Coaching was never just a job to Bill Hyde. When a coach spends the better part of four decades in the business, it becomes a way of life. But after 42 years of coaching — 20 at the University of North Alabama (UNA) — Hyde retired as UNA’s football coach after last season.
Despite football being a major part of his life for so long, Hyde, a member of Florence’s Highland Baptist Church, says so far he does not miss it.
“It has really surprised me. I thought I would be missing it real bad by now,” he said.
“But even when I watched spring training, I didn’t miss it at all. Now this fall may be a different story, but right now I am content. I am working on developing some new hobbies and have begun to enjoy fishing.
“Plus, I am teaching Sunday School and visiting for the church. My work with the church is very important to me, and it is something I really enjoy.”
Hyde joined the UNA staff in 1977 as defensive coordinator after stints at Haleyville High School and Samford University. He served as defensive coordinator at UNA until after the 1987 season when he left to coach at Red Bay High School for one season and Valdosta State for three seasons.
But in 1992, he came back to the UNA Lions. Over the next 10 seasons, Hyde would be a part of three NCAA Division II National Championship teams (1993–1995). In 1995 he was named NCAA Division II Defensive Coordinator of the Year as the Lions won their third straight national title.
Hyde was promoted to head coach in 1998, and during his first year the Lions were 8–2. Despite falling on hard times the last three seasons, UNA posted a 166–67–7 record during Hyde’s 20 years on staff.
Hyde got his start in coaching under Hall of Fame coach Bubba Scott. Hyde was a quarterback on Scott’s Haleyville teams in the early 1950s and later coached under him at Haleyville and Samford.
“He made an impression on everyone,” Hyde said of Scott. “He was as fierce a competitor as I have ever known, but he never had a harsh word, much less a profane word to say about anyone.
“He taught his players that working hard and preparing hard were the ways to win games, and he would not accept quitting. All of these things had an impact on my coaching career, but the most important thing I learned from him had to do with his Christian character. You knew what his religious beliefs were because he lived them every day.
“Football is something we can enjoy for a short time, but if we want eternal happiness, we have to have Jesus. I feel fortunate to have had the opportunities God has given me.”
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