One rule of life that I have learned in working in the field of athletics is that you never really take a break. After all, as soon as one year draws to a close, you are already looking ahead to the year ahead. Coaches hit the recruiting trails and think about ways to make returning players better. Administrators hurry themselves in establishing budgets for the coming year while marketing and sports information offices prepare the following season’s promotional material. This continuous cycle leaves little time for one to sit back and reflect on the year completed.

However, in recent days I have found myself doing just that after completing the most enjoyable year of my 12-year professional career. Webster’s dictionary defines success as a favorable or satisfactory outcome or result. Without a doubt, the 2007-08 Valdosta State athletic year meets every criteria of this definition.

Of course, the first example anyone looks to when considering the success of the past 12 months is the football squad’s national championship. Watching the ball flutter through the Florence, Ala. air and fall into the arms of senior linebacker William Montford is a memory that will never fade. And while Montford was on his feet for no more than five seconds after intercepting the pass, that time span will always seem like an eternity. The season was filled with such memorable moments, both good and bad. From the thrashings of Albany State and Fort Valley State to open the year to the heartbreaking loss to Delta State and back-to-back punt returns for touchdowns against North Alabama in the playoffs. It’s safe to say we will always remember the “Comeback Kids” of 2007.

While football is the first to come to mind, it is far from being the only sport to enjoy success during the season. Few people realize that eight of our 11 athletic squads advanced to NCAA post-season play. Beyond football, three other squads were among the final 16 teams in the nation in their respective sports. Women’s basketball advanced to the Sweet 16 while both tennis teams once again proved why Valdosta State is considered a tennis hotbed.

Speaking of tennis, I wish more fans could experience the thrill of watching the men and women play at the NCAA Tournament. Have no doubt that the Blazer voice was well heard during the two teams’ three days in Houston. On the court, it was the men’s succession of encouraging each other (think about the closing “Goodnight John Boy” scene from The Waltons television show with a “Let’s go Leos” – “Let’s go Richie”) during play or the diminutive 5-foot-1 Raphaelle Durante, who hails from France, screaming “Allez!!!” (Let’s Go!!!) while staring down her opponent after winning important points or the ever-present “Let’s go Blazers” signifying a match victory in doubles or singles. Off the court, the non-playing squad and the handful of VSU fans in attendance (eight of us total) was enough to make you think our squads were playing on the courts outside of the P.E. Complex instead of 780 miles away from the Azalea City. Even with our teams falling short of their goal of a pair of national championships, I can honestly say I enjoyed those three days as much as the four spent in Florence in December.

While the NCAA success is easy to point to, other successes aren’t as transparent. Perhaps the most successful program of the year, when viewed against pre-season expectations, was the baseball squad. After losing 19 players and Division II’s winningest coach, little was expected out of the squad that went 27-30 last year. However, new coach Greg Guilliams led his squad to a 36-18-1 record and the GSC East Division title, but finished just short of the NCAA Tournament, claiming seventh in the South Central Region when only six teams make tournament play.

Additional unseen success came in the classroom where VSU student-athletes continued to post record numbers. During the Fall, 16 Blazers earned a perfect 4.00 grade point average while 14 did so during the Spring semester. Six teams completed the fall semester with a cumulative GPA of 3.00 or better while five did so during the spring. Topping off the success, former cross country runner Melissa Daugherty became just the fourth student-athlete, and the first since the 1980’s, to win the Annie Powe Hopper Award, the highest honor awarded by the University.

So, while already focused on the year ahead, I hope everyone – employees, players and fans alike — will take a minute to think about the year past. One more time, relish in the victories and think about all the hard work put in. And, since we are a university, study what led to that success so history will indeed repeat itself in the future. After all, before long we will once again hear the crash of helmets and pads, the squeak of shoes on the gym floor and “Allez!!!” ringing across the courts.

Shawn Reed - Sports Information Director