Rage owner and winning college coach reunited at football banquet
April 3, 2006 - National Indoor Football League (NIFL)
RiverCity Rage News Release
At his speech last Wednesday afternoon at the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame banquet at Lombardo's restaurant, Mel Tjeerdsma said that "one of the fulfilling aspects of coaching young men is not only seeing them find success on the football field, but learning later that they've been able to enjoy success in the field of life."
The head coach, who is credited with turning around the football program at Northwest Missouri State University, had the opportunity to come face to face with a number of his former players at the luncheon last week, when he was honored by the Tom Lombardo Chapter of the NFF/CHF in St. Louis. The luncheon was MC'd by KMOV-TV Sports Anchor Steve Savard, who also enjoyed success playing at Northwest Missouri State in the 1980's. Coach Tjeerdsma (pronounced âchurch-mah') over the past 12 years has turned NW Mo. State football into one of the top NCAA Division II programs in the country, starting with an 0-11 team in his initial year of 1994, and skyrocketing his team into national prominence with back to back national championships in 1998 and 1999. The Bearcats have also won five straight MIAA titles and Coach Tjeerdsma was named the MIAA Coach of the Year from 1995 to 2000, and was tabbed by the American Football Coaches Association as the National Coach of the Year in both 1998 and 1999. This past season, his squad narrowly missed another national title, losing the championship game in the final seconds of play. That 6th seeded team won four straight playoff games on the road, and although the championship game final score fell short of it's goal, Tjeerdsma said "I was as proud, and felt as good, about my players this past season as I had felt about my team's that won the championship. This team overcame some great odds, some injuries, and had to really pick it up when the time came to play, especially on the road. We may have lost the game, but in the future when I talk about Northwest Missouri State football, you can be sure this squad of 2005 will get it's just due . They were all winners."
Both before and after his speech, Coach Tjeerdsma was able to shake hands with some of his former players who live in the metro St. Louis area. That âoff the field success' detailed by Coach Tjeerdsma was seen in many forms throughout the afternoon, including the one on one greeting between the storied coach and one of his former offensive lineman, RiverCity Rage Majority Owner Scott Wilson. Wilson, who later jokingly said he had the "distinction of playing on the 0-11 team, the one that helped turn the program around for Coach Tjeerdsma," was one of the former players of whom the coach spoke of with pride.
"Scott is a great example of the type of young man I enjoy coaching. Not only was he an outstanding player (captain and MVP) but he also applied himself in the classroom and was able to graduate with a double major in both Business and Marketing. One of my goals is to make sure every player understands that football in important, but not every player, in fact very few, will play football competitively after graduation. That's why education is vitally important, and Scott is one I'm glad to see has made his mark after the football ended."
One could easily see the respect was mutual when Wilson was asked about his senior season at NW Mo. State, the first for the new head coach. "We hadn't enjoy much success prior to that point, so when we heard a new coach was coming from Austin College in Texas, I made it a point to look up his record. Turns out he was the best coach in school history, had a record of 60-38-4 while he was there, so I felt pretty good about our upcoming season, but I guess it took a year to get things up and running, because we didn't win a game all season. Success was just right around the bend, but for me, unfortunately, it was graduation and time to go. But over the years, I've followed the team, talked to guys that have since played for Coach Tjeerdsma, and I'm as proud of the program and of our coach as if I were still on the field with them. You never give up that status as a former player, and I know every man here today feels pride in the newfound success of the program over the years and relishes the status of Northwest Missouri State football. Coach really turned it around, and it's great for recruiting, for the school, and the city of Maryville."
An owner of two other business ventures prior to heading up the RiverCity Rage of the NIFL in 2004, Wilson is also a successful insurance executive with JW Terrill Insurance, and attributes much of that success to the lessons learned on the football field and at NW Mo. State. "It's no secret we had a poor season, at least record wise, my senior year. But despite the adversity, the losing, the injuries, we never stopped giving one hundred per cent. The players believed in this new coach, and that faith proved to be well founded. Not on the field for us that season, but we paved the way for all the success that would follow in the decade to come. But that never give up spirit has helped me in business, when things got a bit rough, finances a bit tight, and the drop-off point looming around the corner. I had to find ways to pull it together, make a new plan, attack from a different angle. More often than not, it's proven to be successful, and that's due to the lessons I learned under Coach Tjeerdsma. You don't quit when things get tough, you keep plugging away, giving it your all, because success more often than not is just a day away. He himself found that to be true, and he passed that on to the guys who played for him. I owe him a lot."
The National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame will meet eight times per year, and is dedicated to the promotion and development of amateur football, and offers publicity and financial support to high school and college football players who represent the ideal of the scholar athlete. The fourteenth Annual Awards Banquet is being held on Sunday, May 7th, 2006 at the Washington University Field House. A number of outstanding awards will be presented to those who have given both time and service to the program. For more information on this outstanding program, or to become a member, visit the website at http://stinff.tripod.com.
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