Greg Ruzich Named Co-Recipient of the Scholar-Athlete Award

The Pioneers added to their lineup of postseason awards in 2015, adding the scholar-athlete award.  The award goes not just to the Pioneer with the best GPA, but rather to the Pioneer who has an outstanding GPA, challenged himself in his area of study, and also excelled on the playing field.  Two Pioneers were selected for the inaugural award, one being wide receiver Greg Ruzich.

Ruzich joined the team prior to his sophomore season, and his impact on the field increased each season.  As a senior, Greg recorded 30 catches, and established career highs for yards and touchdowns.  Playing in the slot, Greg was always a threat on the slant/skinny post route, as well as the shallow cross.

In the classroom he was a bio-chemistry major who carried a very strong GPA.  He was named academic all-conference three times, and named to the Dean's List twice.  Greg also spent a semester studying in Australia.  It's safe to say he made the most of his time at Grinnell.  Congrats Greg, best of luck in your future studies.

Morrissette Named All-American

Linebacker Barrett Morrissette's fine season season was rewarded with All-American recognition by USA College Football.  Barrett was previously named first time all-conference by the Midwest Conference coaches.  Morrissette joins Robert Seer (2nd team WR by BSN College Network) as the second All-American since I've taken over as head coach.

Congrats Barrett!

Politics and Football?

As I was watching the Packers - Redskins game (playoff football in our nation's capitol!) I was reminded of President Obama's recent comments on the Jerry Seinfeld show Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee.  Seinfeld asked the President what sport he thought was most like politics.  I think you'll appreciate his answer!

Ryan Slager Named Troy Barboza Most Courageous Player

First year Ryan Slager from Orland Park, IL was named the 2015 Troy Barboza Award winner.  Barboza played for the Pioneers in the mid-80's and went on to a career in law enforcement.  He went undercover to help take down a major drug operation in Hawaii.  As he was waiting to testify in the case, he was tragically murdered.  Each year the Pioneers honor the player who has displayed the most courage throughout the past year, and that definitely fits with Ryan.

Asked to start at inside linebacker from day one, Ryan rose to the occasion.  Posting 18 tackles in his first game against Beloit, Slager filled a need for the defense immediately.  He recorded 17 tackles against Illinois College, 19 against Knox, and 15 in the season finale against Lawrence.  All told, Slager accounted for 134 tackles on the year.  His 13.4 per game was good for second in the country.

As impressive as his debut was, we look for even bigger things from Ryan over the coming three years!

Former D3 Player Fares Better vs NFL Competition Than vs Grinnell College

Former Monmouth College quarterback Alex Tanney (of trick shot quarterback fame) took the first regular season snaps of his NFL career this past weekend for the Tennessee Titans.  Tanney has been on the practice squad of multiple NFL teams during his career, and played about half of a pre-season game for the Dallas Cowboys several years ago.  I believe this past weekend was his first shot in the regular season though, and he played well.  In fact, by completing 10 of 14 passes for 99 yards, Tanney played significantly better against NFL competition than he did against the Grinnell Pioneers in their 2010 contest.  In that game, we held the pre-season D3 Player of the year to a 0 for 1 for 0 yards performance in our 17-15 victory over Monmouth.
To be fair, Tanney was injured during the first drive, and missed the rest of the game, and the rest of the season.  While we certainly weren't celebrating his injury, it was a huge victory for us, and one that we will always celebrate.  For his part, Tanney took advantage of a medical red-shirt and came back for a very good senior season, and eventually his shot in the NFL.  Congratulations to him, it is always nice to see D3 players get their chance, and it's even better when it's a fellow Midwest Conference athlete.  Best of luck to Alex Tanney.