AuburnTigers.com
AUBURN, Ala. - Sonny Smith and Pat Dye were willing to listen when the founder of UAB’s basketball program came to Auburn in the early ‘80s to pitch an idea.
“Gene Bartow, a great coach and a great man, said, ‘We need to play this thing because we can sell out the Civic Center in Birmingham,’” Smith said.
With an eye on recruiting and revenue, Smith, Auburn’s basketball coach, and Dye, the Tigers’ football coach and athletic director, agreed.
“I was thinking to myself, ‘He (Wimp Sanderson) is dominating the state (in recruiting).