It was 1988 at Clinch Valley College and Chancellor Jim Knight was in search of a way to boost enrollment and give the students a reason to come to campus on the weekends. At the time, Clinch Valley was primarily a commuter campus with most of its students coming from nearby Southwest Virginia. Knight along with others developed the idea of starting a football program in hopes of increasing enrollment and support of the College.
Once raising $250,000 to start the program, the Highland Cavaliers needed a place to play. Then director of athletics Carroll Dale worked out an agreement with local high schools to use their facilities for games on Saturday afternoons. Clinch Valley played games throughout Southwest Virginia, playing contests in Wise, Russell, Lee, Scott, Dickenson and Tazewell Counties.
In need of a coach, the school advertised the position and received applicants from across the country. A local citizen, Randy Ramseyer saw the position advertised and alerted his father, Bill. Randy was living in Abingdon doing legal work and reached out to his father who at the time was the head coach at Wilmington College in Ohio.
After having success at Wilmington, Ramseyer was looking for a new challenge and applied for the position. After receiving an interview, it was clear to Dale and others that he was the right man for the job.
"Bill wanted a new challenge and when Paul Brown (Pro Football Hall of Fame member) and Dan Devine (College Football Hall of Fame member) call to give a reference, you listen." Dale said when recalling the process of hiring the school's first coach.
Ramseyer left Wilmington leaving behind friend and assistant coach, Bruce Wasem. The two would reunite not long after.
"When Bill left, I was just teaching at Wilmington", Wasem stated. "Bill called and said I need you down here tomorrow for an interview. The interview went well and the next thing you know I was at Clinch Valley College."
Serving as the school's only two full-time coaches, Ramseyer and Wasem solicited part-time help from local residents along with Dale, who played collegiate and professional football prior to coming to the College.
In 1991, the team played an eight-game schedule in its first season. In its inaugural game, Clinch Valley played host to Tusculum College who was restarting its program after a four decade absence.
Playing at Carroll Dale Stadium at J.J. Kelly H.S. in Wise, more than 8,000 fans turned out for the program's first game.
With starting quarterback David Nara out of the lineup after suffering an injury in practice, Clinch Valley and Tusculum locked up in a defensive struggle. Leading 13-8 late in the game, the Cavaliers found themselves with their backs against the goal line in the final moments.
The Pioneers had the ball first and goal with less than 90 seconds to play in the game. After moving inside the five-yard line on first down, Tusculum would be unable to move the ball on the next two plays. Wasem, serving as defensive coordinator at the time then called timeout to set up his defense for the game's final play.
"Matt Hamilton was playing linebacker for us and I told the guys that Tusculum was going to pass", stated Wasem. "Hamilton said I hope they throw it in my area and as luck would have it they did. He knocked the ball down, we won the game and it set the tone for our defense."
The Cavs would win two games in their first season, as the team collected a 23-21 victory over Thiel College. A year later, Clinch Valley posted three wins and moved toward the '93 season with hopes of posting its first winning season.
The Cavs did just that as a 2-1 start to the year included the school's first ever road win, a 28-25 triumph at Hampden-Sydney College. Clinch Valley claimed six wins that season to go over .500 in just the program's third year of existence.
A consecutive 6-4 campaign in '94 set the stage for the most successful two-year run in program history beginning in '95.
The Cavs started the season 8-0 before posting a 10-1 regular season mark in earning a berth in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) playoffs. Clinch Valley lost its opening round playoff game at Lambuth but the program had far exceeded expectations in its first five seasons.
A year later, Clinch Valley made history by becoming the quickest program in NAIA history to go undefeated in the regular season. Ramseyer's squad outscored opponents by 19.7 points per game during the regular season. The last eight regular seasons wins all came by double figures as players such as Kent Grant, Rod Burnette and Shane Kilgore anchored a defense that limited opponents to 12.1 points per contest. On offense, the Cavs used a strong offensive line and the running ability of Greg Thomas to carve up opponents. Thomas gained 1,438 yards on the ground in '96.
The '96 team also went to the playoffs marking the only time in program history the team has made consecutive playoff appearances.
Ramseyer credited the team's positive thinking to having so much success in the program's infancy.
"Everything we did was positive", said the UVa-Wise Hall of Fame Coach. "We had to be positive, we had no stadium and no scholarships. If we ever had a player say no, I told them their head could only go up-and-down it was never to go side-to-side."
Using local talent to comprise the bulk of the roster during the early years. Ramseyer ventured to the state of Florida in search of skill position players.
"At the time there were only five colleges in Florida that played football", said Ramseyer about the talent rich state. "I looked at every kid on tape and if it was a kid from Florida, I wanted him to be an impact player. I didn't want a kid that far away from home sitting on the bench, it had to be somebody we felt could be a real asset not only athletically but to the College as well."
