BIG RAPIDS – Ferris State president Bill Pink couldn’t be in McKinney, Texas, on Saturday when the Bulldogs were playing for the NCAA Division II national title.
But he was more than happy to be in the Ewigleben Sports Complex for two reasons.
“I had the best of both worlds,” he said. “I could be at commencement ceremonies and also watch the football game on (big screen) TV.
“It’s a great day to be a Bulldog.”
Pink had to admit he couldn’t have picked a better time for his first season as FSU president while watching the football team.
“Winning is awesome,” he said. “That’s what the young men go out there for. What has been so fun is how this campus and community in Big Rapids wraps it arms around this football program. I can be at a restaurant here in Big Rapids and hear someone say ‘go Bulldogs.’
“It’s a community that’s so supportive of this program and this institution. I am looking to not only see how we do that better but how we continue to raise that relationship with our community.”
Pink took over as president in the summer but said he’s been impressed with the coaching staff and players all season.
While he was waiting to welcome the national championship team back to Big Rapids on Sunday, Pink said the administration stands firmly behind Ferris football and other teams to give them the resources they need to be winners. He said the sports program continues to be a valuable aspect in many ways for FSU.
“We’ll continue to leverage the momentum those sports give us,” he said. “I feel awfully good where we’re at. Now it’s a question of how do we continue to build on that tradition and the expectations we’ve laid for ourselves.
“I’m so anxious to work with our athletic director Steve Brockelbank and our coaches to say how do we continue to build on this and not just be satisfied.”
The university recently opened its new athletics performance center designed to provide more opportunities for athletes to improve their skills. The Bulldog Arena, a new home for the volleyball program, also opened.
But Pink acknowledged more work needs to be done within the athletic department including in the area of facilities.
“We’ve got work to do across campus when it comes to facilities,” Pink said. “When you talk about a campus that’s over 130 years old, that means you have a lot of old facilities on your campus whether that be housing, academic buildings or athletics.
“One thing we have already been speaking to, our campus community and our board, is how this institution will be very focused and intentional around facilities all across this campus, and athletics is one of those keys. As we know from my background, there are people who will give to football, basketball, volleyball…they’ll give to sports but they may not be interested in giving to other things. We need to make sure we’re tapping into those people.”
Pink said the athletics department is finishing up an athletic strategic plan which he’s been a part of.
“Once we get on the other side of that, this will give us an opportunity to make a good determination of how we prioritize those things,” he said. “There’s more to come on that one.”
‘It’s a great day to be a Bulldog’
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