As of Tuesday December 2nd The University of Alabama, Birmingham no longer has a football program.The school confirmed its decision to drop the sport (alongside bowling and rifle) from its athletic program, a move that will come into effect at the end of the current school year.

End of an era

The Blazers' football program was losing money fast and as such the school president took the decision to pull the plug on a team that has been going since 1991.

It is safe to say his decision has proved immensely unpopular with those close to the program. And now a video has emerged showing the exact moment UAB players discovered the fate of their football program in an emotionally charged meeting with school president Ray Watts.

Seeing the raw emotion expressed by those players who have spent the past few years devoting themselves to the program is truly heartbreaking stuff.

Fans of any team can surely sympathise with those involved. With the team coming off the back of its most successful season in recent years - achieving bowl game eligibility for only the second time in school history - the players had every right to fight their corner even if the balance sheets weren't adding up.

Tough to hear

Several players voice their strong opinions in the tense meeting but it is Tristan Henderson, a tight end and former military policeman who served in Iraq, whose comments are the most heartbreaking.

Toward he end of the video you can hear him challenge Watts and his "big ass house", condemning the UAB president for his lack of consideration for others while asking him "what am I supposed to tell my three-year-old daughter?"

UAB has promised that player scholarships and coach contracts will be honored despite the end of football at the school but those in charge surely had to expect this kind of reaction from those on the playing side.

The UAB Blazers finished what appears to be their final season with a 6-6 record, winning their final regular season game 45-24 against Southern Miss Golden Eagles.