The Waldron Bulldogs have their man. Actually they have Dale Mann.
Mann, who spent the past three seasons as an assistant at Texas High in Texarkana, said it was time for him to make the jump back to Arkansas.
“I told the athletic director in Texarkana it would take just the right thing to get me back in Arkansas,” Mann said. “When (Waldron Superintendent) Gary Wayman contacted me, there were certain things I knew in my mind I needed answered. But after one trip there you could tell this is an administration and a community that wants to win and do things the right way.”
This is the first head coaching position for the 53-year old Mann, who will also serve as the school’s athletic director. Mann was assistant head coach at Van Buren from 2008-11 and spent 16 years as defensive coordinator at Booneville prior to joining the Pointers.
“His experience and his knowledge of the game was the first thing that stands out,” Wayman said. “Being associated with successful programs his entire career, we felt like he has what it takes. This is not going to be an overnight process and at this stage in his career, he would really like to build something.”
Waldron has struggled in recent on the football field. The Bulldogs are just 9-71 over the past eight seasons.
“One of the things I have to immediately attack is just recruit the hallways,” Mann said. “We’ve got some kids that have been playing football that have turned it in for whatever reason. We have to make sure that we have everybody out there that should be wearing orange and black.”