Sanderson, Wimp

The "Man in Plaid" is known in college basketball circles nationwide. Wimp Sanderson, a Coffee High School graduate, took basketball at the University of Alabama to new heights during his 12 year tenure as head coach. The Crimson Tide won five consecutive SEC tournament championships under his guidance and appeared in the title game nine times. Alabama advanced to post-season play in 11 of 12 seasons, with the squad advancing six times to the Sweet 16. Sanderson was chosen as the SEC's Coach of the Decade in the 1980s. He is still the schools all-time winningest coach with 267 wins. He added 71 more as head coach of Arkansas Little-Rock.
The roots of his superb career can be traced to Florence. He was a three year starter at Coffee, helping the Yellow Jackets to the state tournament. He then took his basketball talents to Abilene Christian College, in Texas, for one year before transferring back home to Florence State. He was a three year letterman in basketball at Florence State, and immediately after graduation took a head coach job at Carbon Hill. His team went 25-4 that year and he was off to Tuscaloosa the next year, where he began his career as a graduate assistant in 1959. He finally got his chance to the the Tide's head coach in 1981 and went on to be named the SEC Coach of the Year twice. His teams won at least 20 games, 10 times. He is a member of the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame and the UNA Hall of Fame.