LEXINGTON, Ky. – Kentucky football coach Hal Mumme has beennamed the GTE Region 2 Coach of the Year in voting by the American FootballCoaches Association.

Mumme is one of five regional winners in Division I-A, along with MackBrown of North Carolina (Region 1), Joe Tiller of Purdue (Region 3), BobSimmons of Oklahoma State (Region 4), and Mike Price of Washington State(Region 5). Region 2 of the AFCA consists of the Southeastern Conferenceand area independents.

“What makes this award so special is that these men are beingrecognized by their peers as the top coaches in their regions,” said GrantTeaff, Executive Director of the AFCA. “They were selected by the coachesthey compete with and against on a daily basis.”

Obviously, Mumme impressed rival coaches with the performance of his1997 Kentucky team. The Wildcats won five games, most since 1993, and UK’ssecond-highest total of the decade. Kentucky swept the non-conferenceportion of its schedule for the first time since 1989, including wins overarea rivals Louisville and Indiana. Kentucky also defeated Alabama for thefirst time since 1922.

The UK offensive attack rewrote the record books. The Wildcats erased51 school records, 15 Southeastern Conference records, and one NCAA mark.Quarterback Tim Couch leads the nation in touchdown passes with 37 andpassing yardage with 3,884.

Mumme showed a willingness to take chances. The Wildcats attemptedalmost as many fourth-down conversions (38) as they did punts (39) duringthe season. UK converted 21 of those fourth-down tries, including three outof four on fake punts. Kentucky also attempted seven onside kicks duringthe season.

The “Mummeball” mix of passing wizardry, fourth-down gambles, fakepunts, and onside kicks produced unprecedented enthusiasm for football inthe Bluegrass. The 1997 season featured a school record for attendance andfour of the top five crowds in school history came during Mumme’s inauguralcampaign. The media also took note of the success. Kentucky was selectedfor national or regional television six times in 1997 – most ever for aWildcats squad in one season.

Mumme and Purdue’s Joe Tiller earn special mention by winning an AFCAregional award for consecutive years at two different schools, only thefourth and fifth times that has happened since the AFCA regional honorsbegan in 1960. Mumme won the AFCA Region 2 award for Division II lastseason at Valdosta (Ga.) State University.

Mumme is just the second Wildcats coach to win a regional award fromthe AFCA. Jerry Claiborne was the Region 2 honoree following the 1984season.

“It’s always an honor to be selected coach of the year, and it’sadditionally gratifying when the coaches do the voting,” Mumme said. “I seeit as a team award and accept it on behalf of the entire coaching staff andthe players.”

This is the sixth Coach of the Year award won by Mumme in his nineyears as a collegiate head coach. Previous honors include:

• 1989 NAIA District Coach of the Year while at Iowa Wesleyan
• 1991 NAIA District Coach of the Year while at Iowa Wesleyan
• 1994 Georgia Coach of the Year by the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame while at Valdosta State
• 1996 GTE Region 2 Coach of the Year by the AFCA while at Valdosta State
• 1996 Gulf South Conference Coach of the Year while at Valdosta State