National Collegiate Athletic Association |
The NCAA News - Briefly in the NewsOctober 28, 1996
Fluke injury fells athleteIt all looked so routine.
Drygas never lost consciousness, but he hasn't felt anything below his shoulders since the injury occurred in mid-October. Alaska Fairbanks sports information director Scott Roselius said the training staff and emergency medical technicians came to Drygas' aid immediately. He was taken to Fairbanks Memorial Hospital, where he underwent surgery to stabilize the injury. Doctors determined that while the spinal cord is not severed, it is injured to the point that it is not certain how much recovery is possible. Drygas will be transported to Craig Hospital in Denver, which specializes in spinal injuries. For those who wish to correspond with him, the hospital's address is 3425 South Clarkson Street, Englewood, Colorado 80110. Roselius said that insurance, including NCAA catastrophic-injury coverage, will cover most, if not all, of his medical needs. However, the family still faces major expenses that are not covered. To assist them, the city of Fairbanks and Alaska Fairbanks Face-Off Club have created an Erik Drygas Fund. Anybody who wishes to help may send a check to:
The Erik Drygas Fund
Another record fallsMajor Division III football records have been taking a beating recently.On October 5, Marietta College back Dante Brown rushed for 441 yards against Baldwin-Wallace College, setting a new NCAA single-game standard for all divisions. On October 12, Lon Erickson, a senior quarterback for Illinois Wesleyan University, set a Division III record for passing accuracy by completing 27 of 31 passes against Millikin University. The completion percentage of .871 topped the previous Division III single-game mark (minimum 25 completions) held by Scott Driggers of Colorado College. Driggers completed 35 of 42 passes (.833) against Nebraska Wesleyan University September 10, 1983. The percentage record with a minimum of 20 completions is .913, held by Chris Esterly of the University of St. Thomas (Minnesota).
Close callThere's nothing like a brush with disaster to bring the importance of fun and games down to the proper level.Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey (New Brunswick), lost, 42-0, to Syracuse University October 5, but the lopsided defeat paled in comparison to the trauma the team had experienced the day before. According to The Associated Press, the airplane Rutgers had chartered turned around 10 minutes into the flight when a problem developed with the flaps. Rutgers coach Terry Shea said about a dozen fire trucks or other emergency vehicles were on hand for the successful emergency landing. The plane landed at a much faster speed than normal because of the problem. "It became a very tense experience for everyone in that aircraft," Shea said.
Coaches vs. CancerThe 1996-97 Coaches vs. Cancer campaign began October 15 with a live ESPN broadcast of the "Midnight Madness" activities at Saint Louis University. Coach Charlie Spoonhour, whose program raised $52,000 for the campaign in 1995-96, dedicated proceeds from the event to Coaches vs. Cancer."Having lost my parents to cancer and seeing the ever-growing number of friends and families that cancer has affected," Spoonhour said, "I realize the positive impact of our efforts grows more significant with each passing day." The Coaches vs. Cancer campaign exceeded its $1 million goal last year when it raised $1.11 million in gross contributions. This year, the goal has been raised to $2.5 million. Coaches vs. Cancer uses fan contributions to assist the research, prevention education and patient services of the American Cancer Society. College fans can support their coach's program to help fight cancer by calling 1-800/345-TEAM (1-800/345-8326). -- Compiled by David Pickle
MilestonesJohn Miech, who has been involved in the University of Wisconsin, Stevens Point, athletics program for 19 years as a player, assistant coach and head coach, became the school's most-victorious football coach with a win September 14 over Iowa Wesleyan College in the 10th annual SPUD Bowl. Miech, in his ninth season as head coach of the Pointers, reached a mark of 57-24-2 and surpassed Duaine Counsell in football victories at Wisconsin-Stevens Point. Counsell was 56-33-4 in 11 seasons.Indiana University, Bloomington, head women's volleyball coach Katie Weismiller garnered her 100th career win August 31 when the Hoosiers downed Ohio University at the South Florida Invitational. The win brought Weismiller's six-year career record to 100-73 and her four-year mark at Indiana to 50-49. Ken Sparks, who is in his 17th season as head football coach at Carson-Newman College, recorded his 150th career victory September 5 when his Eagles defeated Lane College in the 1996 opener. The 1968 Carson-Newman graduate is now 150-40-2, all at his alma mater. State University of New York at Binghamton women's tennis coach Curt Coutts recorded his 200th career win when the Colonials defeated Nazareth College in their season-opening match. Coutts, in his 22nd year as head coach, is 200-121 overall. His teams have won nine consecutive State University of New York Athletic Conference championships and 11 in the event's 13 years. Principia College athletics director and men's soccer coach Seth Johnson earned his 100th career victory with a win against Illinois Wesleyan University August 31. During Johnson's 11-year Principia coaching career, he has led the Panthers to three conference championships. Steve Adlard, men's soccer coach at Marquette University, recorded his 100th career victory September 22 with a win over DePaul University. Mississippi State University women's volleyball coach Samye Johnson notched her 500th career win September 21 in competition at the Jacksonville University Invitational. In improving her 20-year career mark to 500-254, Johnson became the 19th college volleyball coach to reach the 500-win mark and now ranks 16th among NCAA Division I coaches in wins. She is in her third season at Mississippi State, where she also serves as the school's senior woman administrator.
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Erik Drygas, a 6-foot-3, 215-pound defenseman on the University of Alaska Fairbanks men's ice hockey team, pursued a puck into the corner during practice. There was no contact, but he lost his footing and went head-first into the boards. In the blink of an eye, he suffered a fracture of his C-5 vertebra.
