Season Updates

Pre-Season Report - 9/3/04

Good day to everyone and welcome to the first Greenville College Football Update of this 2004 Football Season.

We are days away from our first football game of the 2004 season. It is an exciting time of final preparations.

The team has been working diligently since mid-August and is ready to move from the pre-season stage to actual games.

The roster has now stabilized at 78 football players. Of these, 46 were not on the roster last year, either because they were totally new to Greenville College (42 in that category) or they were in the student body last year and have now decided to come out for football this Fall.

The 78 players are 15 more than last season’s roster size (63). We are very encouraged in our continuing growth in numbers, both in returning players and new student-athletes.

Additionally, the roster represents players from 17 states and two foreign countries (Canada and Spain).

It is great for us to have such a national flavor on the team and is consistent with our philosophy of having a diverse roster. As we say when we are recruiting student-athletes, we have all varieties of players; black and white, rich and poor, city and rural, highly skilled and not so skilled, academically astute and academically at risk and folks from the northern, southern, eastern and western U.S.

The bottom line is, WE WANT THEM ALL, if they wish to join our football family.

FYI - The Breakdown by state is:

Illinois – 41

California – 8

Washington, Colorado and Indiana – 4 each

Texas – 3

Oregon and Ohio – 2 each

Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Louisiana, Tennessee, Kentucky, Kansas and New Mexico – 1 each

International – 2 (1 each from Spain and Canada)

These new players and the returning players from last season have been a tremendous group to work with these last few weeks. They are a GREAT FIT with Greenville College and our Football Program philosophy and direction.

Consequently, due to the uniquely positive character and attitudes that our players have displayed in this early season, we have the best opportunity yet in my 3 years here to reach the goal of the Greenville College Football Program as summed up in our Mission Statement:

1) to Glorify God in all things and at all times.

2) to use the sport of college football to Train Leaders, to Build Team and to Grow Men.

FOOTBALL STAFF UPDATE

Two new coaches have joined us this season, joining four others who have returned from last season.

The new coaches are Beau Drake who joins us from Coral Springs Christian Academy in Florida and Andy Peterson, most recently an assistant coach at Marantha Baptist Bible College.

The returning coaches are Defensive Coordinator Rich Stewart and Offensive Coordinator Kyle Krober, Defensive Back coach Ordell Walker and Offensive Line coach David Banks

UPCOMING SEASON SCHEDULE

We will be undertaking the most ambitious and challenging schedule in the history of Greenville college football, having scheduled 3 non-conference games against programs that have been rated in the top 25 in their respective divisions.

We open with Trinity International University (Chicago) who finished #18 in the NAIA poll last season. Our second game is against Wheaton College (Chicago), a top 10 Division III team who has been to the national playoffs both of the last two seasons. Additionally, we finish the year with our 3rd top 25 team, Washington University of St Louis, who began the year #23 in one Division III poll.

Finally, a BIG THANK YOU to our Greenville College Football Booster Club which has been a great encouragement to us by their prayers and in their financial support this last year. Many individuals have helped us as we continue to build and develop a Football Program that “Aims for Perfection” in all we do and say (If you are interested in joining our Greenville College Football Booster Organization, please contact our Football Office at 618-664-6727)

Peace to you, and may God in Jesus Christ be with us all.

Coach Kess