Sam McCorkle Resigns at West Alabama

Rulesman · February 10, 2006, 06:57:29 pm

This appeared in today's Birmingham News:

West Alabama head football coach Sam McCorkle resigned on Thursday at the Livingston Division II school, effective immediately.

"I felt comfortable here," said McCorkle, who was the starting center at West Alabama on the NAIA national championship team in 1971. "I thought I'd stay here until I retire and that I'd go five or six more years.

"I think we are on the verge of winning here. We have nine starters coming back on defense and all of them on offense and a great recruiting class. The guys are positive and I think we're on the verge of exploding, I really do.

"There are a lot of guys here who I think a lot of and a lot of good players. I'm going to be their biggest fan."

Athletics Director Dee Outlaw, who is retiring in June, said in a UWA statement, "Sam has been and always will be a loyal supporter and worker for our university. We care about him and wish him well.

"At the same time, however, we must move on. We will have a new coach in place as soon as possible."

In the statement, McCorkle said, "I had always seen this as my last job, but sometimes things happen that are beyond our control. One thing I have always done is help these young people in every way I could. I feel everything we did was for the betterment of our players and the program."

McCorkle was 4-18 over the past two seasons, his second stint as head coach. Overall, he was 24-62-2 coaching from 1985-90 and 2004-05 at UWA.

Twice named to the All-Alabama Small College team, McCorkle was also honored as the center on the all-decade team for the 1970s. He earned the Phil Puccio Award for Leadership and Dedication as a senior.

McCorkle was head coach at Tennessee-Martin and served as an assistant at Delta State, the University of Kentucky, Vanderbilt and Ole Miss.

"We have raised a lot of money, got the lights back up (at the stadium), new uniforms and got the field house redone," McCorkle said. "We had a lot of help, but we got some traditional things back in the field house and I hope whoever comes in will keep this up.

"I think it's better than it was than when we got it.

"When I stepped on the field, I didn't feel like a coach," McCorkle said. "I felt like I represented every player who ever played for this school. That's why I pushed so hard. I felt if I didn't go all out, that I had cheated somebody who played here in the past."

R. A.™ · February 13, 2006, 08:44:05 am

University of West Alabama: Sam McCorkle forced to resign on Wednesday after slapping a player during morning workouts.

D-way Trey · February 13, 2006, 08:58:35 am

What's wrong with slapping players?

Maybe he was frustrated his teams were 24-62-2!

wawa111 · March 09, 2006, 05:29:05 pm

players from west alabama say he didn't slap him...just grabbed him on the arm and left a mark

R. A.™ · March 15, 2006, 04:54:20 pm

Bobby Wallace expected to be named HC, won 3 National Championships with North Alabama ('93,'94.'95). Huge catch for UWA

Rulesman · March 15, 2006, 06:10:04 pm

From the UWA website:

LIVINGSTON, AL— West Alabama Athletic Director Dee Outlaw announced on Wednesday that Bobby Wallace has been named the new head football coach at The University of West Alabama, effective immediately. Wallace, who has been the Head Coach at Temple University since 1997, will replace Sam McCorkle who resigned as head coach last month.

"I am very excited to have the opportunity to coach again in Alabama and the GSC at a fine school such as West Alabama," said Wallace. "We obviously have a challenge ahead of us. I do feel that the support is there from the administration, the community and the alumni. You have to have those things and I am totally convinced that those things are in place. If we do a good job as coaches and players, we have every chance to be successful."

Wallace's first head coaching stint came in the GSC when he was the head coach at the University of North Alabama from 1988-1997. During his time at UNA, he led the Lions to three consecutive national championships from 1993-1995, as his squads finished with an overall record of 41-1 during the course of those three seasons. The 1995 team was selected as the "Best Team of the Quarter Century" in Division II and linebacker Ronald McKinnon became the first, and to this point the only, defensive player to win the Harlon Hill Trophy.

"We are extremely excited and humbled to be able to hire such an outstanding football coach," said Outlaw. "He is a proven winner in our league. It didn't take us long to see that Bobby Wallace was the man we had all heard he was, a man of character and integrity, a leader of young men, and a coaches' coach. There is only one coach who has won three straight national championships and we are proud he now wears Tiger Red."

Wallace also led UNA to Gulf South Conference Championships during the 1993-1995 seasons, while his Lions also qualified for the NCAA Division II Playoffs six times during his tenure. Over his 10 seasons at the helm, he compiled an overall mark of 82-36-1, and he also produced a total of 12 NFL players.

Throughout the course of his successful coaching career, Wallace has been awarded with several honors. He was named the GSC Coach of the Year three straight seasons from 1993-1995, while also being named the NCAA Division II National Coach of the Year during that same span. In 1997, he was named the first Division II Coach of the Quarter Century, before being inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in 2004.

"The charge of the selection committee was to find the best qualified individual; one who would move our football program to a new level," said UWA President Richard Holland. "I am pleased to say that the committee found such a candidate in Bobby Wallace. He is an outstanding coach with an exceptional record of success."

Prior to embarking in a career as a head coach, he has also served as defensive backs coach at Illinois, Mississippi State, Auburn, Wyoming and East Carolina, where his teams were consistently ranked in the top five nationally in pass defense. During his stint at Auburn, he was noted for recruiting and signing Bo Jackson.