It was halftime at the December 10 basketball game against Wooster, but the line of Wabash scholar-athletes stretched from one end of Chadwick Court to the other. Applauding from the stands, Little Giant fans knew they were witnessing history: Since the North Coast Athletic Conference was founded in 1983, no school had claimed five men’s conference titles in a single year.
Until now. Until Wabash.
But as the 2011 NCAC cross country, indoor track and field, out-door track and field, baseball, and football champions were honored one at a time, fans couldn’t help but notice something else: all those Little Giant athletes shuttling from one team to the next.
“I think it was very telling at the ceremony that we had so many multiple-sport athletes contributing to those different programs,” says Head Coach Cory Stevens, who guided the baseball team to its first-ever NCAC championship and first trip to the NCAA Division III Tournament in school history. “I think our coaches do a great job working together to get those athletes here.
“One of the main points we stress when meeting with recruits is that there are many schools that are great academically and many that are great athletically. Wabash is one of the few schools that is focused on both the athletic and the academic side.”
Erik Raeburn’s football team was one week removed from its only loss of the season—a 20–8 loss in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division III football playoffs to Mount Union. On the way to that game the Little Giants won all six conference games to capture the school’s sixth NCAC championship since 2002. Raeburn believes Wabash is truly executing the ideal of mens sana in corpore sano—sound mind in a sound body.
“Sound mind and body is a liberal arts philosophy, but I think a lot of so-called liberal arts colleges believe athletics and academics are in competition,” Raeburn says “Wabash is one of the few schools where we have a great and well-earned academic reputation and also take collegiate sports seriously.
“Most schools that have a strong academic reputation like we have don’t support athletics the way Wabash does. Athletics are important to the students, to the alumni, and to the administration. Wabash is rare in that regard. If a student wants the opportunity to compete for a championship on the way to becoming an orthopedic surgeon, an engineer, or a CEO of a Fortune 500 company, he can do that here at Wabash.”
Two weeks before Raeburn’s football team defeated DePauw 45–7 in the Monon Bell Classic, cross country Coach Roger Busch ’96 watched his team win its first NCAC men’s title. The Red Pack ended a string of seven consecutive conference titles won by Allegheny College. Wabash also advanced to the NCAA National Championship meet for the second consecutive season, finishing 16th overall.
A star himself in both track and field and cross country for the Little Giants from 1992 to 1996, Busch ran at Wabash when only a few teams could boast of any national success.
“Now every sport is competing at a high level,” Busch says, “winning conference championships and competing against the best schools in the nation.
“I think we work hard as an entire athletic department to recruit those kids who want to be involved in two or three sports, be active in other activities on campus, and be successful in those areas and in their academic endeavors.”
The first of the five NCAC championships came in the winter of 2011. Head Coach Clyde Morgan led his indoor track and field team to the league title in March, ending a three-year championship run by Ohio Wesleyan while giving Wabash its first NCAC trophy in a sport other than football. Two months later, the Little Giants scored the highest total points in NCAC history at the outdoor track and field championship meet. The 311.5-point effort was a precursor to the theme Morgan adopted for this year’s track and field team.
“Our theme for the team this year is ‘MORE’,” Morgan says. “We want our track and field athletes to be able to handle more, not just at meets and practice, but in the classroom and the Wabash community. Don’t back down from things. Demand more of yourself. I personally think much of this generation has gotten away from that. Our goal is to bring that back and develop some mental toughness in our students. Don’t quit something because the first couple of weeks might be tough. Accept the challenge and stick with it. If you need some extra help, ask for it and find a way to succeed.
“I think that fits with all of our coaches’ approach. You can go through the rosters of every sport here and find student-athletes who are in multiple sports and are in theater productions, are conducting research projects, are studying abroad, are leaders on campus in clubs and organizations.
“Our guys are active in the community, and many are involved in service projects. Some schools may tell a recruit they could do those things, but when they get on campus it’s a different story. With Wabash, the proof is there.”
The proof was certainly there in 2011, and as the 2012 season continues, Wabash will be looking to add more trophies to cases in the Allen Center, perhaps setting a new mark for conference titles along the way.