VALDOSTA — Division II football doesn’t make many national headlines, but it did New Year’s Eve when former Auburn coach Terry Bowden was picked as North Alabama’s new head coach.

The hire was a huge splash for one of the premier teams in Division II and Valdosta State’s biggest rival.

“I got an e-mail from (offensive coordinator) Buster Faulkner who told me Bowden would be hired, that’s the first I heard about it,” VSU head coach David Dean said. “It brings great credibility to Gulf South Conference. It’s a great hire. He’s been successful everywhere he’s been.”

Bowden is the son of legendary Florida State coach Bobby Bowden, but he made his own name as head coach at Auburn from 1993-1998. Bowden led the Tigers to an undefeated season in his first year and was named Division I Coach of the Year for his efforts. He resigned during the 1998 season. He reportedly would have been fired at the end of the year.

Bowden hasn’t coached since. In his time away from coaching he stayed in the public eye, as he served as a college football analyst for ABC and Westwood One Radio. He also co-hosted a show on Sirius Satellite Radio, was a columnist for Yahoo! Sports and has worked as a motivational speaker.

He got the itch to coach again, and when he was in Florence, Ala., to broadcast the Division II national championship game this year he took interest in UNA’s vacant coaching spot.

Former UNA head coach Mark Hudspeth resigned from UNA on Dec. 13 after accepting the job as passing game coordinator at Mississippi State.

“From my chair, I look at it and I see some pros,” VSU athletic director Herb Reinhard said. “He’s obviously a name. We wouldn’t be having this conversation right now if he wasn’t a name. When a national name coaches at a Division II institution it’s good for all of us. On the flip side, the fact he’s been out of coaching 10 years, that’s something that has to be looked at. Does that mean he’s a risky hire? No, not in anyway. It’s something that has to be taken into consideration. I’m looking forward to (UNA) coming here.”

Dean said, “I don’t think I could stay away that long and come back. He’s stayed in touch with the game through announcing and that makes the transition easier. It’s like riding a bicycle, after a few practices and blowing the whistle a few times he’ll be right back in the groove.”

Bowden is sure add to a VSU/UNA rivalry that is already intense. The two teams have met in the regular season each year since 1982 and have also met three of the past four years in the playoffs. The winner of the past three playoff games between the two teams has gone on to win the region.

“From a Valdosta State point of view it adds another visible name to the Gulf South Conference,” Reinhard said. “The fact that North Alabama comes to VSU next year in football and (Bowden) will be on the sidelines is a good thing. It will generate additional interest in an already interesting rivalry.”

As far as recruiting goes, it remains to be seen what kind of impact Bowden’s name will have.

“The only thing is I’m sure with his connections in Tallahassee they’ll recruit there a lot more,” Dean said. “We dip into to Tallahassee with our recruiting, so now it’s going to be more of a battle. Everyone talks about the number of transfers because of his connections, but I don’t think they can get as many transfers as they have now because they’ve had a lot in the past.”

VSU will host UNA and Bowden at Bazemore Hyder Stadium in October. The Blazers won the last two meetings between the teams in Valdosta, both of which were in 2007.

We’ll look forward to it like we do every challenge,” Dean said. “Getting a chance to coach against a Bowden is exciting. He’s a good coach and has always been well prepared. It’s a great challenge, and I look forward to it. I won’t approach that game any different. I concentrate more on the players we’re going against than the coach. It’s all about schemes and personnel.”