Bobby Wallace and Mike Lane are legends at the University of North Alabama. Wallace guided the Lions’ football team to three-straight Division II National Championships from 1993-95, and Lane won a remarkable 908 games across 25 seasons as UNA’s head baseball coach. Now the two will be honored by having fields in their respective sport named after them.
This week, the Florence-Lauderdale Convention and Visitors Bureau named the field at Bank Independent Stadium in Florence “Bobby Wallace Field,” and the University of North Alabama Foundation has committed to naming the baseball field in honor of Lane.
Wallace posted an 82-36-1 record at UNA from 1988-97 before leaving to take the head coaching job at Temple University. He eventually returned to UNA in 2012, leading the Lions to a 44-15 record and four straight Gulf South Conference championships in his second stint at the university. Wallace finished at UNA with a 126-51-1 overall record with 10 postseason appearances and a 20-7 postseason record. He is the winningest coach in North Alabama and Gulf South Conference history.
“I would like to thank (UNA President) Dr. (Ken) Kits, (UNA Director of Athletics) Dr. (Josh) Looney, Kevin Haslam, the Florence-Lauderdale Convention and Visitors Bureau, and anyone else that contributed to making this happen,” Wallace said. “It means so much to me and my family. I pray every coach, player, manager, and trainer that was at UNA during those years feels a part of this. I also want to thank all the great fans that supported us. It was a special time!”
Lane arrived at UNA in 1983 and took over a program that had just one winning season in the six years prior to his arrival. He promptly turned the program around and posted 25 consecutive winning seasons. In this second season, 1985, the Lions went 46-11-1 to set a single season school record for wins. His teams won 40 or more games on six occasions, five Gulf Coast Conference championships, and appeared in 10 NCAA regionals and one World Series in 1999.
“I thank the good Lord for letting this old ball coach have this privilege,” said Lane. “It is something we can all take pride in, and, from what I have seen, it will be a great place for people to watch the game. From the standpoint of the players, it is an upgrade to what we had. A field is very unique and very important to players.”
A special ceremony will take place on February, 1, 2025 and will provide the coaches, former players, student-athletes, and others a chance to celebrate the naming of the fields in Wallace’s and Lane’s honor. TG
