Counting down Southwest Georgia’s Top 10 sports stories of 2014 — No. 2: Albany State’s White retires, then takes job at Benedict

EDITOR’S NOTE: The Herald’s sports staff has chosen Southwest Georgia’s Top 10 sports stories from 2014. Today marks the ninth of the 10 we’ve picked as having a significant influence as we count down to No. 1, which will appear in the Jan. 1 edition.

ALBANY — It came as a surprise to many when longtime Albany State University head football coach Mike White announced his retirement nearly two weeks ago.

Then he took a similar position at fellow SIAC school Benedict College a day later.

For the first time in 15 seasons, the Rams will have a new football coach on the sidelines during spring practice and in games next fall. That means that after 31 seasons at Albany State – as an assistant and a head coach – White won’t be around anymore.

Nobody – not even many of Albany State’s alumni – saw this one coming.

White left an established program he helped put on the NCAA Division II map for a rebuilding project in Columbia, S.C.

In his 15 years as head coach, White’s teams won five SIAC championships, the most recent coming in 2013. The 2010 Rams won the SBN National Black College Football Championship, as well as the Washington, D.C. Pigskin Club’s National Black College crown.

His teams also made the national playoffs seven times, including a pair of third-round appearances in 2004 and ’10.

He helped the Rams compile a 68.7 winning percentage, going 112-51. That includes a stellar 87-24 run in the SIAC.

White said he’s intent on helping Benedict reach the top.

“The first time I spoke with (Benedict President Dr. David Swinton), I wasn’t aware of the football team’s record, but that’s gonna change,” White told the Herald. “I’m just looking forward to getting it going. I know I can compete in this conference, and I think we can get some great guys in here. I don’t see it as a daunting task at all. I see it as a great challenge and I look forward to it.”