Football Southern Conference

Ayers Named Regional Football Coach of the Year

SPARTANBURG -- Wofford football coach Mike Ayers has been named a Regional Coach of the Year for the second straight season by the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA).

"What makes this award so special is that this is the only coach of the year award voted on exclusively by the coaches themselves," AFCA executive director Grant Teaff said. "The winners are selected by the coaches they compete with and against on a daily basis."

The AFCA recognizes five regional Coach of the Year winners in each of the Association's four divisions: I-A, I-AA, Division II (NCAA Division II and NAIA schools) and Division III. The winners are selected by active members of the association who vote for coaches in their respective regions and divisions.

Ayers and Oklahoma's Bob Stoops are the only repeat regional winners from 2002. Ayers also received regional AFCA honors in 1990 and 1991 when the Terriers competed in Division II.

The AFCA will announce its four National Coach of the Year winners on Jan. 6 at the 2004 AFCA Convention in Orlando.

After Wofford was picked to finish fifth in a preseason SoCon poll by the league coaches, Ayers guided the Terriers (12-1, 8-0) to their first SoCon championship and the league's first perfect season since 1998. Ayers was named the SoCon's Coach of the Year for the third time in the last four seasons.

Ayers is also a finalist for The Sports Network's Eddie Robinson Award, signifying the nation's top coach in Division I-AA. He was the runner-up last year.

Already Wofford's all-time winningest coach, Ayers picked up his 100th win on the Terrier sideline with a 7-6 win at Furman in this year's regular-season finale. The 2003 Wofford squad has already set a single-season school record for victories.

Wofford concluded the regular season ranked second nationally in Division I-AA. The Terriers are at Delaware on Saturday in a Division I-AA semifinal playoff game to be televised at 1 p.m. on ESPN2.