Thursday, July 21, 2016

Coaching Staff To Return Intact


As I was eating breakfast this morning I was catching up on some emails and watching Mike & Mike in the morning.  Greeny and guest host Buster Olney were discussing the Rooney Rule and the NFL's poor track record of hiring coaches of color.  The more I heard them talk, the more grateful I became that I coach where I do, and that I coach with the people that I do.  I'm part of a talented and diverse athletic department, and between football and track & field, I'm part of two incredible staffs.  I'm particularly proud of the staff we've assembled for the football team, which returns virtually intact from last year (we lost our three student-assistants, who have all moved on to bigger and better!).

Grinnell College prides itself on having students from every state, plus around fifty different countries (that number varies year to year obviously) and our athletic teams often reflect that diversity.  This year we will have players from fifteen different states, from New Hampshire and New Jersey in the northeast, to Florida, Georgia and Louisiana in the south.  From Iowa and our core midwest states, to Colorado, California, and even Hawaii out west.  We will even represent three different countries, with players form Japan and Brazil! As the head coach, I do my best to assemble a staff that reflects the diversity of backgrounds and experiences of the guys on our roster.  Of course every coach in the country would like a bigger staff, but I am extremely happy with the men we have coaching our team.  I believe they reflect the students we're coaching, I believe we're helping them grow on the field and off, and I believe we're open to learning from our players, just as they're learning from us.  And perhaps just as importantly, we've got tremendous continuity.  I'm looking forward to a great year of working with this team and this staff!

Tuesday, July 19, 2016

Register for Pioneer Football's Summer Visit Days



It's that time of year, time for Pioneer Football's Summer Visit Days.  This year we're hosting two visit days, July 23rd for rising seniors only and July 26th, open to all prospects.  Both visits will start at 10:00 AM and will conclude mid-afternoon, depending on when your individual meeting is scheduled.  Register for the visits here:




I hope to see you on campus soon!

Monday, July 18, 2016

Six Named Academic All-Conference




Six student-athletes from the Pioneer Football team were honored as Academic All-Conference for the 2015-16 academic year.  To earn the award you must letter in your respective sport and maintain a 3.33 grade point average for the entire academic year.  Six honorees is fewer than we've had in the past, but given our smaller roster this past season, it's impressive.  One in five guys that participated this past year were tabbed as Academic All-Conference, two of whom were previously named to the Dean's List at Grinnell.

The honorees:

Ed Hardman - Senior Outside Linebacker from Chicago, IL (recognized twice each for football and track and field, also named to the Dean's List twice)

TR Jones - Sophomore Quarterback/Safety from Goldthwaite, TX (first time recognized)

Matt Medrano - Junior Defensive Lineman from Wichita, KS (third time recognized)

Ibuki Ogasawara - Junior Defensive Back from Okinawa, Japan (recognized twice each for football and track and field, also named to the Dean's List four times!)

Sam Poulos - Senior Quarterback from Glen Ellyn, IL (second recognition)

Greg Ruzich - Senior Wide Receiver from Frankfort, IL (third recognition)

Congratulations men!