March 29, 20179 yr Had Prostate Cancer and was asked "What's your legacy? What do you want people to know about you the most?" Sparks responded, "That I was faithful to the Lord, that's all that matters." Sparks announced his retirement from Carson-Newman on November 14, 2016. He finished his Carson-Newman career after completing 37 seasons, 338 wins, 99 losses, and two ties. He had been with Carson-Newman since the 1980s. He had a career winning percentage of .7699, the fourth highest in college football history while the 338 victories are the fifth best nationally. Under his guidance, the Eagles won five NAIA National Titles and played for it six times. The team played for the D-II National Title three times and were a semifinalist in 2009. Sparks recorded 21 South Atlantic Conference Championships and 25 NCAA or NAIA playoff appearances. He was inducted into the inaugural NCAA Division II Hall of Fame Coaches Class in 2010 and was a member of the South Atlantic Conference Hall of Fame, the Knoxville Sports Hall of Fame, the Carson-Newman Athletic Hall of Fame, the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame and the NAIA Hall of Fame. Legendary Carson-Newman coach Ken Sparks passes away
March 30, 20179 yr Excellent stuff! Thanks for sharing this information. Coaches like Coach Sparks no longer exist! I am glad to have read about him.
March 30, 20179 yr Author He battled to the end and won his greatest victory in the end. He was a class act.
April 3, 20179 yr What a great quote. Powerful stuff. That is just really awesome. Thanks for posting, it got me to thinking a bit.
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