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The time is right for Schulte’s exit After finishing his sixth season, 56 year old GRCC football coach Jim Schulte will put down the clipboard and turn over a new leaf in his career. With a stellar playing career at Central Michigan University in which he set the school’s tackles record at 151, which is now broken, Schulte turned from player to coach at CMU over a single year. Working his way up from defensive ends coach to defensive coordinator, some say Schulte could have became the head coach in time. When asked if there were any regrets about leaving, Schulte said he was just happy to be at GRCC. With six years under the helm as GRCC’s head coach, Schulte and the Raiders have had a great deal of success. The 37-20 mark and the two bowl game wins Schulte’s Raiders have are microscopic to what he has done for the program in his stay. Without a doubt, all the conditions of being co-athletic director, coolege instructor, and football coach for six years has become overwhelming to Schulte. “You just know when you need to step back because of the time commitment,” Schulte said. “ R e g u l a r teachers or athletic directors can take weekends, football coaches can’t.” Its more than packing a suitcase, and thats what makes this job challenging. Schulte undoubtedly put his stamp on the GRCC football program. “Its more than a figure head here, you have to be a hands on coach” Schulte said. With GRCC having zero full-time coaches, many challenges hang above Schulte’s head. The majority of Schulte’s time is spent in the academics area, teaching classes and helping students. Then he has a limited amount of time being co-athletic director, both of which dictates his time as a football coach. Recruiting is also another difficult task to accomplish with Schulte’s plate already so full. GRCC is a non-scholarship program, so recruiting becomes a must and the time is always restricted according to Schulte. Though his retirement may come as a shock to the community, Schulte has been talking retirement to Wabeke and his staff for nearly 18 months. Co-athletic director Doug Wabeke was unsurprisedwhen Schulte came to him with the subject of retirement. Wabeke understood. “He’s at that coaches age, where retirement enters your mind, so it doesn’t come as a big shock to me,” Wabeke said. Memorable moments happen every season for Schulte, but seeing a life change because of an athletes involvement with the GRCC program is what Schulte is all about. “When I talk to a student or a player, I am not going to necessarily tell them what they want to hear, but I will tell them the truth” Schulte said. “When the truth hits home, and they are able to turn things around, that is what is memorable about this job.” Furthermore, the big wins are the biggest highlights of them all for Schulte’s career. In 2005, the Raiders went to the National Championship game in the Valley of the Sun Bowl and came out with a 48-50 loss to Glendale CC. The loss however, didn’t ruin what the team did that season. “The staff was prepared and did a great job, and we had good players who bought into what we were doing, and we damn near pulled it off” Schulte said. “Those were great memories.” Schulte will be missed amongst the entire GRCC community. “He’s a really good coach and is someone who you can look up to,” freshmen tight-end Paul Bengel said. “When you need someone to talk to, he’s always there for you.” “Schulte wore three different hats, as a figure in the wellness department, and as well as two jobs in the athletic department, that is what is really going to be missed most about him,” Wabeke said. “The job has more than one responsibility, to find someone who can be a quality instructor in the wellness department and a coach who understands not only the game of football but football at a junior college level is difficult to replace” Wabeke said. Schulte is thankful for having the opportunity to leave his mark on the program by simply continuing the Raider football tradition, in which NJCAA Football Hall of Famer’s Gordon Hunsberger and Fred Julian left him. Additionally, Schulte was glad that he was on board when the Midwest Football League formed in 2005-06 season. With GRCC finishing 7-1 (9-1 overall) in its first season, a message was sent to the competition. “I probably helped raise the bar in the league, now the teams are keeping up with it,” Schulte said. The fact that three of its conference opponents are ranked in the latest top 20 poll reflects how tremendously good the league is now. GRCC definitely has something to do with it according to Schulte. Schulte not only left his mark on the GRCC program, but taught life lessons to his players. “We started off 0-4, and coach Schulte never stopped. He told us were are going to work hard, and turn things around,” sophomore quarterback Austin Cole said. With the slow start, GRCC is now on a two game winning streak, and sits at 2-5 on the season. With retirement officially set in May, Schulte doesn’t have his mind fixed on one particular thing in his future, but rather taking it one day at a time. Football and teaching is still not out of the question for Schulte. “Not next season, but when I settle down, we will see what happens,” Schulte said. When asked if Schulte could leave one message to the next head coach it would be “do it the right way, because it works, it always has.” “Hunsberger did it the right way, and it worked. Fred Julian did it the right way, it worked. Jim Schulte tried to do it the right way, and it worked out,” Schulte said. With the end of the season less than a month away, Schulte is more than happy to have some input in helping Wabeke select the next head coach, if asked. However, he said he hopes that it doesn’t come down to him making the final decision come January, a true reflection of his character. A tireless workhorse, Schulte is a true definitive example of a coach. A man who bleeds blue and gold, thats coach Schulte. Womens tennis wins tourney The GRCC women’s tennis team finished off an impressive regular season, winning the regular season MCCAA conference championship for the 18th time in school history. The team’s 7-2 record was good enough to tie for first in the league with rival Kalamazoo Community College, securing the school’s first conference title since 2005. GRCC and Kalamazoo split the two regular season matches they played against one another this year, the only loss for either team in conference play. The team rebounded from a disappointing second place finish in their conference tournament, winning the NJCAA Regional tournament recently. The Raider’s defeated Kalamazoo 12-11 to secure a spot in the national tournament taking place in May. The Raider’s were led by sophomores Julie Konwinski and Sarah Gaddy as well as freshman Michelle Feenstra as they all won their individual matches. GRCC had to win seven out of their final eight matches to win the tournament. The doubles team of Konwinski and freshman Melissa