Things seem to be rolling right along for Auburn's own Caribbean track and field treasure.
Assistant women's track and field coach Henry Rolle was born in the town of Freeport on Grand Bahama, where track is the most popular sport.
It was here he ran the 100-meter dash and hurdles while attending a private Catholic high school of about 400 students.
Rolle said life was fun growing up in the Bahamas, and he was quite the typical island boy.
"I ran the sprints and hurdles in high school," Rolle said. "And while I was being recruited, I looked at schools like Texas A&M, which has a larger population than my home island with a population of about 26,000."
Because it was smaller than the other schools, Rolle decided to attend Arkansas State, and he said it felt more comfortable for him there.
Multiple injuries threatened his athletic career, but after a broken ankle during a game of basketball his senior year, Rolle decided it was time to call it quits.
Despite his career ending prematurely, Rolle said he doesn't regret becoming a coach.
"Track and field always have a lesson to teach, and I am very competitive, but I never feel satisfied. That's just my nature," Rolle said.
Rolle said he tells his track and field runners, day in and day out, there has to be something that will benefit them later on in their lives.
"I start with each individual and work on their strengths, but even moreso, their weaknesses, to better build and develop them," Rolle said. "If you develop one individual at a time in the same ways that we build communities, then that makes for an even better society, which is how I see our team."
As a coach, Rolle said he views his impact and legacy as being far more meaningful and lasting than personal accomplishments of an individual athlete.
He said he just wants individual athletes to become better people compared to who they were when they began participating, regardless of the sport.
Kerron Stewart, former Auburn track and field athlete, ran the 100-meter dash and 200-meter dash for Rolle in the 2006 Track and Field National Championships, and Rolle is a great person as well as a great coach.
Stewart also said Rolle is very passionate about what he does, and anyone who comes in contact with him can sense this.
"He's been there for me when it was bad, and he's been there for me when it was good, but overall, I am honored to be under his supervision," Stewart said.
For the last fourteen years, Ralph Spry has been the head coach for Auburn's Men and Women's Track and Field team.
Spry offered Rolle a job and told him if he could prove he had the right tools for the SEC level, there might be some opportunities for him.
"He came in that first year and really worked hard, and really, you know, showed me that he could do the things I asked of him," Spry said.
So the very next year, Spry hired Rolle as a full-time staff member.
"Ever sine then, it's been a fun ride. He's a great coach and a great recruiter. He's like my right-hand man," Spry said.
Spry said Rolle has been offered other jobs multiple times in his 13 years at Auburn, but he's always wanted to stay a Tiger.
"Coach Rolle is a part of our national track and field title in 2006, and I am very fond of Coach Rolle. He's like my own son," Spry said.
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