Mack Wood

Mack Russell Wood was born February 26, 1936 in Greenville, Alabama. Growing up in Greenville, Wood was an outstanding running back and baseball player at Greenville High School. Wood played both sports at East Mississippi Junior College and at Troy State University. He led Troy in rushing his senior year with the Trojans in 1958. His first coaching job was as an assistant at Auburndale High School in Florida. In 1964 he became Head Football Coach at Geraldine High School then moved to T.R. Miller High School in Brewton in the fall of 1966 for six years. Wood won his first state title at T.R. Miller in 1969 with a perfect 11-0 record. He accepted the head coaching job in Troy at Charles Henderson High School for two years beginning in 1972. Coach Wood then moved to Elba and spent the last 18 years of his long and successful career coaching the Tigers. His teams reached the championship game in 1985 and 1986, falling short of a title each time. Coach Woods second and third titles came with Elba in 1989 and 1992. The 1989 Tigers shutout Rogers 14-0 for the first playoff State Championship in school history. Coach Woods 1992 team defeated Lamar County 15-3 for their second title in four years. He would retire following the 1994 football season. His overall record stands at 214-91-4 over the 28 seasons he was a head coach at four different schools. His playoff record of 29-10 is among the best of all-time in Alabama. Woods teams at Elba also won nine region titles with an overall region record of 57-18 in eighteen years. Wood coached in the North-South All-Star game, the Alabama-Mississippi All-Star Classic and was named state Coach of the Year twice, once in 1992 by the ASWA . In 1995, he was elected to the Alabama High School Athletic Association Coaches Hall of Fame. He is also a member of the Wiregrass Hall of Fame. In November, 2004 he was honored by the City of Elba as they named the football field at Elba Tiger Stadium "Mack Wood Field." Coach Wood will be remembered by his players, coaches, friends and fans as a winner. Coach Mack Wood, age 69, of Enterprise departed this life Sunday, July 17, 2005 at Medical Center Enterprise in Enterprise.