over the University of West Georgia this past Thursday marked the first time they had posted five wins in a season since 2002 when they finished the year at 5-6 and only the third time in the past fifteen years that at least five wins had been recorded in a season. Having West Georgia be their victim in this year's fifth win was particularly sweet considering that UWA hadn't defeated them since 2002 and that it was only the second time in the last fifteen years that the Tigers had gotten the best of the Wolves. Looking ahead as Coach Wallace and his Tigers enter the stretch run of their season it is safe to say the road isn't getting easier. With their next three games on the road facing the likes of Valdosta State, Arkansas-Monticello, and Delta State before coming back home for their season finale against perennial power North Alabama the final season tally is certainly up in the air. If revenge is a motivator, the Tigers certainly should ready to play in all of these games having lost to all four of them last season and having an overall losing record against all four. Whether the Tigers finish this 2006 season with a winning record or not, this team has already accomplished a lot. In addition to winning more games than the previous three teams, this team has brought a spirit back to the University that has been missing for some time. The attendance at home games has been much better and for the first time in a long time the folks attending honestly believe the Tigers have a fighting chance to win every game. If I were giving out mid4erm grades on the performance of the West Alabama Tigers I would have to say that at this point a C would certainly be in line with the opportunity to raise that to at least a B if things go well over the course of the next four weeks. That of course is certainly an improvement over the falling grades the teams in the last three years have earned. It would also be my prediction that should Coach Wallace stay with the program for the next several years as expected, it wouldn't be out of reason to expect an A on the report card somewhere down the road. If you've got the time and enjoy college football, Saturday, November 11 would be a good time for you to check out what is going on over at the University of West Alabama. That is the date for the Tigers last game in 2006 and will be a big on campus event as they host the University of North Alabama. It will also be the first time in Coach Bobby Wallace's coaching career that he has coached a team playing against the school where his greatest achievements to date occurred. Until next time.......................be safe!
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