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BETHANY, W.Va. – Bethany College will dedicate its football field in memory of Hall of Fame football coach Don Ault before the Bison Homecoming game on Oct. 9.

Coach Don AultThe dedication ceremony, which begins at 4:10 p.m., is the culmination of Bethany’s recent upgrades to the field. The Motz Group recently installed synthetic turf on the playing surface at Bison Stadium.

Bison Stadium is the primary competition and practice facility for football, lacrosse, outdoor track and field, and occasionally the soccer programs.

Bethany College President Tamara Nichols Rodenberg and members of the Ault family will deliver remarks during the ceremony. A ribbon-cutting will follow and the ceremony will conclude with the football team entering the field for the Bison’s game against Thiel College.

The $500,000 project has been partly funded through matching donations from Psi Diamond Charitable Foundation of Beta Theta Pi, Panhandle Restoration, and alumnus Scott Brooks ’78. Click here to make your gift to the project.

The Bethany College Board of Trustees voted in September to name the field in honor of Ault.

Ault joined the Bethany in 1969 as an assistant to another Bison hall of fame coach Bob Goin. He replaced Goin as head coach four years later.

Ault lead twice led the Bison to Presidents’ Athletic Conference championships. His teams were conference runners-up three times.

His 1980 squad became the first Bethany team to advance to the NCAA III playoffs, finishing the season unbeaten and united. The Eastern Intercollegiate Football Officials Association selected Ault as its coach of the year.

He was inducted into the Bethany College Hall of Fame in 1997.

Ault was a standout player and team captain for the West Liberty Hilltoppers in 1949 and 1950, finishing both years unbeaten and compiling a record of 18-0-1.

Over his career, he also coached at Bellaire (Ohio) High School and Slippery Rock University in Pennsylvania.

ABOUT BETHANY COLLEGE

Bethany College, founded in 1840, is the oldest private college in West Virginia. The Bethany experience focuses on academic excellence in the area of liberal arts and prepares students for a lifetime of work and a life of significance.