Eliminate the barrage of articles & time-consuming
searches. Efficient DIII athletics news every M/W/F.
Spelman Johnson is a leadership and consulting firm serving intercollegiate athletics
Welcome to the very first D3.ticker, designed to deliver key curated news from the world of DIII college athletics to your inbox every Monday, Wednesday & Friday morning. Like our sister products, D1.ticker & D2.ticker, we hope you find D3.ticker to be an efficient & valuable way to stay up to date on the most important developments around the industry.
Also, feel free to pass D3.ticker along to your peers. Subscription is free. To sign up, click here.
With the first two rounds complete, Sweet 16 match-ups and host sites for the next two rounds of the DIII hoops championships have been set:
+ MBB: Whitman vs Hardin-Simmons and Marietta vs Rochester will take place at Marietta; Middlebury vs Endicott and Susquehanna vs Williams will take place at Middlebury; Christopher Newport vs Keene State and Babson vs Tufts will take place at Babson; Wartburg vs Augustana and Hope vs Hanover will take place at Hope. - link
+ WBB: Amherst vs Babson and UMass Dartmouth vs SUNY New Paltz will take place at Amherst; St. Thomas vs Marymount and Whitman vs Trinity will take place at St. Thomas; Ohio Northern vs SUNY Geneseo and Christopher Newport vs Hope will take place at ONU; Tufts vs Scranton and UW-Oshkosh vs Wash U will take place at Wash U - link
+ Both defending champs were toppled, as St. Thomas MBB lost to Augustana in round one and Thomas More WBB lost to Hope in round two.
As he prepared his team for the DIII tourney, Bethel MBB HC Novak talked to The Pioneer Press about his coaching journey that included stops at both the DI and DII level and how he has turned the Royals into MIAC champions. Before returning to his native South Dakota and taking over at Bethel in 2013, Novak spent seven seasons as an AC at Tulane (DI) and The Citadel (DI) and was the HC at Anderson (DII) in South Carolina. On why he decided to take the job at Bethel: "After seeing it [the school], I didn’t think there was a better place in the country I could go to grow my profession and my life. I cut my salary in half and went someplace where it snows in May. It was not logical. I thought it would be good, and it’s a hundred times better than I ever dreamed." And on the kind of program he's building: "We’re trying to build a program we all can be proud of, including alumni. It’s a fun product. It’s something that really connects to the school’s mission, which is growth. It’s challenging the status quo. It’s thinking a little differently and sometimes thinking outside the box and having a core faith we’re all tethered to." - link
USA Today profiles the undefeated and top-ranked Whitman MBB squad, introducing the program as the "only unbeaten men's team in college basketball." HC Bridgeland, who took over a Whitman program in 2008 that had just one winning season over the previous 20 years, talks about how he uses the power of positivity and self-affirmation as a coaching tool and how he recruits student-athletes to a "$62,000 school...in the middle of nowhere and [where] you need a four-point-twelve [GPA] to get in." Bridgeland: "But to Whitman's credit, we are a ridiculously tight campus. So any kid that's looking for that looks for us. We don't want partiers, we don't want guys that aren't interested in their future academically or athletically, so it kind of helps us recruit in a weird sense." - link
Sticking with Whitman MBB, HC Bridgeland, his coaching staff, and his student-athletes walked out to mid-court at the Sherwood Center and acknowledged their 1,231 home fans with a round of applause after the Blues defeated Claremont-Mudd-Scripps to earn their second consecutive trip to the Sweet 16. S-A Wiggins: "It’s a great feeling to share this journey with them. We feed off (the) crowd." Bridgeland: "Walla Walla is filled with great people. We thanked them for their support. How could you not do that?" - link
The MBB programs at Swarthmore and Neumann were recently featured as they prepared for the DIII Tourney. For Swarthmore, it was the first Tourney appearance in the program's history. Neumann was making its second after advancing wo years ago, but the reality of being a DIII program quickly set in when the Knights had to scramble to get practice time at the famed Palestra after getting bumped out of their home gym because of a previously scheduled science Olympiad. Neumann HC Rullo, who played at Drexel (DI), made the best of the situation and went on to explain why he chose to make the move from the prep ranks to DIII: "You see the facility like this and the proximity to Delaware and South Jersey and to Philly and, obviously, Delaware County, I just thought the opportunity was worth the risk. I can compare it to when I was at Drexel. There's always the Big Five plus us. I know in the grand scheme of things, it's Division III basketball, and it's Philadelphia, and we're probably at the low end of the totem pole. At the same time, there's talent in this area." - link
