Wally Bullington
Encyclopedia
Wally "Coach Bully" Bullington is a former American football
player, coach, and sports figure from the state of Texas
. He served Abilene Christian University
in Abilene, Texas
for 39 years as football player, assistant football coach, head football coach and athletic director before he retired from the university's athletic staff in 1988, but not before leading the school to its first national championship
in 1973.
Bullington was the tenth head football coach for the Abilene Christian University Wildcats
located in Abilene, Texas
and he held that position for nine seasons, from 1968 until 1976. His coaching record at Abilene Christian was 62 wins, 32 losses, and 2 ties. As of the conclusion of the 2007 season, this ranks him second at Abilene Christian in total wins and fifth at Abilene Christian in winning percentage (.656).
The 1973 season saw his team finish with 11 wins and one loss while winning the NAIA
Division I National Championship by defeating Elon College by a score of 42-14. In 1976, his team won the San Juncito Shrine Bowl
with a victory over Southwestern Oklahoma State
by a score of 24-7.
While coaching at ACU, Bullington coached Ove Johansson
who kicked a world-record 69 yard field goal on October 16, 1976 at the homecoming game against East Texas State (now Texas A&M-Commerce).
The Lone Star Conference
inducted Bullington into its "Wall of Honor" in 1999 for his accomplishments as a player, coach, and administrator.
at Abilene Christian, a position he had previously held.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
player, coach, and sports figure from the state of Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
. He served Abilene Christian University
Abilene Christian University
Abilene Christian University is a private university located in Abilene, Texas, affiliated with Churches of Christ. ACU was founded in 1906, as Childers Classical Institute...
in Abilene, Texas
Abilene, Texas
Abilene is a city in Taylor and Jones counties in west central Texas. The population was 117,063 at the 2010 census. It is the principal city of the Abilene Metropolitan Statistical Area, which had a 2006 estimated population of 158,063. It is the county seat of Taylor County...
for 39 years as football player, assistant football coach, head football coach and athletic director before he retired from the university's athletic staff in 1988, but not before leading the school to its first national championship
NAIA national football championship
The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Football National Championship is decided by a post-season playoff system featuring the best NAIA college football teams in the United States. Under sponsorship of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics, the championship game has...
in 1973.
Playing career
As a player on the offensive line at Abilene Christian, Bullington was a four-year letterman and helped lead the Wildcats to the only perfect season in school history for the 1950 season with a record of 11-0. Bullington was named to the All-Texas Conference football team in 1950, 1951 and 1952 and was selected an All-American in 1952. He was selected to the ACU "team of the century" as both a player and coach.Coaching career
Bullington got started in coaching at Abilene High School from 1960 to 1965. While an assistant coach at Abilene High School, the Dallas Morning News named the squad the "Team of the Century" due to their 49-game winning streak.Bullington was the tenth head football coach for the Abilene Christian University Wildcats
Abilene Christian University
Abilene Christian University is a private university located in Abilene, Texas, affiliated with Churches of Christ. ACU was founded in 1906, as Childers Classical Institute...
located in Abilene, Texas
Abilene, Texas
Abilene is a city in Taylor and Jones counties in west central Texas. The population was 117,063 at the 2010 census. It is the principal city of the Abilene Metropolitan Statistical Area, which had a 2006 estimated population of 158,063. It is the county seat of Taylor County...
and he held that position for nine seasons, from 1968 until 1976. His coaching record at Abilene Christian was 62 wins, 32 losses, and 2 ties. As of the conclusion of the 2007 season, this ranks him second at Abilene Christian in total wins and fifth at Abilene Christian in winning percentage (.656).
The 1973 season saw his team finish with 11 wins and one loss while winning the NAIA
National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics
The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics is an athletic association that organizes college and university-level athletic programs. Membership in the NAIA consists of smaller colleges and universities across the United States. The NAIA allows colleges and universities outside the USA...
Division I National Championship by defeating Elon College by a score of 42-14. In 1976, his team won the San Juncito Shrine Bowl
Shrine Bowl
The Shrine Bowl was a former postseason college football bowl game. The first game was played on December 18, 1948, at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock, Arkansas between Hardin-Simmons University and Ouachita Baptist College....
with a victory over Southwestern Oklahoma State
Southwestern Oklahoma State University
Southwestern Oklahoma State University is a public university in Weatherford and Sayre, Oklahoma. It is one of seven state regional universities in the state of Oklahoma.The current president of SWOSU is Randy Beutler.-History:...
by a score of 24-7.
While coaching at ACU, Bullington coached Ove Johansson
Ove Johansson
Ove Claes Johansson, born March 31, 1948, in Gothenburg, Sweden, is a former American football placekicker and the current holder of the record for the longest field goal ever kicked during an American football game, at ....
who kicked a world-record 69 yard field goal on October 16, 1976 at the homecoming game against East Texas State (now Texas A&M-Commerce).
The Lone Star Conference
Lone Star Conference
The Lone Star Conference is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division II. Member institutions are located in the southwestern United States, with schools in Texas, Oklahoma and New Mexico...
inducted Bullington into its "Wall of Honor" in 1999 for his accomplishments as a player, coach, and administrator.
Return to athletics
In 2002, Bullington came out of retirement to serve as the interim athletic directorAthletic director
An athletic director is an administrator at many American colleges and universities, as well as in larger high schools and middle schools, who oversees the work of coaches and related staff involved in intercollegiate or interscholastic athletic programs...
at Abilene Christian, a position he had previously held.