Former Bob Jones Coach Rauls Named To Two Halls Of Fame
MADISON- Since beginning to play baseball at age nine for recreational leagues in his hometown of Albany, GA., Al Rauls has always faced the tests of his willpower with vigor and confidence. “I love challenges,” said Rauls upon his learning of his induction to both the Huntsville-Madison County Athletic Hall of Fame an Alabama High School Sports Hall of Fame. The 62-year old Rauls will be enshrined in both in both organizations in 2018.
“I served on the AHSAA board several years and saw others inducted and I never thought I would be one of those chosen and I was speechless when I learned of the announcement,” said Rauls. “Being inducted in the local Hall of Fame is an outstanding honor and I’m tickled to death to be there with so many others.”
Rauls was quick to point out he never toots his own horn about his accomplishments. He doesn’t have to. His record as a coach in Alabama is one of the most remarkable in the history of high school athletics. He is the only coach in AHSAA history to win state titles in both baseball and softball. His squad at New Hope in 1992 won the baseball championship while last spring at Buckhorn his softball team took the Class 7A title. He has posted nearly 750 victories as a head coach in both high school and American League organizations.
Besides his stops at both New Hope and Buckhorn, Rauls also coached at Sparkman and Butler High Schools and from 2002-2005 was the head baseball coach for Bob Jones. He retired from teaching last summer, but will continue as head softball coach at Buckhorn this spring.
“I feel I’m just a regular guy who loves athletics and young people,” said Rauls. “I’m a strong-willed individual who loves teaching. I thank all of the administrations who gave me opportunities to help others.”
Despite his claims of being just an average athlete, Rauls earned a four-year athletic scholarship for baseball at Florida A&M. He was named the team’s Most Valuable Player and one of his teammates was Andre Dawson who is a 2010 inductee into the Baseball Hall of Fame. Upon his completing his college education with a degree in Health, Physical Education and Recreation, he followed his father to Huntsville and in 1977 took a job with the recreational department in the small town of Triana located near the Tennessee River south of Madison.
“I coordinated our programs with those of Madison and in 1982 became the program director with the Madison Recreation Department,” said Rauls. “I also assisted at Bob Jones as a football and baseball coach. I was the head coach of the Alabama A&M University baseball team from 1981-1984 before taking a permanent teaching and coaching position at New Hope High in 1988.”
Rauls said he thanks Bobby Jackson who gave him his first chance at coaching at Bob Jones and Obie Childers for giving him the chance to coach football at New Hope.
Rauls and his wife, Donna, have a daughter, Shonda, who is a biochemist. He won the AHSAA “Making A Difference” Award in 2017 for his many years of teaching student-athletes.
For several years, Rauls officiated basketball in North Alabama, but coaching was always his first love. Making the transition from baseball to softball was not as easy as most people would think. The games are different in a lot of ways, but it was his coaching style that he had to revamp to make the transition not only smooth, but successful.
“I was a hard-nosed, loud and aggressive coach that believes in strong discipline, but I soon knew I had to change my tactics as girls need to be coached differently than boys,” admitted Rauls. “I spoke to some of my female coaching friends about my changes. I softened by voice as not to make it sound as aggressive.”
Rauls spoke of his first day on the job as a coach of girls’ softball and said, “I gave the girls a motivational speech in the team dugout and some of the girls began to cry. The next day, the same girls who cried were happy and accepted me right away. It was certainly a learning transition to softball. I coach them strongly, but they have learned I really care about them.”
His athletes and teams have won numerous honors through the years and Rauls, himself, has been awarded a bevy of accolades for his coaching. His gives much of the credit for his success to Donna who has assisted him in countless ways through the years. He added, “I accept these awards for her, too. I still look forward to another season of coaching any challenges that I’m faced with.”
