EMCC's Buddy Stephens adds another coach of the year honor to his football coaching vita

NORTH PALM BEACH, Fla. – Head football coach Buddy Stephens of the NJCAA National Champion Lions of East Mississippi Community College has added another national honor to his coaching resume by being named the 2011 Junior College Coach of the Year by American Football Monthly, a nationally renowned football coaches' publication.

American Football Monthly, the nation's leading trade publication for football coaches, has annually selected college and high school coaches of the year since the publication's inception in 1997.  Along with EMCC's Stephens at the junior college level, other AFM Coach of the Year recipients for 2011 include: Oklahoma State's Mike Gundy (FBS); Willie Fritz of Sam Houston State (FCS); John Wristen of Colorado State-Pueblo (Division II); University of Saint Thomas' Glenn Caruso (Division III); and Ted Karras of Marian University (NAIA).

All of the 2011 AFM Coach of the Year recipients will be featured in the February issue of American Football Monthly, which will be available by Feb. 1.  Fans can purchase the issue by calling the AFM offices at 1-800-537-4271, ext. 329.

In leading the EMCC Lions to an undefeated 12-0 campaign and school-first NJCAA National Championship this past season, Stephens has previously been named the 2011 American Community College Football Coaches Association Coach of the Year.  Stephens, a native of Huntsville, Ala., will be presented the award at next week's (Jan. 10) American Football Coaches Association Coach of the Year Dinner at the 2012 AFCA Convention in San Antonio, Texas.

Additionally, for guiding the 2011 East Mississippi squad to the program's second Mississippi Association of Community and Junior Colleges/NJCAA Region 23 championship in three years, Stephens has also already collected NJCAA Region 23 as well as MACJC North Division Coach of the Year honors this season.  Stephens, who was a standout offensive lineman during his collegiate playing days at Delta State University and Pearl River Community College, has compiled a four-year head coaching record of 36-8 (.818), including a 22-2 (.917) division mark with three MACJC North Division titles, since being hired at EMCC in December 2007.

Prior to moving to the Scooba campus four years ago, Stephens spent the previous seven seasons (2001-07) serving as an assistant coach at perennial NJCAA powerhouse Pearl River Community College in Poplarville, Miss.  During Stephens' stint as offensive coordinator/offensive line coach under PRCC head coach Tim Hatten and previous head man Scott Maxfield, the Wildcats posted a seven-year composite record of 60-12 (.833), including an NJCAA National Championship in 2004 and four consecutive MACJC state titles (2003-06) which resulted in four straight NJCAA Top 5 national finishes.

American Football Monthly has helped college and high school coaches be more successful on and off the field by giving them the best offensive, defensive and special teams strategies, plays and drills – most of which continue to be provided by their coaching peers.  In addition to publishing AFM, the company also produces and markets hundreds of coaching videos while maintaining a large library of coaching articles on www.AmericanFootballMonthly.com.