Wittenberg is a place, and while the names may change, the stories, personalities and experiences do not.
What are Timmy and Hud doing here?
Being on the other side of our Wittenberg student experience, we now know that there is no one right path. The mission of our time together each show is to help you, our audience, know that there are many different paths to purpose, to experience, to success. Your path to Wittenberg, was different. Your path after Wittenberg, as ours is, will be different too. On our journey together, we are passing the light from the stories and experiences our fellow alumni are sharing with us.
Our Guests for this episode are Wittenberg Head Coach Melissa Kolbe and Head Coach Matt Croci.
Following two completely different paths to become head coach of their basketball programs, Kolbe, had no idea what she wanted to Major in while at Witt (changed major 5 times), but knew she wanted to be a D1 Coach. Never a head coach, but a great Assistant. On the other hand, Croci knew he wanted to be an English Major while here at Witt, but had no idea what he wanted to do after he graduated.
Let us dive a little deeper into their experiences:
Kolbe had no interest in coming to Wittenberg, until she met with Coach (Pam) Evans, a Wittenberg Hall of Fame legend, on a Campus Visit arranged by her dad. As Coach Evans, a lovingly fierce presence sat and talked with Melissa, about where she would/could be both at Witt and in Coach Evans basketball program. After that conversation, Melissa fell in love. Upon graduation in 1999 as a Psychology Major, Melissa set her sights on being a D1 assistant basketball coach with little head coach aspirations. Crafting a path from scratch, Kolbe’s path to coaching, culminating in assisting at University of Cincinnati, a division 1 college, with visibility to be the head coach there. Yet chose Witt, a DIII school…Why?...we will find out more together.
Croci, a ’94 English major graduate from Witt, never thought he would turn his playing years into coaching years. A winning Basketball team brought Matt to Wittenberg and shaped Matt into the person he has become. Arguably one of the best Wittenberg basketball players, possibly best Division III players of all time, Croci upon graduation, and some other meanderings, became the assistant coach for Capital, then became head coach at Kenyon, now Witt. All small DIII liberal arts colleges in Central Ohio. With Coach Brown’s retirement, Croci got the chance to return to his Alma Mater.
A few key facts to note:
· Both came back to Witt, a DIII school, because Wittenberg Athletics recruits to win Championships. That is unusual to an extreme.
· 60% of Wittenberg Students are student-athletes, so 6 our of every 10 students is involved in an athletic endeavor.
· D1 is an unbalanced experience. Both on the player and the coach side.
· College athletics are changing. From NIL where D1 players can get paid but may ride the bench (vs DIII players who pay to play) and the transfer portal affecting all levels of the college athletic experience.
From admissions, to recruiting, to running summer camps, to being a mental health coach, to helping find jobs/internships, to helping Wittenberg itself Fundraise, to student development both in the classroom, and on the court. Coaching on the court, as it turns out, is just a small part of the job.
From here on out, we will find out together, the deeper answers on Why Witt? What happened while they were here? And how they navigated to success?
