UAB's Bill Clark Wins CBS National Coach Of The Year

BIRMINGHAM, AL - Just a week after being named the Conference USA Coach of the Year, UAB head coach Bill Clark gets to add to his growing stack of accolades as CBS Sports has named him the National Coach of the Year for the 2017 season. Clark guided the Blazers to their best season in program history and did so after two years of not playing a game and rebuilding a program from scratch.

UAB finished the regular season with an overall record of 8-4 and a mark of 6-2 in C-USA, both of which are program records. The Blazers will be playing in just their second-ever bowl game in nine days when UAB faces Ohio in the 2017 Bahamas Bowl Dec 22.

"I am excited to once again join the UAB community in congratulating Coach Clark on an award he has worked so hard to earn," UAB President Ray Watts said. "There is no coach more deserving to be National Coach of the Year and we are all very proud of UAB Football's historic on-field success, as well as the team's commitment to the classroom and the community. Coach Clark's leadership has been essential in establishing a new standard of excellence for the program, and it is exciting to see prestigious organizations like CBS Sports take notice. We look forward to a bright future and many more honors for Coach Clark and the team."

Clark is the first coach from the Group of Five to ever win this award. Along with this distinction, Clark's recognition includes:

• Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year Award Finalist (FWAA)
• George Munger Coach of the Year Award Semifinalist (Maxwell Football Club)
• The "Herbies" Award National Coach of the Year (Kirk Herbstreit)
• Bleacher Report National Coach of the Year
• Conference USA Coach of the Year
• Capital One Orange Bowl-FWAA Courage Award Nominee

"Bill will be the first to say that this is a team award, but for multiple national outlets to continue naming him Coach of the Year shows what a tremendous job he and his staff have done this season," Director of Athletics Mark Ingram said. "To keep the players hungry and passionate about football without playing for two years is a major undertaking and Bill has navigated that unprecedented challenge with unwavering determination. We now have an opportunity to win our first postseason game in the Bahamas Bowl and I couldn't think of a better way to cap the greatest comeback in college football history."

Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images