“History is not simply the study of the past; it is an explanation of the present…”* 

This quote from a recent movie came to my mind late Saturday afternoon driving home, somewhere on the backroads between Rutledge and Georgianna, and while reflecting over the phone on TROY’s historic Super Regional win with Troy Mayor Jason Reeves. I mean it when I say what just took place didn’t happen in a vacuum. It was the culmination of decades of hard work and preparation – from both the City and the University! Work that mainly goes unseen and certainly underappreciated. I live in that world too. I remind my colleagues and occasionally Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry, that the good we do today will impact the lives of people not yet even born. This weekend was a perfect example of that.

Standing in that left field mosh pit was a surreal experience, but I realized that the vast majority of those around me had a completely different perspective of just what was happening. All extremely positive but very different from our experiences. A lot of them hadn’t a clue who Chase Riddle was; or knew anything other than the beautiful campus you have created; or who the late and great Dr. John “Jackie” Carroll was; or that Troy was once just a stop on the road to the beach, an almost forgotten town.

I remember a city with very little. A downtown square full of empty buildings and a second-hand thrift store. There was a very old movie theater by the railroad tracks. Even Hwy. 231 wasn’t very much. Then, Chancellor Hawkins showed up and started moving dirt. Then Mayor Jason Reeves showed up. He went from running the ΣAE House to running City Hall. What happened over the weekend, for the whole sports world to see, was truly a remarkable site and the confluence of both leaders’ decades worth of efforts. 

I thought back to my time as a student, I remember long bus rides sitting behind Coach Riddle to places like Cleveland, Mississippi and Valdosta, Georgia. A pretty incredible experience for an undergraduate student worker like me with zero clue about life. I can remember the smell of that old Troy State bus. I remember a trailer that passed for a press box sitting atop the aluminum bleachers behind home plate. I certainly remember being called into former Athletics Director Robert Earl Stewart’s office with Coach Riddle sitting there, surprising me with my own personal 1987 National Championship ring for my work in the athletic department and my pending graduation. I have worn it every day for the last 40 years with great pride. Now that ring has new life. A new chapter to tell. A person sitting next to me at the airport in Tokyo who asks about it certainly knows about TROY baseball now.

All these moments and memories brought me to that spot on Saturday afternoon – sitting there, with no view of the playing field. Just watching everything unfold on a big screen TV with thousands of others around me. And understanding that what was happening right then, would impact people’s lives long after we are gone. The kids playing wiffle ball behind the bleachers or those in the inflatable jumpy house. That THIS moment would be something they talked about for generations but would have never happened without decades of labor by many. Coach Meade and his staff can now add to that story.

Today, Troy – the city, is the embodiment of Small Town USA. I am so proud of that place; TROY – the University, is one of the most beautiful campuses I have walked on. I am so proud of that place as well; and this baseball team, maybe this year more the any other has been a reflection of everything that is “Troy.” That Small Towns CAN Do Big Things! That a University some considered an afterthought Can Dream Big and Do the Impossible! And our sports teams, without the luxury of very much other than grit, determination and loyalty are not afraid of a fight.  

If people really want to understand our success, I wish they had this perspective. Then they would realize why our smiles are accompanied by a few tears as well. Our mission isn’t over – now or for years to come. This is only the beginning.  Geaux Trojans!!!

Bryan M. Wallace is a Troy State University graduate (’87), a Fellow of the Institute of Politics at Loyola University and currently serving as a Senior Policy Advisor to Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry. While an undergraduate, he worked with the university’s Sports Information staff that supported Coach Chase Riddle’s 1986 and 1987 national championship baseball teams; the 1984 National Championship football team; 1984 men’s golf National Championship and 1984- and 1986-women’s golf National Championships.