Established in 1968, the National Christian College Athletic Association’s mission is to keep Christ at the center of intercollegiate athletics. The NCCAA currently holds 23 national championship events and one national invitational. Within its membership, the NCCAA boasts 41 dually affiliated members of the NAIA and NCAA. Learn more and see if dual membership is a fit for your institution here, or email Brandon Gilmore, Director of Membership, at bgilmore@thenccaa.org.

NAIA Jobs powered by CollegeSports.jobs... New opportunities at IU Kokomo and Lawrence (DIII), below. CollegeSports.jobs welcomed nearly 3,000,000 visitors in 2025 to the No. 1 jobs site in college athletics. Any job posted on CS.j gets distributed via College.town publications, including NAIA.ticker (3,900+ subscribers) and Coaches.wire (30,000+ subscribers). Post HERE to maximize the reach of your job openings, while enjoying the most affordable posting price offered in the industry. More bang, less bucks.

The NAIA will expand the baseball championship starting in 2027, per NAIA Ball, which reports the field will grow from 46 to 48 and the number of opening rounds will shrink from eight to six, meaning eight teams will end up in the World Series. (link)

William Penn AD Grant Farris sits down with College.town’s Kristen Eargle to dive into a number of topics. Here are some of Farris’ most notable comments…

➤ Coming off two of the best Directors’ Cup finishes in program history, Farris credits the coaches and institutional support for that success. “[Our coaches are] bought into what we're doing. They get where we're trying to go. I don't think we're there yet. I think we want to be on the national stage a little bit more consistently, but I think our coaches understand what they need to do to get there. So it starts with them. Then, I think to be successful at this level, you have to have the support from the leadership above you, meaning our president, our board of trustees, they're so bought into our vision and where we want to go. I tell everyone our president is probably the most pro-athletics person that you'll find in the college landscape. He's at every game. He attends most, not all, practices, but he shows up to practice. Our kids know who he is and I think that that's important for the long-term success of your department.”

➤ Farris feels like one of the lucky ones to be able to lean on his two predecessors, former AD Aleesha Rabedeaux, now serving as Director of University Operations, for questions about processes and compliance and former AD Nik Rule, serving as commissioner of the Heart of America. On what he learned from Rule: “One thing that he showed that was really important was making sure that you're involved at the national level. Making sure that William Penn can be heard by the masses, I think that that's important in terms of brand recognition and competitive success. Kids need to know who you are. So if your brand and your logo are not there on the national scene, it's going to be really hard to be competitive. So especially in the recruiting landscape that we live in, where anybody can go anywhere at any time, make sure that people know who William Penn is.”

➤ Early priorities for Farris in his first six months on the job included adding women’s flag football, restructuring the department to have someone solely focusing on game day and game day experience and providing stability in the role, adding: “We’ve had some inconsistency in terms of the stability of this position. So for me out of the gate, it was, how can I show our coaches that there’s going to be consistency? I’m going to be here for the long haul and make sure that they feel supported and know the direction that we’re headed.” More from Farris. (link, link)

CollegeSports.jobs dominated NAIA hiring growth in 2025, posting a 61.25% year-over-year increase while the broader market (-53.94%), NCAA (-13.71%), and NACDA (-16.67%) all saw declines. For December, CS.j led the field with 700% growth, significantly outpacing NACDA (0 jobs posted) and the NCAA (-31.25%). (link)

Spring Arbor will add men’s volleyball starting in 2026-27. Interim AD Ryan Marken: “The explosive growth of men's volleyball in recent years – particularly at the high school level – makes it an ideal addition to our athletic offerings at Spring Arbor University. This dynamic sport provides an exciting opportunity for our student-athletes to pursue excellence on the court while deepening their faith and expanding the Kingdom of Christ.” (link)

Deal Digest…
➤ Indiana Tech partners with Spry to increase its compliance, communications and operational efficiency. (link)
➤ Loyola New Orleans is the latest to team up with WinWon. (link) 

Football Files…
➤ Arizona Christian names former John Melvin/Louisiana Christian HC Drew Maddox as the Firestorm’s Football HC. (link)
➤ Rio Grande hires Marshall (NCAA DI) Senior Analyst/Director of Player Development Mike Bartrum as its next Football HC. (link)

Coaches.wire…
➤ Baker brings in private golf coach Molly Gonzales as its new Men’s and Women’s Golf HC. (link)
➤ Cottey names Northeastern Oklahoma A&M (NJCAA) Women’s Volleyball HC Sarah Wall to the same role with the Comets, succeeding retiring HC Marla Kannady Foreman. (link)
➤ Florida Memorial taps St. Petersburg (NJCAA) Baseball AC Miguel Nunez as its next Softball HC. (link)
➤ Hastings hires Lindsey Wilson AC Tyler King as its new Men’s and Women’s Swimming & Diving HC to lead the Broncos’ new program. (link)
➤ LSU Shreveport selects McPherson AC Callie Houlihan as its first Women’s Volleyball HC. (link)
➤ Southwest promotes Men’s Basketball Assoc. HC Will Osborn to HC, with HC Steven Barker to transition to an Assoc. HC role in addition to serving as Asst. AD and Women’s Basketball HC. (link)