Another from Swarthmore: The Garnet saw their dream season end on Saturday, as Christopher Newport beat them 77-67 to advance to the Sweet 16. HC Kosmalski said emotions were understandably high after the game, but his guys know they accomplished something special this season: "It’s really hard to wrap your head around what we did this year as a team. We know it was special. These guys may feel it now, but it really hasn’t hit me yet. I think having a little time away, have a little distance from it, it will really sink in." - link
Augustana MBB is headed to Michigan this weekend, as Hope is set to host Sweet 16/Elite 8 games in the DIII tourney. Augie HC Giovanine on not being selected to host the second weekend of games: "We're not really surprised; we all sensed it was about a 50-50 shot on where it would go with River Falls getting beat. Hope has the biggest facility ... There are all kinds of variables that go into it and I'm not in the loop as to what all the decisions were based on." (link); As for the host school, which hit 16 three-pointers on Saturday, Wash U HC Edwards offers: "Championship basketball is won by the three-pointer. I think that Hope has a legitimate chance to win the NCAA Title." (link)
More on Augustana, as the Vikings reached the Sweet 16 thanks to the heroics of student-athlete Orange, who hit a game-winning shot in the final seconds to beat St. Thomas in the first round and then did it again to beat Wisconsin-Whitewater in the second. HC Giovanine: "We’re thrilled to be moving on. To go on the road and to beat two traditional powers like that, one on their home court, not too many teams ever do something like that.’’ - link
Turning our attention to the Women's side, Scranton needed a last-second three-pointer from student-athlete Mann to defeat New England 49-48 and advance to the second round. Mann talked about her mindset heading into the final play knowing she had missed 15 of her first 18 attempts from the field and all 10 of her 3-point tries: "Honestly, when I saw the (final) play was being drawn up for me, I was like, 'Why the heck is he going to me?' I was starting to get into my own head. But my teammates were unbelievable. They had my back. When we got on the court, I wasn’t ready for this to end. As soon as the ball came in, I just stopped thinking and shot it." - link
MIT's Gregersen pens an article for the Harvard Business Review discussing how CEOs can avoid becoming trapped in an information bubble, something Charles Schwab CEO Bettinger describes as the job's "number one challenge." Bettinger explains that the challenge takes two forms: "people telling you what they think you want to hear, and people being fearful to tell you things they believe you don't want to hear." One strategy to combat what former Defense Secretary Rumsfeld characterized as "unknown unknowns," Gregersen says, is framing the right questions. "Often the territory of unknown unknowns can be lit up by an insightful question. Tesla and SpaceX CEO Musk: "A lot of times the question is harder than the answer. If you can properly phrase the question, then the answer is the easy part." To find the correct question, Bettinger checks in regularly with important stakeholders and asks what they would focus on were they in his position. The inquiry is designed to identify opportunities and/or threats which may not have occurred to him. Next, he requires managers to submit "brutally honest reports" twice a month which focus on five areas including "What's broken?" Finally, to establish the mindset companywide, Bettinger invites those who identify potentially consequential items to Schwab headquarters in San Francisco for a day "not as a reward, but as encouragement." Full article. (link)
Small College Athletics (#scachat) on Twitter was guest hosted by Upper Iowa (DII) Assoc AD for External Affairs Wissmiller. The discussion focused on creating a different environment for postseason games, the prep work in advance of potential championships and the individuals involved, the procedures surrounding utilizing fan bus for away/neutral games, involving alumni, donors, or sponsors not on or near campus, and championship rings. - link
NACDA has announced the winners of the 2016-17 Under Armour AD of the Year Award. The four winners at the DIII level are: Wellesley AD Belgiovine, Fitchburg State AD Lauder, Hardin-Simmons AD Neese, and Rhode Island College AD Tencher. The winners will be recognized at NACDA's 52nd Annual Convention in June. NACDA Executive Director Vecchione: "This award was created by the leadership of NACDA in 1998 to honor those athletics directors who have done an outstanding job in the eyes of their peers. In the 19-year history of the program, we have honored in excess of 425 of the top athletics directors in the industry." - link
Millsaps has released the first of four videos that are part of its "Major Difference" program, which "seeks to motivate student-athletes to achieve excellence in every aspect of their lives; athletic, academic and personal development." The first video features the work being done by Head S&C Coach Kilgore, who is the first full-time S&C coach in the SAA. Millsaps AD Brooks on Kilgore: "His commitment to his vision for our program has already reaped benefits for our student-athletes and is a wonderful example of what the Major Difference program is all about. We are striving to make our student-athlete experience at Millsaps first-class, and the work of Trey and his staff is certainly helping us down that path." - link
