The University of North Alabama Athletics staff delivered statements regarding their outlook on the upcoming season at their annual Fall Sports Media Day.
The Media Day took place on August 13 at Lost Pizza Co. in Florence. Members of local media groups were invited to speak with coaches and players of various fall sports in order to gauge their thoughts on how the season will go.
The press conference opened with a statement from Athletic Director Dr. Josh Looney, who is hopeful for the season, especially in this period after UNA’s transition to Division I. Looney emphasized how proud he is of the athletes, staff and coaches who have gotten UNA Athletics to this point.
“We have very high expectations going forward across the board for our athletic department,” said Looney. “More than anything, I’m proud of the grit, the belief and the grind our staff, coaches and athletes have put in to get us to this point.”
He also expressed his appreciation for the Shoals community for supporting UNA Athletics, saying that support is what drives advancement.
“This community is fueling our athletic department right now in every measurable way,” Looney said. “You look at the last two years and the fundraising. $20.6 million were raised last year. That beat the record the first year we [were] in Division I at $9.6 million raised, and that was triple the best we’d ever done at that time. There’s the groundbreaking of Bank Independent Stadium. These are great things that are happening, and we’re so appreciative of our community for coming alongside us.”
After Looney’s statement, Chris Walker, head soccer coach, spoke about his excitement about a quick start to the season, as well as his hopes for successes that meet or exceed those of last season.
“Last year in the ASUN Championship, we would have liked to have walked away with that championship ring, but our goal is to get back there, have another go at it and see if we can do better,” said Walker. “We returned a bunch of players that are doing a fantastic job. They worked really hard in the spring. We brought in 12 new players to add to this group, six freshmen and six transfers. We’ve had maybe a week and a half or two weeks of pre-season, and we start on Thursday, so the world of soccer starts really quickly. It’s great! It keeps us excited and we’re ready to go.”
Head Football Coach Brent Dearmon followed this statement by speaking about the growth he has seen in his team and the continuation of that growth that he hopes to see this season.
“The last time you saw this football team was in front of 1.3 million on the CW,” said Dearmon. “We gave Florida State a run for their money in the first half of that football game with a 13 to nothing lead. A lot of the leadership on this team, after that game, came into the locker room and said, ‘That first half is the way we can play all the time.’ It really led us into how we attack our off-season… Our motto this past season was 212. We wanted to find that one extra degree. For us, 212 means, how do I go from hot water to boiling water? For our guys, they ran with that motto this off-season, of finding that extra degree, of finding that way in the third and fourth quarter to hold those leads and finish games.”
Tristan Johnson, head volleyball coach, then spoke to the crowd about the enthusiasm he and his team are going into the season with, and he accepts the challenges that this season presents as an avenue to improvement.
“I’m really excited about our season,” said Johnson. “We have three SEC opponents this year. We start next Saturday at Ole Miss, and then our very first match is against Auburn. Later on, we go to Alabama for a mid-week match. We’re stepping up our schedule a little bit… I definitely wanted to take a step up because in the process of building, that’s what you have to do.”
Lastly, Head Cross Country Coach Connor Callahan gave his thoughts on the season from the perspective of being a new coach, saying that he is excited to work with his team to continue progressing.
“We’ve got a lot of seniors, so that’s going to be something that we really hit on,” said Callahan. “As a new coach, I know what they’ve put in, and I’m excited to see where we can go from there. We’ve got some newcomers coming in, all the way from Kenya and some from Ohio. I’m excited to see what we can do over these next two months… As we progress through the season, we’ve got to continue to get better, and that’s one thing that I’m excited about.”
Throughout the conference, each speaker portrayed their hope and excitement for the upcoming season, hoping to continue the growth that has been seen in UNA’s athletic program in previous years.
“It’s an incredible time for us,” Looney said. “Certainly, the work isn’t done. It’s just the beginning, but going into the 2024 to 2025 year, I’m excited about the leadership we have, and I’m excited about the student-athletes we have.”