The formula worked for the coach who guided the program for 11 seasons, compiling a 62-42 record at the helm. One of Ramseyer's fondest memories came in '99 when the Cavaliers played host to West Virginia Tech at Carl Smith Stadium in the program's first ever on-campus contest.
Ramseyer guided the building of the facility one piece at a time. The coach believed turf was essential after experiencing numerous rainy seasons throughout his tenure at the school. After carving the playing surface out, turf was laid and games began without bleachers or any seating for spectators.
"Carl Smith told me he would not have given as much as he gave had we not achieved the record we had", Ramseyer mentioned when discussing the construction of the stadium. "It's as fine of small college facility as there is in the nation."
With a precedent of performing well in program firsts already established, playing its first game as UVa-Wise and at Smith Stadium, the Cavs rolled to a 49-19 victory over the Golden Bears.
As time progressed upgrades continued at Smith Stadium, including bleachers, lights and a press box.
Following a 6-4 campaign in 2001, Ramseyer retired leaving the school in search of a coach for the first time since starting the program.
After much urging from officials at the College, Wasem agreed to become the head coach in the spring of '02.
That fall, UVa-Wise would embark on a new era as the team played its first season as members of the highly competitive Mid-South Conference. After dropping the first two games of the season, Pikeville College visited Wise in week three. The game turned out to be another milestone for the program.
The Cavs outlasted the Bears 33-30 giving not only Wasem his first win as a head coach but also the school's first ever Mid-South Conference victory.
Ramseyer's fifth season proved to be the season that saw his team turn the corner.
After having not won more than six games since the playoff team in '96, Wasem guided the Cavs to an 8-3 record in '06. The coach credited the College's willingness to hire a third full-time coach and the commitment of his entire staff for the success.
"We had Denny (Compston) and then we were able to get Dewey (Lusk) to become the third full-time coach and that was a big help", said Wasem on the program's growth. "We went 5-6 in '05 but we knew moving forward we had a chance to be pretty good."
Wasem's Cavs followed their 8-3 season with a 9-2 record in '07 and a share of the Mid-South East Championship. Led by the most prolific offense in school history, UVa-Wise averaged 49.5 points per game and scored no fewer than 35 points in any contest. Quarterback Randy Hippeared passed for over 314 yards a game while tailback Ra'Shad Morgan gained 1,485 yards that season. Morgan earned the Dudley Award which is given annually to Virginia's top small college collegiate football player for his impressive year.
A season later, UVa-Wise won eight games to cap the only stretch in school history in which the team won at least eight games in three consecutive years. Wasem remained the team's coach through the conclusion of the '10 season winning 33 games over his last five years.
Lusk followed in Wasem's footsteps as he made the jump from assistant coach to head coach in '11. Lusk's first season marked the end of an on and off rivalry when his UVa-Wise club squared off with his alma mater Emory and Henry.
The Cavs found themselves down by three points late in the game without the football. With just seconds remaining, the Wasps had the football in a fourth and long situation. Emory and Henry elected to punt and what followed was a storybook ending.
Marcus Bratton fielded the punt and raced up field only to be tripped up shortly after crossing the 50-yard line. However, the athletic return man had the presence of mind and ability to pitch the ball to a teammate who went untouched into the end zone giving UVa-Wise a 33-30 victory.
Fans rushed the field at Smith Stadium and "The Play" earned College Football Play of the Year honors by CBS Sports while also appearing on ESPN and numerous other local and national media outlets.
The team played in the Mid-South until the conclusion of the 2012 season when the school made the jump to compete in NCAA Division II's newest conference, the Mountain East Conference (MEC).
In the midst of a three-year transition process to NCAA Division II, UVa-Wise has spent the last two seasons playing in the league while not eligible for postseason competition. Despite being unable to compete in postseason play, the program has continued to make strides.
The Cavs picked up a pair of MEC wins in 2013, finishing the season 2-2 at home in league competition. Last season, the team used its ability to count as a NCAA Division II opponent to play NCAA Division I FCS member Wofford.
As the school plays its 25th season of football the growth of the program is evident to the man who was directly involved with the team the longest.
"The school has made a commitment to football and they hired the right person to be the first head coach", Wasem said when evaluating the growth of the program. "Bill helped change the mindset of any of the doubters on campus or in the community. Recently, a professor told me football was the best thing that ever happened to our campus. It allowed people throughout the state to see our campus and allowed us to increase our recruitment and diversity in a way that would not have been possible without football."
Today, the team competes on a field that recently had AstroTurf 3D installed and in a stadium complete with lights, scoreboards in both end zones, along with a field house and weight room that is used by not only the football program but all 13 sports offered by the College.
The program will come full circle on Sept. 5 when Tusculum visits Smith Stadium for the school's first NCAA Division II game.
