Snow College Football Powers On As An Independent

By Jay Drew • Salt Lake Tribune

在桑皮特县呆上一段时间，你就会知道农村社区 在犹他州中部珍惜现在已经不存在的摩门奇迹游行在曼提，中尉 美景镇的州长斯宾塞·考克斯，这是瓦萨奇学院全国知名的高中 basketball program in Mount Pleasant, and Snow College football in Ephraim.

The latter, folks along US-89 will quickly and proudly point out, isn’t going the way of the pageant seven miles down the road.

“斯诺大学橄榄球对这个社区和这所学校来说太重要了 斯诺体育主管罗伯特·尼尔森说，他同时也是学校的体育主管 head men’s basketball coach.

也可以说是全州唯一的大专橄榄球项目也是 对犹他大学的五个四年制大学橄榄球项目来说太重要了——犹他，杨百翰大学，犹他 州立大学，韦伯州立大学和南犹他州，因为这五个州都把它作为 pipeline for talent.

“这是我们引以为豪的事情——我们是一个地方一级联赛 学校可以立即寻求帮助，”新雪足球教练安德鲁·米切尔说， 他身材高大，精力充沛，善于交际，曾是獾队的进攻锋卫 去年12月，他找到了一份工作，尽管有很多人邀请他去其他地方执教两年 Paul Peterson left for Dixie State in St. George.

很多前獾队进入了NFL，以至于学校官员都记不清了， 但进入NFL的著名校友名单中包括前犹他队的边锋 Garett Bolles and Star Lotulelei, ex-Utah running back Matt Asiata and former BYU defensive tackle Brett Keisel.

“I wouldn’t have taken the job if I didn’t think this program would be here for a long, long time,” Mitchell said.

一些著名的大学教练也从以法莲毕业，包括弗吉尼亚大学的教练 Bronco Mendenhall and Central Florida’s Josh Heupel.

然而，在外人看来，斯诺在足球界的死亡似乎是一个明显的可能性 去年12月，西部州橄榄球联盟宣布了这一消息 was going out of business due to six members — all in Arizona — dropping football. Shortly after that, two more Arizona schools, Eastern Arizona College and Arizona Western, announced they, too, were dropping football.

这让斯诺成为了一个独立的大学足球运动员——就像杨百翰大学一样——并被送去了 Mitchell scrambling to find teams to play. He spends at least an hour a day working 在课程表上，同时还要每学期教四节课，做所有的事情 else associated with being a head football coach.

“在过去的六个月里，我觉得我已经联系了每一个大专足球队 所以挑战当然是存在的，”米切尔最后说道 week.

As of the end of June, Mitchell had lined up eight games — four on its 2-year-old artificial turf field at Badger Stadium and four on the road, including a game in Florida against a school called ASA Miami College that the Badgers walloped 71-27 last year at home.

尼尔森说:“我们希望参加一个会议——这是我们的首选。. “Scheduling has been difficult. But there’s no danger of Snow College giving up football.”

为了证明这一点，米切尔和尼尔森在他们的办公室里指出 在…方向的中央大街上有游泳池和篮球馆 the football stadium to a $5.8 million building currently under construction — the Eric and Chandra Bergeson Athletic Center. When completed, the facility will include 一个新的健身房，足球办公室，一个自习室，一个校园健身中心 and community, and more.

埃里克·伯格森是前雪学院和杨百翰大学的防守后卫，曾短暂效力于 然后在斯坦福大学获得MBA学位，并在金融咨询方面取得了很大的成就 business and, like many former Badgers, wants to ensure the program stays afloat, Mitchell said.

“除了赢得比赛之外，我的一个重要目标是提供更有条理的财政支持 system for Badger athletics, specifically football,” Mitchell said. “We haven’t come up with a name, yet. Maybe Badger Club, or Badger Boosters. We will see.”

在他的全美职业生涯之后，这位前NFL球员更关心的是 at Snow, Mitchell moved on to Oklahoma State for two years and then spent time in 孟加拉虎队、海鹰队和美洲虎队的职业球队继续着获胜的传统 established by predecessors such as Steve Coburn, Britt Maughan and Peterson, who 在承担带领迪克西州立大学进入分区的任务之前，他取得了18胜4负的战绩 I college football.

“We’re absolutely, 100 percent committed to it,” Mitchell said. “You’ve got more skin in the game when you are a product of this place, obviously. It is special to me. We’ve put together a great staff. We’re excited about what the future holds.”

前杨百翰大学杰出的扬·乔根森是新的防守协调员和马特·米切尔 在西部大学待了两年之后，他以进攻协调员的身份加入了球队 Kentucky. Former BYU player and Skyline High coach Zac Erekson is the associate head 主教练兼防守后卫教练，而前乌特雷·塔拉马伊沃则是防守教练 line coach. Nelson Fishback is the special teams coordinator and receivers coach and Harry Wright is the running backs coach and recruiting coordinator.

“It is really good football,” Nielson says. “It is great football. It is going to be good for the future of two-year college football in the nation, because we are going to be playing everybody. We are going to become kind of the measuring stick 在全国范围内以很多方式帮助[人们]弄清楚排名，决定 who’s good and who isn’t.”

当米切尔被任命为总教练时，PG电子官方免费下载校长加里·卡尔斯顿发表了讲话 the future of the program, saying it was vital to provide increased opportunities 为年轻人继续他们的教育和加强PG电子游戏和参与 with the community.

“There is still work to do to find membership in a football conference to sustain 我们希望在不久的将来取得进展。 KSL.com.

米切尔和尼尔森说，他们已经联系了加州的许多学校，但是 这些学校不属于全国大专体育协会(NJCAA) 他们对扮演雪诺犹豫不决，更不用说让獾队进入他们的地盘了 conferences, because they don’t give out scholarships like Snow does.

他们还联系了西北体育大会(NWAC)，其中包括 community colleges in Oregon, Washington, Idaho and British Columbia, Canada. Talks to add some NWAC teams to the schedule are in the works.

But for now, they’re bullish on moving ahead as an independent.

尼尔森说，旅行只会增加“一点点”，但“我们致力于学校” 我们的预算真的不会增加太多来保留足球. It means too much to us to let it fade away.”

Like that other community treasure down the street.