Division II Football Committee Chair Kevin Buisman, athletics director at Minnesota State University, Mankato, submitted the following as a testament to Division II’s game-environment initiative.

Division II’s focus on game environment enjoyed a success story during the football championship semifinal between Northwest Missouri State University and Grand Valley State University December 8.

Both institutions exhibited numerous acts of great sportsmanship in the week leading up to their semifinal game, during the game itself, and right through to the postgame press conference.
Although these ideals are expected, they are not always demonstrated in such an evident manner. Having played for the national championship in each of the past two years, the respect the players and the institutions had for one another was clearly demonstrated. It was refreshing to see a game where there was no trash talking, gamesmanship or other quibbling — everything was settled between the lines and on the football field.

Here are just a few examples of the great sportsmanship demonstrated between the two programs:
Tim Selgo, athletics director at Grand Valley State, developed a positive communication piece to diffuse concerns among fans and boosters about the semifinal site selection process. He followed that with a nice note the day after the game lauding the efforts of Northwest Missouri State as the host institution and wishing the Bearcats well in the championship game.

Mel Tjerdsma, head football coach at Northwest Missouri State, wrote a letter to fans, supporters and students that was posted to the athletics Web site, outlining his expectations for fan behavior and encouraging respect and good sportsmanship for Grand Valley State players, coaches and fans.
Northwest Missouri State did a great job in all aspects of game management behind the leadership of Athletics Director Bob Boerigter, but the institution took hospitality to another level by posting signs at the stadium and in many area hotels welcoming Grand Valley State fans and supporters.

Finally, Chuck Martin, head coach at Grand Valley State, exhibited great sportsmanship late in his team’s 36-14 loss, coming all the way over to the visiting sideline and entering the Northwest Missouri State huddle to let their coaches know that he was pulling his starters and was basically going to run out the final three minutes of the game. When asked during the postgame press conference why he did that, Martin said it was because he had a great deal of respect for the Northwest Missouri State program and didn’t want to see anybody hurt in a game that was already decided as the Bearcats prepared to play for a national championship. Coach Tjerdsma said he had never seen anything like that in all his years of football, but he felt that it was a classy thing to do and that he had all of the respect in the world for coach Martin because of it.

I am sure that was not an easy thing for coach Martin to do, as he saw his program’s 40-game winning streak and reign as two-time defending champion come to a close, but he did something at game’s end that was equally impressive. Clearly exasperated by the loss, he took the time to pick his way back through the maze of Northwest Missouri State fans who flooded the field and returned to his sideline to offer a salute to the Lakers pep band that had made the 10-hour journey from Allendale, Michigan, before hustling off the field to join his players in the locker room. On the flip-side, Coach Tjerdsma opened his postgame press conference by acknowledging all of the work that the facilities staff and grounds crew had put in to get the stadium and field prepared for play after receiving six inches of snow in the days leading up to the game.

I could go on and on, but suffice it to say, as chair of the NCAA Division II Football Committee, it was both an honor and a pleasure to work at a game in which all of the best qualities from both institutions — and from Division II — came shining through.

Kevin Buisman
Director of Athletics
Minnesota State University, Mankato