Robert (Bob) Lee Waters (June 22, 1938 – May 29, 1989) was a successful American football coach and athletics director, best known for his contributions to athletics at Western Carolina University. Waters coached the football Catamounts for 20 football seasons (1969 through 1988), and performed the dual roll of athletic director from 1971–1986. According to Western Carolina, "the evolution and success of the school's athletic programs, especially its football program, during that period can be attributed largely to his talents and personality". Waters retired from coaching in March 1989 due to the progression of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease). He died on May 29, 1989, at the age of 50 following a six-year battle with the disease.