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Already a legendary Ohio Valley high school coach before moving up to the collegiate ranks, Bob Roe added to his legend by leading the West Liberty football program to back-to-back NAIA "Final Four" appearances during a stellar 9-year run at the Hilltopper helm from 1965-73.
The Black and Gold emerged as a national power under Roe's watch during the early 1970s, winning back-to-back West Virginia Conference titles with a combined 14-1-1 league mark in 1970 and 1971.
West Liberty closed out the 1970 season on an 8-game winning streak to earn a bid to the NAIA national semifinals against Wofford (S.C.) in a game played in Greensboro, N.C. but came up just short in a 12-6 nail-biter.
Another WVIAC title in 1971 earned the Hilltoppers the right to host an NAIA semifinal at Harding Stadium in Steubenville, Ohio but eventual national champion Livingston (Ala.) muscled out a 25-2 win.
Roe retired following the 1973 campaign but his 50-25-6 overall record and 42-16-5 league marks still rank among the best all-time in nearly a century of West Liberty football.
An outstanding high school athlete at Warwood (W.Va.) High School, Roe played his college football at nearby Bethany College before embarking on a long and successful teaching and coaching career.
Roe compiled a 182-122-31 record in 34 seasons as a high school football coach at Warwood and Wheeling High Schools and was also a highly-successful track coach, leading Wheeling High to the 1946 state championship. In addition to his coaching exploits, Roe served as director of the Ohio-West Virginia All-Star Football Game from 1946-62.
A charter member of the West Liberty Hall of Fame, Roe is also enshrined in the West Virginia Sports Hall of Fame, the Ohio Valley Athletic Conference Hall of Fame, the City of Wheeling Hall of Fame, the Upper Ohio Valley Dapper Dan Hall of Fame and the Bethany College Hall of Fame.
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