The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Clark Presented with MFC Thomas Brookshire Spirit Award
3/10/2018 2:47:00 PM | Football
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. – UAB head football coach Bill Clark was presented with the Thomas Brookshire Spirit Award by the Maxwell Football Club on Friday night at the organization's 81st Awards Gala at the Tropicana Hotel in Atlantic City.
Clark was named the recipient of the award in December and joined other standout coaches and players from the NFL, college and high school ranks on Friday at the gala.
Clark was one of many distinguished award winners, along with Carson Wentz, Doug Peterson, Kirby Smart, Baker Mayfield, Minkah Fitzpatrick, Shaquem Griffin, and Bobby Bowden among others. The awards were presented in the grand ballroom in front of a star-studded audience and a distinguished guest list which included football celebrities Howie Roseman, Dick Vermeil, Sal Paolantonio, Phil Steel, Brian Westbrook, Freddie Mitchell, Vince Papale, Kevin Negandhi and many more.
"It is truly an honor to be here amongst the top coaches and players in the game," Clark said. "I would like to thank the Maxwell Football Club for this recognition, as well as the UAB players and coaches and the city of Birmingham who all contributed to make the return of UAB football such a success."
After two-year playing hiatus, Clark guided the Blazers to one of the greatest college football comebacks in 2017. UAB was picked to finished last in the nation by preseason publications and in Conference USA, but the Blazers rallied to set a program record for FBS wins (8) and Conference USA wins (6) en route to just their second bowl appearance in program history.
For his efforts, Clark was named the CBS Sports National Coach of the Year as well as Conference USA Coach of the Year. Along with captivating a national audience, Clark helped galvanize a community as Birmingham and UAB set a program record for average attendance and led C-USA in that category (26,375).
After a building a roster from scratch, Clark now has the luxury of returning 17 starters from last year's team that finished 8-5 overall. Amongst those starters is UAB's record-setting backfield which consists of FWAA Freshman All-American Spencer Brown and All-Conference USA quarterback A.J. Erdely.
Maxwell Football Club Award Recipients:
Professional:
Bobby Bowden, Florida State – Francis J. "Reds" Bagnell Award (Contributions to the game of football)
Doug Pederson, Philadelphia Eagles – Earle "Greasy" Neale Award (Professional Coach of the Year)
Carson Wentz, Philadelphia Eagles – Bert Bell Award (Professional Player of the Year)
Joe Skiba, New York Giants – VICIS Innovation in Safety Award (Player Safety Innovator of the Year)
College:
Bill Clark, UAB – Tom Brookshier Spirit Award (Leadership, Dedications and Inspiration)
Baker Mayfield, Oklahoma – Maxwell Award (College Player of the Year)
Minkah Fitzpatrick, Alabama – Chuck Bednarik Award (College Defensive Player of the Year)
Kirby Smart, Georgia – George Munger Award (College Coach of the Year)
Shaquem Griffin, UCF – 2017 Uplifting Athletes Rare Disease Champion Award
High School:
Trevor Lawrence, Carversville HS – National High School Offensive Player of the Year
Taron Vincent, IMG Academy – National High School Defensive Player of the Year
Shayne Simon, Saint Peter's Prep – Jim Henry Award (Tri-State Area High School Player of the Year)
Regional:
Justin Watson, Penn – Brian Westbrook Tri-State Player Award (Tri-State Player of the Year)
Duke Greco, Delaware Valley University – Tri-state Coach of the Year
Clark was named the recipient of the award in December and joined other standout coaches and players from the NFL, college and high school ranks on Friday at the gala.
Clark was one of many distinguished award winners, along with Carson Wentz, Doug Peterson, Kirby Smart, Baker Mayfield, Minkah Fitzpatrick, Shaquem Griffin, and Bobby Bowden among others. The awards were presented in the grand ballroom in front of a star-studded audience and a distinguished guest list which included football celebrities Howie Roseman, Dick Vermeil, Sal Paolantonio, Phil Steel, Brian Westbrook, Freddie Mitchell, Vince Papale, Kevin Negandhi and many more.
"It is truly an honor to be here amongst the top coaches and players in the game," Clark said. "I would like to thank the Maxwell Football Club for this recognition, as well as the UAB players and coaches and the city of Birmingham who all contributed to make the return of UAB football such a success."
After two-year playing hiatus, Clark guided the Blazers to one of the greatest college football comebacks in 2017. UAB was picked to finished last in the nation by preseason publications and in Conference USA, but the Blazers rallied to set a program record for FBS wins (8) and Conference USA wins (6) en route to just their second bowl appearance in program history.
For his efforts, Clark was named the CBS Sports National Coach of the Year as well as Conference USA Coach of the Year. Along with captivating a national audience, Clark helped galvanize a community as Birmingham and UAB set a program record for average attendance and led C-USA in that category (26,375).
After a building a roster from scratch, Clark now has the luxury of returning 17 starters from last year's team that finished 8-5 overall. Amongst those starters is UAB's record-setting backfield which consists of FWAA Freshman All-American Spencer Brown and All-Conference USA quarterback A.J. Erdely.
Maxwell Football Club Award Recipients:
Professional:
Bobby Bowden, Florida State – Francis J. "Reds" Bagnell Award (Contributions to the game of football)
Doug Pederson, Philadelphia Eagles – Earle "Greasy" Neale Award (Professional Coach of the Year)
Carson Wentz, Philadelphia Eagles – Bert Bell Award (Professional Player of the Year)
Joe Skiba, New York Giants – VICIS Innovation in Safety Award (Player Safety Innovator of the Year)
College:
Bill Clark, UAB – Tom Brookshier Spirit Award (Leadership, Dedications and Inspiration)
Baker Mayfield, Oklahoma – Maxwell Award (College Player of the Year)
Minkah Fitzpatrick, Alabama – Chuck Bednarik Award (College Defensive Player of the Year)
Kirby Smart, Georgia – George Munger Award (College Coach of the Year)
Shaquem Griffin, UCF – 2017 Uplifting Athletes Rare Disease Champion Award
High School:
Trevor Lawrence, Carversville HS – National High School Offensive Player of the Year
Taron Vincent, IMG Academy – National High School Defensive Player of the Year
Shayne Simon, Saint Peter's Prep – Jim Henry Award (Tri-State Area High School Player of the Year)
Regional:
Justin Watson, Penn – Brian Westbrook Tri-State Player Award (Tri-State Player of the Year)
Duke Greco, Delaware Valley University – Tri-state Coach of the Year
Players Mentioned
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