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Robby Wells

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For other persons of like name, see Robert Wells (disambiguation).

Robby Wells
Biographical details
Born (1968-04-10) April 10, 1968 (age 56)
Bartow, Georgia
Playing career
1986–1990Furman
Position(s)Fullback
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
2008–2009Savannah State
Head coaching record
Overall7–15

Robert "Robby" Wells (born April 10, 1968) is an American politician and former college football coach and player. He was the head football coach at Savannah State University in Savannah, Georgia for the 2008 and 2009 seasons.[1]

Wells unsuccessfully sought the Constitution Party's nomination for President of the United States in the 2012 presidential election.[2][3][4] He is running as an independent in the 2016 presidential election.

College football career

Wells played football at Furman University, playing fullback and wide receiver. He was a member of the 1988 NCAA Division I-AA national championship team.[5]

Coaching career

Wells coached football from 1990–2010. He began his career as an assistant coach at Greer (S.C.) High School (1990–1995). He served as head coach at C.E. Murray High School Greeleyville, SC (1995–1997).[5][6]

He moved to the University of South Carolina as a graduate assistant for four seasons. Wells worked with the defensive backs (1998-1999) and middle linebackers (2000). Wells was fired by Head Football Coach Lou Holtz for meeting with Clemson Assistant Coach Brad Scott. It was alleged that Wells shared the Gamecock playbook with Scott.[7] Wells moved on to become the defensive coordinator at South Carolina State University in 2002.[5] As the Bulldog's defensive coordinator (2002–2005) Wells' defense attained numerous national rankings and a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference championship (2004).[5]

In 2006, Wells was hired as the General Manager for the Augusta Spartans Arena Football Team where his duties included coaching, player personnel decisions, player development, team travel, fund raising and media relations.[5]

Wells' final position before joining Savannah State was as the defensive coordinator and football marketing director for one season at Benedict College in Columbia, South Carolina.[5]

Savannah State

Wells was hired as head football coach on December 22, 2007 (2007-12-22). In his first season as head coach, the team saw as many victories as the previous four seasons combined. Wells resigned his position on January 28, 2010 citing personal reasons. He subsequently filed a lawsuit against SSU for reverse discrimination, alleging that his resignation as head coach was forced.[8] The lawsuit was settled in November 2011.[9][10]

Head coaching record

Year Team Overall Conference Standing Bowl/playoffs
Savannah State Tigers (NCAA Division I FCS independent) (2008–2009)
2008 Savannah State 5–7
2009 Savannah State 2–8
Savannah State: 7–15
Total: 7–15

2012 presidential candidacy

On November 21, 2011, Wells announced his candidacy for President of the United States in the 2012 general election.[2][11] He initially stated that he would run as an independent, saying "Our party system is broken. We need a third option".[2] In December, he became a candidate for the presidential nomination of the Reform Party.[12] In January 2012, Wells withdrew his bid for the Reform Party nomination and announced that he would instead seek the presidential nomination of the Constitution Party.[3][13] At the Constitution Party National Convention, Wells received 58 of 402 votes (14.39%) for the party's presidential nomination, which was won on the first ballot by former U.S. Congressman Virgil Goode.[4]

2016 presidential candidacy

Wells announced on November 3, 2012 that he would run for President of the United States again in 2016 as an independent candidate.[14] On July 17, 2013, he held a conference call to address a variety of accusations by his former campaign managers.[15]

On September 24, 2013, Wells announced that he would discontinue campaigning as an independent candidate and would instead seek the presidential nomination of the Democratic Party.[16][17] On March 9, 2016, a press release on Wells' website claimed that Wells is no longer running as a Democrat, but as an independent once again.[18]

Personal life

Wells holds both a master's degree in adult education from the University of South Carolina (2000) and a Bachelor's degree in health and physical education from Furman University (1990).[5]

References

  1. ^ "Savannah State University 2009 Media Guide" (PDF). Savannah State University. Retrieved December 4, 2009.
  2. ^ a b c Peterson, Larry (November 21, 2011). "Robby Wells settles SSU lawsuit, says he's running for president". Savannah Morning News. Retrieved November 22, 2011.
  3. ^ a b Hassanali, Zoheb (January 17, 2012). "Former football coach running for presidency". WACH. Retrieved January 17, 2012.
  4. ^ a b Retting, Arielle (April 22, 2012). "Constitution Party to run Virgil Goode for president". The Roanoke Times. Retrieved April 22, 2012.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g "Savannah State University Football: Robert "Robby" Wells". Retrieved December 26, 2007.
  6. ^ "SSU football starts 'new era'". December 24, 2007. Retrieved December 26, 2007.
  7. ^ Thalji, Jamal (December 28, 2000). "USC fires assistant after talk with rival". St Petersburg Times.
  8. ^ "Wells resigns as SSU head football coach". SSUAthletics.com. Savannah State University. January 28, 2010. Retrieved January 28, 2010.
  9. ^ Jones, Walter (November 18, 2011). "Coach's lawsuit against SSU settled". Savannah Morning News. Retrieved November 24, 2011.
  10. ^ Heath, Donald (November 30, 2011). "Robby Wells receives $240,000 in settlement with SSU". Savannah Morning News. Retrieved December 3, 2013.
  11. ^ "Charlotte man plans to run for President in 2012". WSOC-TV. November 19, 2011. Retrieved November 22, 2011.
  12. ^ "3rd Party Presidential Candidate Robby Wells visits FOX 35". FOX 35 (Orlando). January 3, 2012. Retrieved January 6, 2012.
  13. ^ "Robby Wells drops Reform Party bid to run for Constitution Party nom". Independent Political Report. January 16, 2012. Retrieved January 16, 2012.
  14. ^ "Robby Carr Wells Announces Presidential Bid For 2016 @ Music City Liberty Festival". November 4, 2012.
  15. ^ Robby Wells Addresses Accusations, Claims He Has Virgil Goode’s Endorsement for 2016, Independent Political Report, 7/21/13
  16. ^ Robby Wells To Seek Democratic Nomination For President In 2016, Independent Political Report, 9/24/13
  17. ^ 2016 already here for fringe hopefuls, Patrick Gavin, Politico, 11/29/13
  18. ^ "Press Release 03-09-16". robbywells2016.com. Retrieved March 17, 2016.
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