Zuiderveen won the day’s final match, breaking the 11-11 tie with Kalamazoo and securing the victory. Head Coach Sue Katerberg is not surprised by her team’s success this season. “Coming into this year we expected to win,” Katerberg said. “Our goal from day one was to win the conference and eventually make it to nationals.” The team seems to share their coach’s confidence. Julie Konwinski came into the year expecting to return to Tucson, Arizona where the NJCAA national tournament is held. “I’m not surprised by our success,” Konwinski said. “We had a good team last year, but this year we are even stronger as a group.” Coach Katerberg attributes this improvement to the hard work that the team put in during the offseason. “Everyone was committed to improvement,” Katerberg said. “They all hit balls and worked out by themselves and now it’s paying off.” To say that the player’s hard work is paying off would be an understatement. With the exception of Kalamazoo, GRCC has dominated the competition, winning all their conference matches either 8-1 or 8-0. “Every player on the team has contributed to our success,” Katerberg said. “You must get production from everyone, from the fifth singles player to the first, and that’s what has happened.” GRCC is one of the few teams in the conference that returned multiple starters from last year. Coach Katerberg said you cannot discount the importance of having so many returning players. “They have helped the freshman know what to expect and helped them prepare for the pressures of the season,” Katerberg said. Michelle Feenstra is just enjoying being a part of this team. “I heard they went to nationals last year and I didn’t think there was any way I was going to make the team,” Feenstra said. Sophomore Nicole Tenbrink and Julie Konwinski have been awarded for their efforts this year being named to the MCCAA All-Conference team as well as the All-State team. This is Tenbrink’s second consecutive year receiving All-Conference honors. Coach Katerberg has also been named as co- Coach of the year in the conference along with Kalamazoo’s Jim VanZandt. This is the sixth time in the past 12 years that Katerberg, who is also a member of the NJCAA Hall of Fame, has been named conference coach of the year. Sports mentor program promotes success With a combined effort this past summer from the Athletic Department, Counseling and Career Services, and Academic Support Center; GRCC now offers an athlete academic support program to first year student athletes. The program is focused on helping first year student-athletes achieve success in the classroom as well as in their respected sports. All first year students-athletes are required to enter the program. If students fail to meet the requirements of the program, they face disciplinary penalites from coaches. “We were asked to come up with an idea for a support program,” said Raju Hedge, Assistant Direcor of Academic Tutorial and Testing Services. “We worked with Fred Zomer and other departments to finalize the program." During the summer, GRCC hosted a 2-week athlete orientation for the new and incoming football players. The orientation focused on teaching student academic skills such as effective note taking skills, preparing for tests, textbook reading, and classroom communication and behavior. Athlete’s gain more than just school related help, they also learned about out of school issues, such as time management and financial responsibility. Students in the program are required to meet with a Peer Academic Coach (PAC), once every two weeks. They are also required to seek out a minimum 3 hours of tutoring. It also requires students to attend both of the academic advising days on campus. The program currently only advises students in football and men’s and woman’s basketball. Depending on the programs successes, it will ultimately determine if they will continue with the program. The program has paid off for freshman defensive back Jovon Washington. “The thing with me is I am organized,” Washington said. “So it just reminds me to keep that focus”. Not only does the program strive to aid the student athletes, but it also created jobs for students at GRCC. Corinne Cozzaglio, a PAC, enjoys the job, but she finds pleasure from seeing students succeed. “We see students struggle with the basic college needs, ”Cozzaglio said. “ I like seeing students succeed.” This program shows GRCC’s commitment to helping students achieve goals academically as well as athletically. Mens tennis takes MSU by storm The GRCC men’s tennis team continues to gear up for their regular season, winning a preseason match Oct. 11 against Michigan State University’s club team 6-3. The MSU team provided the Raiders with some tough games. “It’s good competition, and that’s what we’re looking for,” said head coach Bill Goodspeed. Goodspeed joined the play, filling in for sophomore Tile Akaa who was out with tennis elbow. The GRCC team has five returning players and nine freshmen hopefuls. Goodspeed plans to narrow down the 14 to about 9-10 by the time the actual season begins. “It’s a good amount of returning players,” Goodspeed said. “It’s about as many as we’ve had.” Slimmed-down sophomore, Zach Chapin, who played football for Caledonia, has come back this season quicker and was able to win both his doubles match with partner, sophomore Jeff Karasinski, and his singles match against MSU’s Danny Brash. Each of the players had one doubles match and one singles match against the Spartans, giving everyone a chance to try their hand at both types of play. According to Goodspeed, the MSU team had about 60 guys going out for seven spots. MSU had the numbers, but GRCC had the skill to win most of their matches and walk away with a win. “The freshmen were able to play both singles and doubles against MSU,” Goodspeed said. “It’s a good opportunity.” Goodspeed’s top two freshmen so far are Steve Carter from Forest Hills Eastern and Aaron Michaud from Forest Hills Northern. Carter won his singles match against MSU’s Barnett Gold. Michaud and partner, sophomore Marcelo Souza, beat the combination of Gold and Sean O’Donnell-Daudlin. “We kind of have a rough idea of the lineup,” Goodspeed said. The team itself is a bit of a melting pot. Akaa, who was unable to play Oct.11, is from Nigeria. Sophomore Souza is from Brazil. And sophomore Pejman Kordbacheh, who attended Forest Hills Northern high school, is originally from Iran and has also lived in Germany. Goodspeed himself attended GRCC before transferring to the University of Michigan. “I really appreciated GRCC,” Goodspeed said. “I’m trying to give the guys a great time here, but also teach them to appreciate the school. I try to push them in their academics. You can go almost anywhere if you do well here.”
Sports Briefs for October 15, 2008 Men’s Basketball Alumni Game Football LAST HOME GAME OF THE SEASON Volleyball National League Divisional Series American League Divisional Series RUMOR MILL
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