West Alabama Tigers
| West Alabama Tigers | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| University | The University of West Alabama |
| Conference | Gulf South Conference |
| NCAA | Division II |
| Athletic director | Stan Williamson |
| Location | Livingston, Alabama |
| Varsity teams | 18 |
| Football stadium | Tiger Stadium |
| Basketball arena | Pruitt Hall |
| Baseball stadium | Tartt Field |
| Mascot | Luie the Tiger |
| Nickname | Tigers |
| Fight song | The Fight Song |
| Colors | Red and White |
| Website | www |
The University of West Alabama currently features 18 sports teams. Men's and women's outdoor track were added in Spring 2013. Men's and women's golf will start fall of 2013. Both the male and female athletic teams are called the West Alabama Tigers. 16 teams participate in the NCAA's Division II as a member of the Gulf South Conference. Men's and women's rodeo compete in the Ozark Region of the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association. Athletics facilities on the campus include 7,000-seat Tiger Stadium, James P. Homer ye s, Pruitt Hall, Tartt Field, UWA Softball Complex, Dora Dahlberg Beard Indoor Practice Facility, Howard R. Vaughan Tennis Complex, Don C. Hines Rodeo Complex, and UWA Cross Country Facility.
Main rivalries for the program include those with the North Alabama Lions and Delta State Statesmen. The rivalry with North Alabama is especially heated as the two compete annually in nearly all sports. Other rivalries include those against the Alabama-Huntsville Chargers, Valdosta State Blazers, West Florida Argonauts, and West Georgia Wolves. The Tigers had a rivalry against the Montevallo Falcons before they left the GSC to join the Peach Belt Conference.
The University's Director of Athletics is Stan Williamson. The school's official mascot is Luie the Tiger.
West Alabama's football team was first fielded in 1931 when the school was known as Livingston State Teachers College. However, intercollegiate competition for all the university’s athletics was not scheduled until seven years later. In 1938, they competed in four games against Marion Institute, Jacksonville State, Demopolis A.S, and Troy State, all of whom were local teams. LSTC finished the season 2-2. That year also marked the start of World War II which led to a decline in college enrollment across the United States. Therefore, LSTC fielded no athletic teams from 1942-1945. In 1944, Dr. William Wilson Hill became president of the university and instantly started recruiting students to enroll. The return of males to campus reestablished an interest in sports. After a three-year hiatus, the football team returned to action under the guidance of new head coach E.G McCollum. They opened their season with the first of many future match-ups against Mississippi College, which resulted in a 24-14 loss. Also, that season, LSTC renewed its rivalry with, eventual Gulf South Conference foes, Troy State and Delta State. The team concluded the season with a 6-3 record. Due to success of the season, McCollum resigned to pursue a bigger opportunity elsewhere. Following two dismal seasons from 1947 and 1948, LSTC made a bold move and hired former University of Alabama star Vaughn Mancha as the fourth head coach in team history. Mancha at the time was only 28 years old with no prior coaching experience. The former two-time All-American had also recently completed his first and only season in the NFL as a member of the Boston Yanks. Under Mancha, the team experienced immediate success. In his first season, he led LSTC to one of the biggest accomplishments in school history, a 13-6 win over Florida State. The team also concluded the regular season 7-1-1, which at the time marked the best record in school history. The historical season earned LSTC right to play in the Paper Bowl against Jacksonville State. JSU won the hard fought defensive affair, 12-7. Until 1952, the Tigers played home games at Livingston High School. From then on, all their home games were played at Tiger Stadium, a 7,000-capacity stadium located on filled in land that was previously known as "Crawdad Creek." The stadium was built to fill the need for an on-campus stadium. Next season was once again successful as the team finished 6-3-1. However, they could not duplicate the accomplishments of the previous season. During Mancha’s third season, the team started off 2-4 and showed heavy signs of decline until putting on a strong finish to end the season 5-5. This season would mark the last in Mancha’s tenure at LSTC as he decided to take over as defensive coordinator at Florida State. Mancha departed with an 18-10-2 overall record.
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