Wallace State track and field coach Stan Narewski has resigned, saying it was the right time to move on.

Narewski, the Lions’ coach for the past 12 years, has accepted a position in the administration of the University of West Alabama, where Narewski graduated in 1971.

“It was time to do it, time to move on,” said Narewski by phone interview. “There were some changes and adjustments and what not . . . And West Alabama came on the scene and asked me if I’d consider returning to help the university.”

Narewski will serve as the university’s executive director of planned gifts, a position he called “attractive.”

“It’s really attractive on a number of levels,” he said. “For one thing, I’ll remain in the retirement system, and at my age, I don’t need to be doing anything else.

“West Alabama has been so good to me over the years.”

According to Narewski, the Wallace State job will be his last as a track and field coach.

“I have retired from coaching,” he said. “I’m through coaching. It’s been a tremendous time over the last 30 years.

In his 30 years of coaching, Narewski has had stints at also coached at Auburn, Kansas, Furman, Clemson, Murray State and Florida.

He was the NCAA Coach of Year 1984 and is a three-time National Junior College Coach of the Year. In 1992 and 1996, Narewski coached the United States Paralympic team.

During his tenure at Wallace, the Birmingham-area native won one NJCAA national championship. His teams also collected two national runners-up and one third-place trophy.

“I’d have to say we’re the most productive team (Wallace) has had up there the last 12 years,” said Narewski. “I feel real good about that, and I know Wallace does too.”

Narewski said his favorite team was the 1997 squad that took the NJCAA title.

“I think the team we won the national title with in 97 was special,” he said. “We won a national championship with about 11 or 12 guys. Everybody pulled their weight and then some.”

As a coach, Narewski said he was most proud of shaping the lives of young men — many of whom called him recently before he announced his resignation.

“We’ve seen a lot of kids get better athletically get better academically. We’ve had a ton of kids keep running track somewhere else, and that’s huge,” Narewski said. “It’s been fun when you go out there and bump into these guys.”