2008. allace and his team put together a memorable season in 2009. The season began with three consecutive victories including a televised home win over Arkansas Tech. Unfortunately, three consecutive losses followed. A couple of wins over #22 Delta State and Arkansas-Monticello put UWA right back in the thick of the playoff race, but a loss to West Georgia the following week nearly derailed their hopes. During the season finale, UWA was locked in a battle for their playoff lives against longtime rival and Wallace’s former team, North Alabama. At the time, UNA was ranked #1 in all the Division II polls. Through a fearless and courageous effort, UWA sent the game to overtime after losing the lead they held throughout the game. After four overtimes, it appeared UNA was set to claim the victory until a forced fumble gave UWA the ball. From that, they took advantage and kicked the game-winning field goal. It was the first win for the Tigers at Braly Municipal Stadium in Florence since the 1987 season. The NCAA rewarded UWA's efforts with a berth in the NCAA Division II playoffs. In the first round, the Tigers upset #20 Albany State 24–22 on the road. After falling behind early against #10 Carson-Newman, the Tigers mounted a rally before falling short 59–41. The Tigers gathered an 8–5 record, the most wins since 1975, and had eight All-GSC honors. UWA posted a 5–1 record at Tiger Stadium, the best since 1985, and tallied the most wins over GSC opponents since 1981 with six. They received their first two rankings in school history at the end of the season. The AFCA placed them #21, while the D2Football.com poll placed them higher two spots at #19. UWA entered the 2010 season ranked 12th nationally by USA Today. The team was also ranked 23rd in the Lindy’s Preseason Top 25 poll and 24th in the Sporting News Preseason Top 25 poll. The UWA football team recorded its highest pre-season ranking since 1976 as the Tigers were selected second by the head coaches of the 2010 Gulf South Conference in the GSC Pre-Season Poll. The Red and White previously entered as the top ranked team in 1976 and 1972. West Alabama opened the season on August 28 against NAIA member Shorter in nearby Demopolis, Alabama. Tiger Stadium saw a major renovation as a synthetic surface was recently installed. The Tigers played