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Colorado Mesa introduced new AD Rob Courtney last week and spoke about his vision for CMU: “Looking ahead, the vision for Colorado Mesa athletics is clear. We will create a world-class experience for our student athletes. One that develops a whole person and prepares them for life beyond sport. We will prepare them, for the four-to-five years that they are on our campus, for the 40 years that follows.” CMU Foundation CEO Robin Brown, who served as Interim AD before Courtney’s hire: “Three years ago, we were all disappointed when Rob left to take a job as an assistant athletic director at CU. We had lost a good one. However, it’s funny how life works out, because the experience he gained in a program of that caliber, combined with the fact that he is a Maverick and understands the nuances of CMU athletics, makes him the perfect person to take over this department.” (link)

More from CIAA Commissioner Jacqie McWilliams Parker’s Small College Conversation on the value of the CIAA and its HBCU peers lobbying collectively: “The four of us, we understand that we're stronger together in voice. […] If we just stay focused on the mission of why we were implemented or why we had our institutions 180 or 50 or 60 years ago, we stay better focused on our purpose and our culture and our community and the jobs that we're creating within our communities, the championships where we're making an impact for young people who may never get to come to a championship but they come, the people we get to feed, the shoes we get to put on people's feet, the student-athletes who get on a court they would never play in a certain building. That's what it's supposed to be about and I don't ever want to lose the innocence of why we're in college athletics. McWilliams Parker  notes the league has achieved every goal it set out to achieve in its latest strategic plan, having approved a new plan this summer. One of the league’s top priorities in 2025-26 is conflict management. “How do we as a conference put something in place just to notify and put these young people and coaches on alert that it's not tolerated? We won't tolerate it. We can fine and assess our institutions. I hate fines, but if that's what we have to do, triple fines triple you from not being able to play. Just make them think twice about there being better ways to move your anger and discontent that doesn't disrupt your opportunity to play. It doesn't disrupt you getting some type of lawsuit against you and it doesn't disrupt the exposure that we're trying to give you as a conference. We just can't tolerate it.” Full conversation on BOSCA. (link, link)

Post-Season Selections…
➤ The eight-team Field Hockey bracket is live with action set to begin on Saturday. (link)
➤ Check out the qualifiers for the Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Championships. (link)

After upsetting Boise State (DI) last week, Hawaii Pacific Men’s Basketball HC Jesse Nakanishi chatted with the Aloha State Daily’s Christian Shimabuku about the upset and its impact: “We're always looking for ways to grow our brand. We do a lot of community service and, of course, fundraisers and game promotions and you name it, but to have a win like that that trumps everything. To garner some positive attention, really proud that we're able to not just grow our brand but for the school to hopefully attract more attention overall.” More from Nakanishi on the support of the department and university: “I think we we all wear a lot of hats at this level, on and off the court, and you need a lot of people in your corner to set you up for success, and that's indeed what we have here. We have great administration, starting from the top level, with our president. We have a great athletic department with our athletic director leading the charge. We have a great coaching staff here, and we have great fans, and we have great supporters. All those elements are giving us a chance to pull off something incredible like that.” (link); The Sharks have launched limited edition merch to commemorate the event. (link)

Slippery Rock will bring back Men’s Wrestling as its newest varsity sport starting in 2027-28. SRU is currently fundraising to revive the program with a goal of $2M. (link)

The NCAA Elite 90 award is being rebranded as the Elite Scholar-Athlete award starting this academic year to “better accommodate the growing landscape of NCAA Championships.” NCAA SVP of Championships Lynda Tealer: “By aligning the Elite Scholar-Athlete award with this movement, the NCAA can continue to highlight the amazing accomplishments of our student-athletes as sport sponsorship among the membership grows.” (link)

Delta State Football HC Todd Cooley is taking issue with Kentucky State and the scheduling agreement between Conference Carolina and the SIAC. Cooley alleges his Statesmen were scheduled to play KSU, with a signed contract this summer, but the SIAC is in year two of a scheduling agreement that will have members above .500 compete against Conference Carolinas squads. Cooley on KSU: “They're supposed to be coming to Cleveland (Mississippi) this weekend to play us, and they're not. They're playing Shorter. They're telling us they've got an agreement to play the third-place team in Conference Carolinas. Well, Shorter is not the third-place team in Conference Carolinas. So, basically it's just a deal for them to play an extra game. We're two teams in Regional rankings and got a chance to clear some stuff up this weekend and finish it where it's supposed to be finished: on the field.” (link)

Coaches.wire…
➤ Arkansas-Monticello AD/Football HC Hud Jackson will step down from coaching to focus on serving as UAM’s AD. Jackson: “UAM is in my blood. When I took this job, a lot of people told me I was crazy - that it couldn't be done. But they were wrong. We've made real progress here - Improvements that will pay off for years to come. And now, I believe it's time for new leadership, new energy, and new ideas to help this program take the next step to win, and to do so consistently. This program deserves that.” (link, link)
➤ Arkansas Tech Women’s Basketball HC Dave Wilbers will retire at the end of this season, his 19th leading the Golden Suns. (link)
➤ Shippensburg Football HC Mark Maciejewski will retire at the end of this season. (link)
➤ West Liberty Football HC Roger Waialae will retire after 21 years leading the Hilltoppers. (link)
➤ Winston-Salem State Football HC Robert Massey will depart at the end of the calendar year after six years leading the Rams. (link)
➤ While 22 sports had at least one coaching staff change noted from the past few days, the carousel is slowing down ever so slightly this time of year. Check out all the moves in this morning’s edition of Coaches.wire. (link)

MSU Moorhead Football student-athlete Gage Florence broke the career DII record for receptions. (link)

More Higher Ed...

➤ Northern State names Valley City State (NAIA) President Alan LaFave as its next president. (link)

➤ The College Board released its 2025 Trends in College Pricing and Student Aid report that shows sticker prices for four-year public and private tuition and fees increased 2.9% and 4.0%, respectively, before adjusting for inflation. Net tuition for both increased by 1.3% and 3.7% year-over-year for first-time, full-time students. Grant aid jumped 5.4% in 2024-25, driven by a 19% increase in Pell Grant funding as recipients also grew by 14%. More. (link)