Carson-Newman’s Clayton Receives John Lotz Barnabas Award

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. - Carson-Newman head men's basketball coach Dale Clayton was recently presented the John Lotz Barnabas Award.

The award is presented by the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Athletes in Action, the National Association of Basketball Coaches and Focus on the Family. It is named for the late John Lotz, the long-time assistant coach to legendary North Carolina head coach Dean Smith. Lotz also served as the head coach at the University of Florida before returning to North Carolina as an Assistant Athletic Director.

Barnabas was the Biblical character known as "the encourager" and Lotz gained the reputation as an encourager of coaches and student-athletes in their Christian walk. Lotz was an influence and encourager of one of the greatest basketball players of all time, former LSU great "Pistol" Pete Maravich.

The award, which was presented to coach Clayton, is given to a coach that encourages fellow coaches and student-athletes spiritually. Clayton is the third recipient of the award. The previous two winners were Homer Drew, the head coach of Valparaiso University and legendary UCLA coach John Wooden.

The award holds special meaning to Clayton. "John Lotz and I were friends. He was the one that first got me involved in the FCA back in 1978. Because this award is named after a personal friend and I understand the ministry he had, it is very special. It is also very humbling. There is a lot of accountability in this award because of the legacy John left. I am very honored to receive it."
Coach Clayton is the winningest coach in Carson-Newman history with 258 career victories. He just completed his 17th season as the head coach of the Eagles and he has led his teams to the South Atlantic Conference (SAC) title four times (1990-91, 1993-94 2001-02 and 2002-03). The Eagles participated in the NCAA Tournament in 1993-94 and 2001-02 with the 2001-02 team advancing to the NCAA Division II Sweet 16. Clayton has been named the SAC Coach of the Year twice and serves as Assistant Athletic Director at C-N in addition to his coaching duties.