Talking Football with E&H's Lou Wacker
FOREST, Va. --- In the second edition of the ODAC Top-40 features, we head back to the mid-1990's and zero in on Emory, Va., to talk a little football with legendary head coach Lou Wacker. The namesake of the ODAC's defensive player of the year award spent 23 seasons guiding Emory & Henry. Included in his tenure was a 37-game home winning streak from the end of 1991 to the end of 1998.
Click here (or on the photo) to access the interview
Lou Wacker spent 20-plus years at a pair of conference schools, serving as an assistant at Hampden-Sydney for 20 years before making his way to Emory for a storied 23-year run in the Wasps' lead chair. He led E&H to 164 total wins, 11 ODAC titles and five berths in the NCAA Division III Tournament. He also earned five ODAC Coach of the Year awards and his players received 36 All-American awards and 136 All-ODAC honors.
From the end of the 1991 to the conclusion of the 1998 season, Emory & Henry won 37-straight home games. As you'll hear Wacker explain in the interivew, Emory & Henry trailed Oklahoma for much of the season for the nation's longest home run. But eventually, the Sooners suffered a setback, making the Wasps 37-game string the longest in the country at any NCAA level at that time.
Wacker was inducted in the Emory & Henry College Sports Hall of Fame as part of the 2008 class of honorees. He later earned a spot in the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame in 2014.
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The conclusion of the 2015-16 athletic seasons etched 40 years of competition in the ODAC into the history books. In celebration of the accomplishments of conference member teams, coaches, and athletes, the ODAC will feature key milestones throughout the first 40 years of the conference. Each school has submitted a selection of top events, moments, tenures, and performances. The features developed by the ODAC will take several forms -- some audio interviews, others with video content, photo albums, and other pertinent items. All current 14 full-time member institutions will be featured throughout the season.