From 1978-1982 Salem High School suffered from a series of losing seasons from its football program. In wanting to regain its former tradition the Salem City Council hired Willis White to rebuild the program from the ground up. This thesis investigates the history of the Salem program prior to and through the Willis White years.
The research for this thesis came from personal interviews with present and former coaches as well as members of the community. Several different newspaper companies in the Roanoke Valley contributed to the history of Spartans' games. It also comes from a collection of secondary sources that contribute to background history of the city and program.
","abstract_html":"<p>From 1978-1982 Salem High School suffered from a series of losing seasons from its football program. In wanting to regain its former tradition the Salem City Council hired Willis White to rebuild the program from the ground up. This thesis investigates the history of the Salem program prior to and through the Willis White years.</p><p>The research for this thesis came from personal interviews with present and former coaches as well as members of the community. Several different newspaper companies in the Roanoke Valley contributed to the history of Spartans' games. It also comes from a collection of secondary sources that contribute to background history of the city and program.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Sower, Derek Wayne"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"MA (Master of Arts)","degree_level":"Thesis - restricted","degree_discipline":"History","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2007,"date_issued":"2007-08-14T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2007-08-14T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:21:19Z","subjects":["High School Football","Salem High School","Virginia","Salem","Arts and Humanities","History","Social and Behavioral Sciences","Sports Studies","United States History"],"languages":[],"rights":["Copyright by the authors."],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://dc.etsu.edu/etd/2108","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Sower, Derek Wayne"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.issued","label":"Date","values":["2007-08-14T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["History"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis - restricted"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["MA (Master of Arts)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["High School Football","Salem High School","Virginia","Salem","Arts and Humanities","History","Social and Behavioral Sciences","Sports Studies","United States History"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["Copyright by the authors."]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://dc.etsu.edu/context/etd/article/3469/viewcontent/SowerD052307f.pdf","https://dc.etsu.edu/etd/2108"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["From 1978-1982 Salem High School suffered from a series of losing seasons from its football program. In wanting to regain its former tradition the Salem City Council hired Willis White to rebuild the program from the ground up. This thesis investigates the history of the Salem program prior to and through the Willis White years.
The research for this thesis came from personal interviews with present and former coaches as well as members of the community. Several different newspaper companies in the Roanoke Valley contributed to the history of Spartans' games. It also comes from a collection of secondary sources that contribute to background history of the city and program.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["The Willis White Era of Salem High School Football."]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:creator":["Sower, Derek Wayne"],"dc:date.issued":["2007-08-14T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["From 1978-1982 Salem High School suffered from a series of losing seasons from its football program. In wanting to regain its former tradition the Salem City Council hired Willis White to rebuild the program from the ground up. This thesis investigates the history of the Salem program prior to and through the Willis White years.
The research for this thesis came from personal interviews with present and former coaches as well as members of the community. Several different newspaper companies in the Roanoke Valley contributed to the history of Spartans' games. It also comes from a collection of secondary sources that contribute to background history of the city and program.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://dc.etsu.edu/context/etd/article/3469/viewcontent/SowerD052307f.pdf","https://dc.etsu.edu/etd/2108"],"dc:rights":["Copyright by the authors."],"dc:subject":["High School Football","Salem High School","Virginia","Salem","Arts and Humanities","History","Social and Behavioral Sciences","Sports Studies","United States History"],"dc:title":["The Willis White Era of Salem High School Football."],"thesis:degree_discipline":["History"],"thesis:degree_level":["Thesis - restricted"],"thesis:degree_name":["MA (Master of Arts)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:21:19Z"}