Upon setting foot in Trinity, it is evident that there is great success in athletics. The credit most times goes to the athletes who work hard year around in their respective sports, but that is not to say credit is also deserved elsewhere.

When preparing your body for the field, the two essentials are strength and conditioning. At Trinity those two areas are taken very seriously, and that is due to an extremely dedicated coach. Coach Bob Maddox takes his job very seriously, which is a key to the success of Trinity’s athletics.

Coach Bob Maddox was born in Frederick, Md., in 1949. There he attended Governor Thomas Johnson High School, where he played football, basketball and track and field.

After high school Maddox attended Frostburg State College. There he continued his athletic career, participating in football, basketball, track, lacrosse and rugby. He was fortunate and successful enough on the football field to continue into the National Football League.

Maddox had a six-year career in the pros with the Kansas City Chiefs and the Cincinnati Bengals as a defensive lineman. His greatest accomplishment in the NFL was with the Cincinnati Bengals when he blocked a punt and scooped it up for a touchdown. Ironically, it was against his former team, the Kansas City Chiefs.

"If I could go back and play again I wouldn’t," Maddox said. "All the pains and aches I feel today are a result of the NFL."

Following his NFL career, Maddox began coaching the defensive line and special teams at the University of Miami. He accepted the same role at the University of Louisville and the University of Tennessee. "My career has been like a revolving door with God," Maddox said. "When he has stopped it, I have gotten off, and when he wants me to start something new, I get back on."

Most students that encounter Maddox, find him to be tough on them. Many come to find out that he is only tough on them to make them better and to teach life lessons.

"Coach Maddox is really tough on us, but he is only trying to make us the best we can be," Trinity junior Alex Cartwright said. When the season comes to an end, the athletes are thankful for what he does for them.

"He is a really good coach," junior Shane Neal said. "Most people don’t like him during the season, but once you’re finished you appreciate someone like Coach Maddox."