Playing to win
The UAB football program could have announced its return with a press release as simple as the one Michael Jordan used to return to the NBA in 1995, and no further explanation would have been required to set off the celebration.
“We’re back.”
After being left for dead on Dec. 2, 2014, when the football program was given the ax after a 6-6 season — head coach Bill Clark’s debut season — due to a lack of financial and fan support, each of those factors took a 180-degree turn almost immediately.
Voices were raised. Money was also raised. Even as the players in the program split off to find new homes, the work to bring the program back was already in progress. And Clark stayed.
The announcement on June 1, 2015, that the program would return on the field in 2017 was met with many a happy tear. A great deal happened in that six-month span while the program was dormant, but arguably the biggest news came about a year later.
The UAB Football Operations Center and adjacent Legacy Pavilion was announced June 17, 2016, ground was broken Aug. 29, and the team moved into the facility in late July of this year, right ahead of the opening of the Blazers’ first preseason camp in three years.
The facility includes the necessary amenities for a major college football program, unlike the previous facility that was often compared to a dentist’s office. Shaq Jones — a senior linebacker who has been at UAB since 2011 — called the facility a “wonderful maze.”
It currently features two full-length turf practice fields, including one covered by the pavilion. Being able to escape the elements is one of the many blessings Clark counts daily.
After the first day of preseason practice on July 31, Clark said, “To be able to go from the outside heat to under the pavilion and have two fields practicing at once, there’s a lot of things that maybe we took for granted that really made for a great day.”
Last fall, the Blazers conducted a pair of scrimmages to satisfy the appetites of Birmingham fans, annually the top viewing market for college football on television.
A season with UAB football has arrived once again, and now the Blazers are aiming to make every contribution worthwhile, whether emotional or financial. Over 10,000 season tickets were sold, an all-time high for a program that has been in existence since the early 1990s.
“We want to show our respect to Birmingham,” Jones said. “They put their hard-earned money into this project, so we are going to give our blood, sweat and tears and do the best we can.”
A handful of guys, like Jones, stayed with the program throughout. Some came back after a year at another school. But most in the program now will be new faces to fans of the Green and Gold.
There are important on-field decisions to be made. Will it be A.J. Erdely or Tyler Johnston who gets the majority of the reps at quarterback? How big of an impact will linebackers and senior leaders Tevin Crews and Jones make on the defense? How good can this team really be?
The return has come full circle, and the Blazers are more than ready to answer those questions, especially the last one. They’re aiming to be more than a neat story with a happy ending. They hope on-field success follows suit, beginning with the 2:30 p.m. home and season opener Sept. 2 against Alabama A&M.
“We’re playing to win,” Clark said.
UAB 2017 SCHEDULE
Home games at Legion Field
Sept. 2: Alabama A&M
Sept. 9: @ Ball State
Sept. 16: Coastal Carolina
Sept. 23: @ North Texas
Oct. 7: Louisiana Tech
Oct. 14: Middle Tennessee
Oct. 21: @ Charlotte
Oct. 28: @ Southern Miss
Nov. 4: Rice
Nov. 11: @ UTSA
Nov. 18: @ Florida
Nov. 25: UTEP
2017 UAB season tickets start at $99. Single game tickets are on sale for $30 premium seating (sections 10-11, 35-36) and $20 for all other sections. Group rate tickets are available for purchases of 20 or more tickets. For more information, visit uabsports.com.