Bobby Lamb (American football)
Robert Emory Lamb (born December 24, 1962)[1] is an American college football coach and former player. He was most recently the head football coach at Mercer University, a position he assumed in 2011 when Mercer reinstated their football program after a 72-year hiatus. The Mercer Bears football program resumed play in 2013. Lamb served as the head football coach at Furman University from 2002 until his resignation in 2010.
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | December 24, 1962 Augusta, Georgia |
| Playing career | |
| 1982–1985 | Furman |
| Position(s) | Quarterback |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 1986–2001 | Furman (assistant) |
| 2002–2010 | Furman |
| 2013–2019 | Mercer |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 108–79 |
| Tournaments | 3–4 (NCAA D-I-AA/FCS playoffs) |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| 1 SoCon (2004) | |
| Awards | |
| SoCon Coach of the Year (2004) | |
Playing career
Lamb attended Commerce High School in Commerce, Georgia, from 1978 to 1981, where he played quarterback. Along with current Furman University head football coach Clay Hendrix He led the team to the 1981 AA State Championship and was named The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's AA Back of the Year.[1]
From 1982 to 1985, Lamb played quarterback for the Furman Paladins, a Division I-AA program, where he was a two-year starter. During Lamb's playing career, the Paladins defeated three Division I-A teams: South Carolina (1982), Georgia Tech (1983), and NC State (1984 and 1985). In 1985, Lamb helped lead the Paladins to the Southern Conference championship, and he was named Southern Conference Player of the Year.[1] The Paladins suffered a two-point loss to Georgia Southern in the 1985 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game, with Lamb throwing for one touchdown and rushing for another.[2]
Coaching career
Lamb began coaching as an assistant for the Paladins in 1986 and was the defensive ends coach on the 1988 team that won the NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship. He became the quarterbacks coach in 1989, a position filled until taking over head coaching duties in 2002. In November 2010, he announced his resignation from Furman after the team had missed the playoffs four straight years.
On January 20, 2011, Lamb was announced be the first modern head football coach for Mercer University, which began playing football in 2013 after the sport's 70-year absence from campus.
On November 24, 2019, Lamb was terminated as Mercer's football coach after the team went 4–8 that season, including 3–5 in the Southern Conference. He finished with an overall record of 41–39 after seven seasons.[3][4]
Personal
Lamb has a brother, Hal, who is the head football coach and athletic director at Calhoun High School in Calhoun, Georgia. Lamb is active in bringing about public awareness of shoulder Cleidocranial dysplasia. Lamb's son Taylor was quarterback for the Appalachian State Mountaineers from 2014 to 2017 and is QB Coach at Gardner-Webb University.
Head coaching record
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | TSN# | USA/ESPN° | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Furman Paladins (Southern Conference) (2002–2010) | |||||||||
| 2002 | Furman | 8–4 | 6–2 | 2nd | L NCAA Division I-AA First Round | 9 | 9 | ||
| 2003 | Furman | 6–5 | 4–4 | 4th | |||||
| 2004 | Furman | 10–3 | 6–1 | T–1st | L NCAA Division I-AA Quarterfinal | 5 | 5 | ||
| 2005 | Furman | 11–3 | 5–2 | T–2nd | L NCAA Division I-AA Semifinal | 3 | 3 | ||
| 2006 | Furman | 8–4 | 6–1 | 2nd | L NCAA Division I First Round | 12 | |||
| 2007 | Furman | 6–5 | 4–3 | T–3rd | |||||
| 2008 | Furman | 7–5 | 4–4 | 3rd | |||||
| 2009 | Furman | 6–5 | 5–3 | 3rd | |||||
| 2010 | Furman | 5–6 | 3–5 | 6th | |||||
| Furman: | 67–40 | 43–25 | |||||||
| Mercer Bears (Pioneer Football League) (2013) | |||||||||
| 2013 | Mercer | 10–2 | 6–2 | 3rd | |||||
| Mercer Bears (Southern Conference) (2014–2019) | |||||||||
| 2014 | Mercer | 6–6 | 1–6 | T–7th | |||||
| 2015 | Mercer | 5–6 | 2–5 | T–6th | |||||
| 2016 | Mercer | 6–5 | 4–4 | 5th | |||||
| 2017 | Mercer | 5–6 | 4–4 | 5th | |||||
| 2018 | Mercer | 5–6 | 4–4 | T–5th | |||||
| 2019 | Mercer | 4–8 | 3–5 | 7th | |||||
| Mercer: | 41–39 | 24–30 | |||||||
| Total: | 108–79 | ||||||||
| National championship Conference title Conference division title or championship game berth | |||||||||
References
- Hunter Reid. 2008 Furman Football Media Guide (PDF). Furman Athletics. pp. 47–48.
- "NCAA Official Scoring Summary" (PDF). December 21, 1985. Retrieved May 3, 2019 – via Amazon Web Services.
- Braxton, Avery (24 November 2019). "Mercer parts ways with head football coach Bobby Lamb". www.13wmaz.com. Macon, GA: WMAZ. Retrieved 5 April 2020.
Lamb brought the football program back from a 72-year hiatus and had a 40–39 record as head coach.
- Sanders, Jace (24 November 2019). "Mercer Athletics and Bobby Lamb Part Ways". www.mercerbears.com. Mercer University Athletics. Retrieved 5 April 2020.