"The 1976 A.L. Brown Wonders"
A Hard Sell
By 1976 it had become obvious to many Wonder football supporters that the football program was taking a downward spiral, and though the support was still there the unpleasant stigma of coming up on the short end of the stick every Friday night was getting old. How much longer could this go on before it began to show at the gates. In the words of General George S Patton Jr "Americans love a winner, and will not tolerate a loser, and thats why Americans will never lose a war" Pretty straight forward and to the point. That would be the mantra as the Wonders ended a very dismal 4-6 season in 1975 and looked to turn things around before the cascading snowball could get any bigger.
Shortly after the 1975 season concluded it had become very clear that maybe a little more fire was needed in the football program to get things headed in the right direction. A little less than two weeks after the 1975 season ended head coach Lope Linder announced publicly that he would resign his post as the Wonders head coach, and that he felt it was time for a change. Now you will get many different opinions on this, but the ultimate consensus in Wonderland was that "The job was just not getting done" I know I've spoken with many former players of this era about what style of head coach Lope Linder was and, it was in agreement that Linder was very honest and caring for his players, but wasn't what you would call the Paul Bear Bryant or Mike Ditka of high school head coaches, and it was just possible the kids were just not responding. The descision came down from the office of then superintendent of Kannapolis City Schools Dr Grier A Bradshaw that change was something that needed to happen to revive the ailing program, and the hunt was on for that next Bear Bryant to turn things around.
That hunt would end in March of 1976 as former NC State assistant under Lou Holtz, Robert Bob Boswell was offered the head coaches position at A.L. Brown High School. The fire that was needed had been discovered, but would that fire and intensity be enough to take a group of upcoming Wonders who for a better word use to the status quo out of the old way of thinking? This is something only time would tell as coach Boswell would quickly discover just how bad things had become. Facilities not up to standard, No support programs within the elementary school ranks to prepare the future athletes for high school, and most importantly no stable core of assistants to share in the burden. This was going to take some time, and for some of the kids it was going to be a "Hard Sell" to get them to buy in to what was envisioned by the new head coach. In an interview with coach Boswell about the building of the program he stated this about the 1976 season "There was much hope that things would improve that 1976 season, but there was very little expectation" "There were just too many bad habits to overcome" As I said before Rome wasn't built in a day, and it was going to take much longer than one season to get things up to standard. This season would be a season considered by many to be "A season that tried mens souls"
Change in other areas were also looming. As Boswell began revamping the pretty much non existent Strength and conditioning program at A.L. Brown High School a new look of the Wonders would soon emerge. Gone would be the old antiquated uniforms of the early to mid seventies for a stronger more identifiable modern look. This new modern look meant spending a little over $200.00 per player at that time to outfit them in the new style. Then came the coup degrace. The 1976 season would become the final scrimmage year for the old Western North Carolina High Scool Athletic Association. By mid season rumors began to fly that the association would cease operations the following year, and that it was very possible the Wonders would find themselves playing out of their comfort zone in the South Piedmont Conference and into the ranks of the 4A classification. The Wonders would then join the NCHSAA for the 1977 varsity football season where they would get a unanimous bid to play in the Central Piedmont AAAA Conference in Division-7. The Wonders still had an entire season to get through before these changes would take place, and many would never experience this shift.
This is the story of that 1976 season, and the many trials the Wonders would face that year. They say it's always darkest before the dawn, and 1976 would prove to be the darkest year ever for the Wonders, but changes were on the horizon, and Wonder nation would have to stay the course to reap the benefits that soon awaited the boys in green. It was a "Hard Sell" at first, but the benefits that would come later more than outweighed the risks taken now.
Shortly after the 1975 season concluded it had become very clear that maybe a little more fire was needed in the football program to get things headed in the right direction. A little less than two weeks after the 1975 season ended head coach Lope Linder announced publicly that he would resign his post as the Wonders head coach, and that he felt it was time for a change. Now you will get many different opinions on this, but the ultimate consensus in Wonderland was that "The job was just not getting done" I know I've spoken with many former players of this era about what style of head coach Lope Linder was and, it was in agreement that Linder was very honest and caring for his players, but wasn't what you would call the Paul Bear Bryant or Mike Ditka of high school head coaches, and it was just possible the kids were just not responding. The descision came down from the office of then superintendent of Kannapolis City Schools Dr Grier A Bradshaw that change was something that needed to happen to revive the ailing program, and the hunt was on for that next Bear Bryant to turn things around.
That hunt would end in March of 1976 as former NC State assistant under Lou Holtz, Robert Bob Boswell was offered the head coaches position at A.L. Brown High School. The fire that was needed had been discovered, but would that fire and intensity be enough to take a group of upcoming Wonders who for a better word use to the status quo out of the old way of thinking? This is something only time would tell as coach Boswell would quickly discover just how bad things had become. Facilities not up to standard, No support programs within the elementary school ranks to prepare the future athletes for high school, and most importantly no stable core of assistants to share in the burden. This was going to take some time, and for some of the kids it was going to be a "Hard Sell" to get them to buy in to what was envisioned by the new head coach. In an interview with coach Boswell about the building of the program he stated this about the 1976 season "There was much hope that things would improve that 1976 season, but there was very little expectation" "There were just too many bad habits to overcome" As I said before Rome wasn't built in a day, and it was going to take much longer than one season to get things up to standard. This season would be a season considered by many to be "A season that tried mens souls"
Change in other areas were also looming. As Boswell began revamping the pretty much non existent Strength and conditioning program at A.L. Brown High School a new look of the Wonders would soon emerge. Gone would be the old antiquated uniforms of the early to mid seventies for a stronger more identifiable modern look. This new modern look meant spending a little over $200.00 per player at that time to outfit them in the new style. Then came the coup degrace. The 1976 season would become the final scrimmage year for the old Western North Carolina High Scool Athletic Association. By mid season rumors began to fly that the association would cease operations the following year, and that it was very possible the Wonders would find themselves playing out of their comfort zone in the South Piedmont Conference and into the ranks of the 4A classification. The Wonders would then join the NCHSAA for the 1977 varsity football season where they would get a unanimous bid to play in the Central Piedmont AAAA Conference in Division-7. The Wonders still had an entire season to get through before these changes would take place, and many would never experience this shift.
