Carson-Newman Eagles Quick Facts 2012 Schedule DATE
OPPONENT
Stadium.............................................Burke-Tarr Stadium Capacity...................................................................5,500 2011 Record................................................................5-6 2011 SAC Record/Finish.......................................3-4/5th Basic Offense................................................Veer Option Basic Defense.............................................................4-3 Letterwinners returning/lost.....................................28/16 Head Coach................................................... Ken Sparks Alma Mater..................................Carson-Newman, 1968 Record at School (years).................. 299-80-2 (32 years) Career Record........................................................ Same Best Time To Reach.......................... Weekday mornings Office Number........................................... 865-471-3466 Assistant Coaches.........................................Mike Turner .................................................................. Mike Clowney .................................................................... David Needs ..................................................................Dave Redding ..................................................................... John Cryder ................................................................... Aaron Hutsell ................................................................David Crawford ....................................................................Mac Lambert ............................................................... Denares Waites .........................................................................Otis Miller ................................................................. Mike Childress SID............................................................ Adam Cavalier Office Phone.............................................. 865-471-3513 Cell Phone................................................. 304-552-4519 Office Fax.................................................. 865-471-3514 Press Box Phone....................................... 727-698-0306 E-mail Address....................................acavalier@cn.edu Internet Address................................www.cneagles.com SID Mailing Address.......................2130 S. Branner Ave. ................................................. Jefferson City, TN 37760
TIME
Aug. 30.....................Glenville St.................................... 7 p.m. Sept. 15....................LENOIR-RHYNE........................... 1 p.m. Sept. 22....................at NEWBERRY........................ 6:30 p.m. Sept. 27....................WINGATE*.................................... 8 p.m. Oct. 6........................at CATAWBA............................ 1:30 p.m. Oct. 13......................North Greenville............................ 3 p.m. Oct. 20......................at UNC Pembroke......................... 2 p.m. Oct. 27......................at BREVARD................................. 1 p.m. Nov. 3.......................at TUSCULUM......................... 1:30 p.m. Nov. 10.....................MARS HILL.................................. 1 p.m. SAC games in ALL CAPS * CBS Sports Network Game of the Week
Head Coach Ken Sparks 33rd Season As Ken Sparks embarks on his 33rd season at the helm of the Carson-Newman Eagles football program, he faces a new struggle. In late June, 2012 Sparks was diagnosed with prostate cancer and will now battle it as he continues teaching and ministering to the young athletes in his program. This season Ken Sparks will make history, becoming only the 11th man in college football to record 300 wins. The coach is reluctant to shine the spotlight on himself and his accomplishments. Sparks would instead rather be measured by his impact in the lives of the young men and coaches who’ve been a part of his Carson-Newman family. For Coach Sparks, football is a laboratory of learning where he and his staff strive to develop the whole person – educationally, socially, athletically and spiritually. Along the way, Sparks has developed one of the winningest football programs in the history of the sport. The Eagles have won five NAIA National Titles and played for it six times. A move to NCAA Division II didn’t slow Sparks’ CarsonNewman squad down. The Eagles played for the D-II National Title three times and were a semifinalist in 2009. The rest of the numbers speak for themselves as Sparks has recorded 21 South Atlantic Conference Championships, 22 NCAA or NAIA playoff appearances and a 299-80-2 record. Sparks holds the all-time record for wins in NCAA Division II and is currently third in total wins among all active coaches in all NCAA divisions, behind only St. John’s (Minn) John Gagliardi and Mount Union’s Larry Kehres.
Sparks was inducted into the inaugural NCAA Division II Hall of Fame Coaches Class in 2010 along with Northwest Missouri State’s Mel Tjeerdsma and West Alabama’s Bobby Wallace. Coach Sparks is also a member of the South Atlantic Conference Hall of Fame, the Knoxville Sports Hall of Fame, the Carson-Newman Athletic Hall of Fame, the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame and the NAIA Hall of Fame. Coach Sparks earned NAIA Coach of the Year honors in 1984. He’s been voted SAC Coach of the Year 12 times. Sparks is a two-time winner of the Tennessee Sportswriters Coach of the Year in 1999 and 2002 and was also named Division II Coach of the Year by American Football Coach Magazine. In 2010, Sparks received the prestigious General Robert R. Neyland Trophy, presented by the Knoxville Quarterback Club for contributing greatly to intercollegiate athletics. Coach Sparks is a sought-after public speaker and motivator, delivering speeches a coaches clinics, church groups and civic organizations. He is a member of Manley Baptist Church of Morristown, along with his wife Carol, and is heavily involved in multiple Christian organizations.
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