Franciscan will host its annual Baron Club Awards Dinner in April. The event will feature plenty of star power, as NFL legend Winslow will be the guest speaker, current NFL player Wolfe will be one of the honorees and ESPN's Buccigross will return to serve as the evening's emcee for the fourth time. - link
Olympic sport coaching movement:
+ Wheaton has named the husband-and-wife duo of Jacob and Meghan Ayers to lead its swim programs, effective next academic year. Jacob will serve as the HC of the men's swim team and will also be the new Aquatics Director in charge of all aspects of the Jonathan Lederhouse Natatorium. Meghan will take over the women's swimming program after serving as an AC for both Thunder swim programs since 2013. Jacob, who is a Wheaton alum, has been coaching at the prep and club level since 2000. - link
+ St. Vincent has announced that SID Zidek will be the HC of the women's bowling program when it starts competition this coming fall. The college announced the addition of women's bowling as its 23rd varsity sport in February. - link
Now that her basketball career is over, UW-La Crosse S-A Atchison has joined the Eagles' women's track team in hopes of qualifying for the DIII Indoor Championships. Men's and women's XC HC and Track AC Stanley, on how Atchison is able to transition sports so seamlessly: "If it was a team sport, and not an (individual-based) sport, it would be challenging because of the cohesion that needs to happen. But when some of the freshmen saw Rachel run, not even knowing who she was, they saw what she can do on the track, and you have to respect that." - link
Profile of Loras MBB S-A Ruggles, who suffers from a heart condition known as supraventricular tachycardia (SVT). Ironically, Ruggles notes it was his medical issues that attracted him to Loras because HC Martin suffered from the same condition: "Kinda funny, he used the heart problem as a recruiting tool. And it worked." Despite the risks, Ruggles says playing the sport he loves is worth it: "I just have an increased risk of dropping on the court. The risk is worth it in my opinion." - link
Presidents and Chancellors in the news:
+ Wesleyan has agreed to extend President Roth's contract through 2023. Roth, who has been leading his alma mater since 2007, has concentrated on financial aid throughout his tenure, which was helped by a fundraising campaign that brought in more than $480M by the time it ended this past summer. - link
+ Former Bowdoin President Mills has been named the deputy chancellor and COO at UMass Boston. The newly created position will help the university try and close a $26M budget shortfall. - link
+ UMass Dartmouth chancellor finalist Way, who is currently the provost and vice president for academic and student affairs at Slippery Rock (DII), says the chancellor position was "the perfect fit" for what he wants to do next in his career when interviewed publicly by the university community last week. - link
+ In a letter to the Bryn Mawr community, President Cassidy addressed the college's commitment to diversity and inclusiveness by highlighting the recently formed Diversity Plan and Bias Response Team and pointing out resources for undocumented and international students. - link
Money, money, money:
+ Union has announced a $100M project to expand its science and engineering departments, which includes an addition to the Wold Center along with renovations to the existing building. The project, which will feature 142K square feet of space, will be paid for through a combination of fundraising, reserves and debt financing. - link
+ A look at Hoosier State small college financees reveals that Wabash and Rose-Hulman are looking to cut their spending rates to at or below 5%. Since 2007, DePauw's endowment has increased 11%, but Rose-Hulman's has declined 7% and Wabash's has dropped 21%. - link
+ A private green energy deal, which used more than $4M in university funds to convert livestock waste into electricity and was orchestrated by former Chancellor Wells and former Vice Chancellor for Administrative Services Sonnleitner, has put the UW-Oshkosh Foundation in jeopardy of declaring bankruptcy and prompted UW System officials to file a lawsuit against the two former administrators. - link
+ With the help of 217 donors, the first-ever Wesley Giving Day was able to raise more than $24K. - link
Campus Happenings:
+ After nearly 150 years, Augsburg College will formally change its name to Augsburg University in September to better reflect the nine graduate degree programs offered at the school and its diversity. - link
+ Middlebury President Patton has apologized for the protest that disrupted the speech being made on campus last week by American Enterprise Institute scholar Murray, which left an international politics and economics professor reportedly injured. - link
+ Hillary Clinton tweeted out a picture of her with the NCAA champion Wellesley crew team during her low-key talk on campus with students last week. Wellesley, which is Clinton's alma mater, went to great lengths to keep the visit under the radar, as school officials asked students to turn off their phones and cancelled a planned live-stream of the event. - link
