I expect a great game with an NCC win in the closing seconds.
I want to share a couple stories as to why these programs are what they are.
Backstory - I used to be a Division III coach.
North Central Story: I had a 3yr first team all-conference wide receiver that was graduating with one year of eligibility remaining and Our school didn’t offer graduate school. He wanted to transfer to somewhere and compete for a national title. I am friends with the north central staff and called them up and told them about this kid. Their direct response “We have a Program philosophy that we do not take any 5th yr transfers. It’s unfair to the kids who have been here.” I was blown away by this. Every program I’ve ever heard of loves 5th year transfers that can come in and play right away. This spoke to their culture and not wanting to risk a 5th year transfer to possibly risk negatively affecting what they have built inside the locker room. You know you have a GREAT program when you can turn away great players.
* This kid transferred to another D3
And was a first team all-American. Their team made the playoffs for the first time in over a decade. He was #2 in the nation in receiving yards (behind NCC’s #1 WR). NCC also won the national title this year.
Mount Union Story: The head coach I was working for at the time told me that Mount Union is good because the head coaches wife runs the admissions department at Mount and they can get any kid into the school. So I believed this for a while. I met their staff at a recruiting event and befriended one of their coaches and asked him if that was true. He looked at me and said “I’ve heard a lot of things over the years about our program but that is a new one. Let me ask you this coach ‘your kids w bad grades, do they do well for you guys?’ I said they are our worst kids and don’t make it. ‘So then why do you think we win w a team full of kids with bad grades?’
He went on to say “ we win because of the culture that our head coach has built. And here’s a good example of that, just this week we had a freshman that did not pick up his weights after a Lift. A senior noticed it and told him to pick it up. The freshman said no. The senior said if you don’t start picking this up immediately and then do 15 push-ups you are off this team. The freshman laughed at him and left. Later that day the freshman was called into the HC office and was no longer apart of this program. We win because our seniors lead our team.”
Two very well runned programs and look forward to watching this game Saturday (albeit on Tv..grrrr)
I want to share a couple stories as to why these programs are what they are.
Backstory - I used to be a Division III coach.
North Central Story: I had a 3yr first team all-conference wide receiver that was graduating with one year of eligibility remaining and Our school didn’t offer graduate school. He wanted to transfer to somewhere and compete for a national title. I am friends with the north central staff and called them up and told them about this kid. Their direct response “We have a Program philosophy that we do not take any 5th yr transfers. It’s unfair to the kids who have been here.” I was blown away by this. Every program I’ve ever heard of loves 5th year transfers that can come in and play right away. This spoke to their culture and not wanting to risk a 5th year transfer to possibly risk negatively affecting what they have built inside the locker room. You know you have a GREAT program when you can turn away great players.
* This kid transferred to another D3
And was a first team all-American. Their team made the playoffs for the first time in over a decade. He was #2 in the nation in receiving yards (behind NCC’s #1 WR). NCC also won the national title this year.
Mount Union Story: The head coach I was working for at the time told me that Mount Union is good because the head coaches wife runs the admissions department at Mount and they can get any kid into the school. So I believed this for a while. I met their staff at a recruiting event and befriended one of their coaches and asked him if that was true. He looked at me and said “I’ve heard a lot of things over the years about our program but that is a new one. Let me ask you this coach ‘your kids w bad grades, do they do well for you guys?’ I said they are our worst kids and don’t make it. ‘So then why do you think we win w a team full of kids with bad grades?’
He went on to say “ we win because of the culture that our head coach has built. And here’s a good example of that, just this week we had a freshman that did not pick up his weights after a Lift. A senior noticed it and told him to pick it up. The freshman said no. The senior said if you don’t start picking this up immediately and then do 15 push-ups you are off this team. The freshman laughed at him and left. Later that day the freshman was called into the HC office and was no longer apart of this program. We win because our seniors lead our team.”
Two very well runned programs and look forward to watching this game Saturday (albeit on Tv..grrrr)
