By Gary Lloyd
CLAY — The city of Clay has joined the party.
The Clay City Council on Tuesday approved a resolution supporting the UAB football program, which was shut down in December.
“It felt like a hope and a dream was taken away from a lot of guys,” said Timothy Alexander, a former UAB football player injured in a car accident.
VIDEO: Watch former UAB football player Timothy Alexander speak to the Clay City Council on Tuesday.
The resolution in part states that the elected officials of Clay “believe in the values and community which athletics, the marching band, and spirit and cheering squads provide to the college environment and experience.”
The resolution states that the city council encourages the University of Alabama System Board of Trustees and UAB President Ray Watts to re-establish the UAB football program. The city council also urges UAB alumni and current students “as well as the local business community to take responsibility for supporting the sports programs through attendance and donations of time and/or financial resources to ensure the uninterrupted continuation of such extracurricular activities.”
“We all support UAB,” said Clay Mayor Charles Webster.
It was announced in early December that UAB was cutting the football, bowling and rifle programs. CarrSports Consulting conducted a yearlong strategic planning study to evaluate the feasibility of the athletics programs with and without football. It was determined that “investments in football were unlikely to provide a sustainable return relative to the required investment,” according to a statement from Watts.
In a press conference held earlier this month, Watts read directly from a statement to announce the formation of a committee, whose task will be to select a consulting firm to review the initial report constructed by CarrSports Consulting. The statement lays out plans to have a report be fashioned within 90 days once the committee selects which firm to move forward with.
The Trussville City Council, in front of more than a dozen UAB graduates and supporters, approved a resolution in support of the university and its athletic programs last week.
The resolution in part states that Trussville “recognizes the economic impact of the University of Alabama at Birmingham and that this impact benefits, in a positive way, municipalities in the Birmingham area, including the City of Trussville.”
The resolution goes on to state that Trussville’s elected officials “believe in the values and sense of community which athletics provides to the college environment and experience.”
The Pinson City Council, in the wake of the news, approved a resolution in December supporting the continued operation of the UAB football program. The resolution states that the city of Pinson “urges the University of Alabama System Board of Trustees and the University of Alabama at Birmingham President to ensure uninterrupted continuation and/or reestablishment of the University of Alabama at Birmingham football program.”
Contact Gary Lloyd at news@trussvilletribune.com and follow him on Twitter @GaryALloyd.