“After years of discussion, careful consideration and operating from a position of academic and financial strength, Anderson University’s Board of Trust is adding a Trojan football program as its next successful athletic team,” said Anderson University President Evans P. Whitaker, Ph.D. “In the past several years, Anderson has experienced exponential growth in enrollment, added innovative academic programs and enjoyed the best national and regional rankings in the history of the University, among them being recognized as 27th in the nation for student engagement by the Wall Street Journal, and being named an Apple Distinguished School for the last six years. And John Beam, his coach at Laney College. “Anderson expects to initiate football in the fall of 2024, or possibly sooner contingent upon the completion of meeting the terms of the challenge gift and the construction of campus football facilities. Anderson is the second FBS football coach to publicly announce he battled the … “It’s just trying to develop and get these kids to understand that there’s more than football. University officials are seeking partners to realize Dr. Younts’ gift and bring in a total of $6 million to launch the program. “As far as football, I’m not really worried about it at all. sports news and features, including conference, nickname, location and official social media handles. . put me in position for life after football, even though I had dreams to go to the NFL,” Anderson said. In the video below, Anderson talks about Cal running back Marcel Dancy, who followed his path from Laney College to Berkeley. Arkansas State coach Blake Anderson said he has recovered from having the coronavirus. Executive Director for Public Relations, 316 Boulevard “That’s kind of something I want to do. With this firm foundation, and the magnificent gift we’ve secured, the time is right to offer Trojan football to our community.”. Follow Jeff Faraudo of Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jefffaraudo, Click the "follow" button in the top right corner to join the conversation on Cal Sports Report on SI. “Football is expected to be an addition that all students and the surrounding community will enjoy,” said Anderson University Vice President for Student Development Dr. Jim Fereira. “In the coaching world, to be honest, I would love to run my own program one day.”. 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Despite the timing of his positive test, Anderson said the postponed games "had nothing to do with me testing positive," but that leading up to each game a different position group was affected by positive tests, symptoms or contact tracing. The goal is to field a team for the 2024 season that will play NCAA Division II competition as a member of the South Atlantic Conference (SAC). The school also ended up postponing its next game, which was scheduled for this past Saturday against Tulsa. Now 29, Anderson is beginning his first season as a coach, serving as a volunteer offensive quality-control assistant for his alma mater. ET on ESPN2. We are absolutely thrilled to compete in the South Atlantic Conference, which is known to be one of the best NCAA Division II football leagues in the nation,” President Whitaker said. We are most grateful to Dr. Younts for his vision and his generosity which are the catalysts for this expansion,” President Whitaker said. “Launching football from a position of strength means two things: that football will maintain Anderson’s student selectivity and high academic standards, along with its equally high standards for student-athletes’ personal and professional development, and that paying for football will not take resources from existing academic, athletic or student-life programs. But he took the unpaid Cal assignment because he wants to contribute to his alma mater and because he believes he can learn a lot about the profession from coach Justin Wilcox and his staff. President Evans Whitaker, Troy, Dr. Melvin Younts, and Vice President for Athletics Dr. Bert Epting announced the launch of an Anderson University football team to begin play in 2024. Florida State's Mike Norvell announced he was positive on Sept. 19. 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Arkansas State coach Blake Anderson said he has recovered from having the coronavirus. “Our administration will recruit student-athletes and coaches who are excellent ambassadors of our university who excel on and off the field. “With the opportunity here, the ultimate goal is how to connect, how to help to kids, how to help kids when they’re going through certain things,” he said. And John Beam, his coach at Laney College. "The dominoes just continuing to fall and timing of guys coming out didn't make it possible against UCA," Anderson said, "and it was even probably worse in the sense of Tulsa because I thought the particular position was even more critical that you have depth at, and we were going to have none.". Anderson firmly believes that college football is an opportunity that can lead to success in areas outside athletics. We want to give them football, give them an opportunity to reach some of the success and the highs that I personally had.”. I learned from a lot of good coaches and a lot of great players,” Anderson said of his credentials to coach the sport. "We've dealt with positive cases in the past. C.J. That needs to be the most important thing, developing the young men into men. Contact Us | 864.231.2000. "I tested positive and ran a fever for 10 days. “The Trojan football program is being built on the same foundation that has made Anderson into one of the best Christian universities in the country,” said Vice President for Athletics Dr. Bert Epting.