(05-17-2014 10:14 PM)arkstfan Wrote:  There was an added element in there. This was back when neither the NAIA nor NCAA had scholarship limits, each conference set their own limits.

AState was advocating that the AIC increase its scholarship limits in football and was a lone voice crying in the wilderness.

The fate of the university changed when Dr. Reng became president in 1951.

We went to the NCAA and became an independent and a decade later formed the Southland. A decade later when the NCAA restructured into I, II, III there was division within the league about where to go. Abilene and Trinity lost the fight and we went Division I. Dr. Reng retired after being president for 25 years as AState completed it's first Division I football season by going 11-0 in the second season of our current stadium which he had envisioned as a structure capable of being easily expanded to accommodate future growth.

A little over a decade later there was a push to add more move up schools in Texas and Louisiana and we left to form the American South, under Dr. Smith who had been Dr. Reng's #2 man and had twice been passed over as president. He also led the move to FBS and the move to expand the stadium.

We've had a handful of stinkers as president but we've had some greats. Dr. Kays served 23 years (not counting two stints as interim), Dr. Reng 25 years, Dr. Smith 8 years (not counting another stint as interim), Dr. Wyatt was a mixed bag over his five years. Dr. Welch in my opinion is cut from the same cloth as Dr. Kays and Dr. Reng, passionate about athletics as an element of building the school and not bound by convention or tradition in getting things done.

Agree about Pres. Welch. He and Chancellor Hudson seem to be a good combination.