Player Management International Media Release
Hoover, AL (April 25, 2007) – As one of NASCAR’s best restrictor-plate racers heads to the high banks of Talladega Superspeedway, he will be accompanied by one of high school football’s best coaching staffs…. and biggest television stars.
Mike Wallace will head to Talladega this weekend in hopes of repeating his success at Daytona, but he will do it with the Hoover High School football coaching staff in tow. Head coach, Rush Propst, wide receivers coach, Shawn Sutton, along with defensive coaches, Chris Davis, Kevin Sherrer, and Tony Pugh will be on hand to cheer Wallace on for both the NASCAR Busch Series race on Saturday in the #7 GEICO Chevrolet and the Nextel Cup race on Sunday in the #09 Miccosukee Chevrolet, all fielded by Phoenix Racing. The coaches will be introduced at the Busch Series driver meeting on Saturday morning.
The two would seem to be a perfect pair, as Wallace participates in the largest spectator sport in America, while Hoover High School’s reality show on MTV, ‘Two-A-Days’, was seen by 64 million viewers in its first season alone.
MTV’s ‘Two-A-Days’ is a reality show that profiles the nation’s top high school football program, Hoover High School, in Hoover, Alabama. The television viewing audience is exposed to the inner workings and nuances associated with both playing and coaching in America’s premier high school football program.
Hoover High School has enjoyed five state championships since 2000, including four in a row. They have experienced a consistent national ranking in the USA Today Top 25 poll and beat opponents by an average of 27 points. More impressive, 61% of Hoover starters have earned scholarships to Division I or Division II schools since 2001. Even two non-starters received Division I scholarships.
Head coach, Rush Propst, considered to be an Alabama legend, is one of the main focuses of the television show. He is colorful, full of energy and passionate about his job. Since his arrival at Hoover in 1999, Propst has 105 wins with only 10 losses.
“This is an exciting opportunity for us to be able to go down there and be a part of the races this weekend,” Propst said. “We're glad that Mike extended the invitation to us and we are looking forward to seeing him run up front. Mike Wallace is one of the best at restrictor-plate racing and we're looking forward to being a part of his team this weekend.”
He continued, “When it comes to teamwork, football is a lot like racing. You have so many people working to get the same result and if one person slips up it affects the entire team. In both sports, all fans see is the finished result. They're seeing the football team play on Friday night or they're seeing Mike’s team race on the weekend, but they don't get to see the hard work that everyone puts in to get to that point. We have a great coaching staff here at Hoover and they work extremely hard to help us be as successful as we are, just the same as Mike’s team does for him.”
Wallace is widely known as a restrictor-plate specialist and he is looking forward to the Hoover coaches being at the track with him this weekend.
“These guys have had a tremendous amount of success in the football world and it’s great to have people like that around,” Wallace said. “The team is excited about them coming and we are looking forward to their positive energy. I've asked Coach Propst to give us a pre-race talk, so hopefully he'll take me up on that.”
Wallace has experienced considerable success on restrictor-plate tracks.
In October 2006, Wallace was running 2nd in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at Talladega Superspeedway and he was preparing to head to Victory Lane when Mike Skinner sent Wallace’s GEICO truck careening into the outside wall a half a lap from the finish line on the final lap.
At Daytona International Speedway, the other of two restrictor-plate races on the NASCAR circuit, Wallace handed GEICO and Sport Clips their first NASCAR Busch Series victories on July 2, 2004, after passing Dale Earnhardt, Jr. coming out of Turn 4 on the final lap.
At Daytona in February 2007, Wallace ran as high as 2nd before running out of gas on the final lap in the NASCAR Busch Series race. He would however change his fortune as he turned around on Sunday and recorded a 4th place finish in the Daytona 500.
On Saturday, April 28th, the Aaron’s 312 NASCAR Busch Series race will be televised live on ABC with coverage beginning at 2:30 PM (ET) and green flag action coming at 3:00 PM (ET). Motor Racing Network (MRN) will carry the live radio broadcast.
On Sunday, April 29th, the Aaron’s 499 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series race will be televised live on FOX with coverage beginning at 1:30 PM (ET) and green flag action coming at 2:00 PM (ET). Motor Racing Network (MRN) will carry the live radio broadcast.