North Alabama To Join Big South Football in 2019
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (www.BigSouthSports.com) – The Big South Conference has added the University of North Alabama as an associate member in football effective with the 2019 season, it was announced today as part of UNA’s announcement of its transition to Division I status and entry into the ASUN Conference. North Alabama will become the Big South’s eighth football member in 2019, which will mark the league’s largest membership on the gridiron.
“The Big South welcomes the University of North Alabama as its eighth football member,” said Big South Commissioner Kyle Kallander. “With the Lions’ strong and proud history in football, we know UNA will be an outstanding member!”
During its transition to Division I, North Alabama will play a full Big South schedule beginning with the 2019 season, but its games will not count in the standings as the Lions will not be eligible for the Conference Championship or FCS Playoffs until 2022 when UNA receives active full-fledged Division I status.
The addition of North Alabama brings Big South football to the state of Alabama for the first time, and is a direct result of the Big South’s new collaboration agreement with the ASUN Conference in which ASUN members playing scholarship football have an automatic home in the Big South Conference. The Lions will join current Big South Conference core members Campbell University (Buies Creek, N.C.), Charleston Southern University (Charleston, S.C.), Gardner-Webb University (Boiling Springs, N.C.), Liberty University (Lynchburg, Va.) and Presbyterian College (Clinton, S.C.), plus associate football-only institutions Kennesaw State University (Kennesaw, Ga.) and Monmouth University (West Long Branch, N.J.) on the field in 2019.
“When we announced our partnership in football with the Big South, it was our intention to contribute strongly and significantly,” added ASUN Commissioner Ted Gumbart. “Big South Football continues to grow and we are very proud to be a part of it. We look forward to UNA’s participation and providing a positive competitive impact as a long-term partner with us and with the Big South.”
North Alabama has won three Division II National Championships in football -- all in succession from 1993-95 to become the first school in the history of NCAA scholarship football to win three consecutive national titles. The Lions have made 21 appearances in the Division II Playoffs, including 11 of the past 12 years, and will play in the Division II Semifinals this Saturday at Shepherd. The 10-1 Lions are the No. 1 seed in Super Region 2 and won their four previous semifinal matchups.
UNA is 232-88-1 since 1990 to post the highest winning percentage among all collegiate football programs in the state of Alabama at 72.3 percent. UNA was the first college football program in NCAA history to win as many as 40 games in just three seasons when the Lions went 41-1 from 1993-95. North Alabama, which has played football a total of 68 years (1912-28, 1949-present), is 459-260-16 in its history, and has won 13 Gulf South Championships during its 46-year affiliation. The Lions will begin their transition to Division I in the Fall of 2018.
The Lions are coached by Bobby Wallace, who has coached 15 seasons at UNA as part of two stints (1988-97, 2012-present) and is the all-time winningest coach in program history with 125 victories, as well as Gulf South Conference history with 151 wins in his 20 years in the league. He was the architect of the program’s three consecutive National Championships, and his 19 all-time postseason wins in the Division II Playoffs rank tied for second in Division II history. Wallace is a four-time Gulf South Coach of the Year and three-time Division II National Coach of the Year, and served as head coach at Temple (1998-05) and West Alabama (2006-10). He has already been inducted in the UNA Athletic Hall of Fame, the Division II Football Hall of Fame and the state of Alabama Sports Hall of Fame.
The UNA program has had 17 players drafted by National Football League teams, while another 54 have signed NFL free agent contracts. Five former Lions have played in the Super Bowl, including Stevie Hobbs with the champion Washington Redskins in Super Bowl XXVI. Former Lion Harlon Hill was named the NFL Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Player during his professional career, and the Division II National Player of the Year Award -- the Harlon Hill Trophy was re-named in his honor in 1986. In the classroom, North Alabama football student-athletes have received Academic All-Conference recognition 84 times, including seven honorees in 2015. In addition, another 11 Lions have been honored as Academic All-District and four have been named CoSIDA Academic All-America.
“We really appreciate Ted Gumbart and Kyle Kallander in working together to make this vision a reality for the University of North Alabama,” stated UNA Director of Athletics Mark Linder. “I think it will be transformational for our university. Obviously the Big South is a quality league and one that has enjoyed continued success in football and we hope that we can add to that and bring additional quality to the league.”
“I think the move to Division I Football Championship Subdivision is going to be a historical moment for the University of North Alabama,” commented Wallace. “I think it will bring a tremendous amount of success, both on and off the field, for our university. Having coached at East Carolina and Temple earlier in my career, I’m very familiar with the schools in the Big South Conference. They have a quality conference that has been very successful and consistently made appearances in the NCAA Playoffs. Hopefully we can add to that success in the future.”
Among the nation’s premier FCS conferences, the Big South made three consecutive quarterfinal appearances in the FCS Playoffs from 2013-15, has recorded multiple postseason bids three times since the league first received an automatic bid in 2010, and has had a member ranked in the FCS Top 25 national rankings for 77 consecutive weeks. The Big South had a record nine official finalists for this year’s National FCS awards, and has had a total of 171 All-Americans in its history.
ABOUT UNIVERSITY OF NORTH ALABAMA
The University of North Alabama has developed into a comprehensive regional university exerting a major influence over the cultural, social and economic life of Northwest Alabama and providing educational opportunities for students pursuing undergraduate and graduate majors offered through the colleges of Arts and Sciences, Business, Education and Nursing and Health. The 2008 edition of U.S. News and World Report’s America's Best Colleges ranked the university as a top-tier public university.
Location: Florence, Ala.
Founded: 1830
Enrollment: 7,300
Colors: Purple and Gold
Nickname: Lions
President: Dr. Ken Kitts
Director of Athletics: Mark Linder
Senior Woman Administrator: Debbie Williams
Faculty Athletic Representative: Pat Roden
Football History: 1912-28, 1949-present
All-Time Record: 459-260-16 (68 seasons)
National Championships: 3 (1993, 1994-95)
All-Time NCAA Playoff Appearances: 21
Home Field: Braly Municipal Stadium (14,215)
Surface: ProGrass Turf
Athletic Department’s Website: www.roarlions.com
Twitter Feed: @UNAFootball