FROM PRIDE TO EXCCELLENCE: The path to winning championships relies on alumni support By Joe Paisley
F
or John Schuler ’21, Tiger ExCCellence means more than fundraising dollars for Colorado College athletics. It is about winning championships, fueled by the financial support needed to compete for those titles consistently.
“So much of what we have access to and the resources we do have are because of funding from generous donors,” the men’s soccer captain says. “The facilities upgrades are big, but the small donations help as well. Our goalies get new gloves every year because a goalie alum wants to do that for us. From the little things to the big things, it is nice to have that generosity shown by our alumni. “But for CC to be one of the top Division III athletic programs in the country, we will need more gifts like this so we can keep building on what is already in place and create more opportunities to win championships.” The goal of Tiger ExCCellence is to allow coaches to focus on winning while obtaining what they need to improve a program, whether it is struggling or a regular national tournament entrant. “It allows for an aspirational culture,” says Lesley Irvine, CC vice president and director
of athletics. “I do not care if you’re winless or No. 1 in the country, there are things coaches need to move the program forward. You have to keep improving, because athletics is a competitive business.” That means giving the 350 Tigers what they need to succeed as students and as athletes within a financially sustainable plan. That means upgraded meeting rooms with everevolving technology, comfortable motel rooms on lengthy league road trips, and nutritious team meals, for example. “All that support is what makes it possible for teams to win,” Schuler says. “Without any of that you cannot win consistently. The weight room, the training room for rehab, sports psychologists and nutritionists are critical. I wouldn’t know all that [I do] without the support we do have. They teach us how to take care of our bodies and our minds.” “It’s a holistic, well-rounded approach to sports that a lot of schools do not have,” he adds. “That all combined makes us as successful as we are.” The men’s soccer and women’s volleyball teams both advanced to the NCAA national tournament during the 2019-20 academic year while CC finished in the top 10% of Division III schools in the Learfield IMG College Directors’ Cup national standings for the first time.
10 | COLORADO COLLEGE BULLETIN | SPRING 2021