This is the story of that 1976 season, and the many trials the Wonders would face that year. They say it's always darkest before the dawn, and 1976 would prove to be the darkest year ever for the Wonders, but changes were on the horizon, and Wonder nation would have to stay the course to reap the benefits that soon awaited the boys in green. It was a "Hard Sell" at first, but the benefits that would come later more than outweighed the risks taken now.
The 1976 Wonders
20th Annual Football Preview 1976
"Building Support Programs for the Future"
"Getting Acquainted With the New Head Coach"
"The New Look Wonders"
"Preseason Hype"
"A New Spirit of Optimism in K-Town"
Mackie Carden Bob Boswell Pete Stone
Kannapolis-0 Northwest Cabarrus-18
Kannapolis-0 South Rowan-5
Kannapolis-0 Statesville-21
Kannapolis-0 Lexington-9
Kannapolis-7 Albemarle-18
Kannapolis-7 Asheboro-6
"The Winds of Change"
Kannapolis-3 Salisbury-0
Kannapolis-19 Thomasville-20
"Wonder Nation Speaks Out"
Kannapolis-0 Trinity-36
Kannapolis-3 Concord-7
"Signed, Sealed, Delivered"
"Post Season Accolades"
"The 1976 A.L. Brown Wonders"
So how would one sum up a 2-8 season? For the 1976 Wonders it was a season they would just as soon forget rather than understand. Coach Boswell didn't promise everyone a rose garden when he took over in the spring of seventy six, and fans quickly realized that this may not be the smooth transition they hoped for. On the contrary it would be only the beginning of concern as they found themselves about to land head first in the lions den in the Central Piedmont AAAA the following year. The 1976 Wonders were a team looking for an indentity that would elude them for the duration of the seventy six season. Defensively the seventy six Wonders surrendered 144 points while offensively they were only able to manage 39 total points. The breaks just didn't go the Way of the Green and White and as a result the losses mounted.
Hope for the future was still very real for the upcoming Wonders. Though the future was uncertain one thing was a sure bet. The new head coach new how to win. He came from a long line of winning and was fortunate enough to have the backing he needed to get the neccessary elements in place to turn things around. Out of all the negatives one thing remained constant. The support never failed the Wonders throughout the entire season. Seats were full, and the band played louder than ever. Wonder pride stayed intact, and never waivered. The 1976 Wonders were never losers though the record didn't reflect that sentiment. Sometimes you get the bear, and sometimes the bear gets you. The bear was licking his chops in seventy six and was smelling fresh blood ahead. Things would not get any easier for the Wonders, but the seeds of a winning program were being planted during these difficult times. It is unfortunate that many of the participants on this 1976 team were unable to reap the benefits of what would come later. The 1976 Wonders found themselves in a very unpleasant time and place in Wonder football history, but no matter what the record reflects they represented the school and the town as best they could with what they had. For that they earned the respect and the right to be called Wonders.
Hope for the future was still very real for the upcoming Wonders. Though the future was uncertain one thing was a sure bet. The new head coach new how to win. He came from a long line of winning and was fortunate enough to have the backing he needed to get the neccessary elements in place to turn things around. Out of all the negatives one thing remained constant. The support never failed the Wonders throughout the entire season. Seats were full, and the band played louder than ever. Wonder pride stayed intact, and never waivered. The 1976 Wonders were never losers though the record didn't reflect that sentiment. Sometimes you get the bear, and sometimes the bear gets you. The bear was licking his chops in seventy six and was smelling fresh blood ahead. Things would not get any easier for the Wonders, but the seeds of a winning program were being planted during these difficult times. It is unfortunate that many of the participants on this 1976 team were unable to reap the benefits of what would come later. The 1976 Wonders found themselves in a very unpleasant time and place in Wonder football history, but no matter what the record reflects they represented the school and the town as best they could with what they had. For that they earned the respect and the right to be called Wonders.
Kannapolis 0 Northwest Cab 18
Kannapolis 0 South Rowan 5
Kannapolis 0 Statesville 21
Kannapolis 0 Lexington 9
Kannapolis 7 Albemarle 18
Kannapolis 7 Asheboro 6
Kannapolis 3 Salisbury 0
Kannapolis 19 Thomasville 20
Kannapolis 0 Trinity 36
Kannapolis 3 Concord 7
2-8
Kannapolis 0 South Rowan 5
Kannapolis 0 Statesville 21
Kannapolis 0 Lexington 9
Kannapolis 7 Albemarle 18
Kannapolis 7 Asheboro 6
Kannapolis 3 Salisbury 0
Kannapolis 19 Thomasville 20
Kannapolis 0 Trinity 36
Kannapolis 3 Concord 7
2-8