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University of Central Missouri Athletics

Howdeshell Update 2025

General

UCM Athletics Quarterly Update from Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Matt Howdeshell

From University of Central Missouri Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Matt Howdeshell:

Hello, UCM Nation,

We wanted to take 15 minutes and update you on all the exciting things happening around UCM Athletics. I'd encourage you to enjoy Greg Hassler and I's conversation above about all the great things our student-athletes and coaches are doing. If you're short on time, we have summarized our conversation below:
  • Mules & Jennies Winter Sports Recap:
    • All our winter sport student-athletes and sports demonstrated exceptional growth and progress
      • Both Mules & Jennies Basketball qualified for the quarterfinals of the MIAA Tournament for the first time since 2018.
    • Mules Basketball
      • Kyran Tilley recognized as MIAA Freshman of the Year
      • Mules Basketball continued to show great growth under the second year of Coach Adam Bohac
      • Showed outstanding grit and determination throughout the season, and the culture of Mules Basketball is changing for the better
    • Jennies Basketball
      • Growth year for Jennies Basketball under Coach Dave Slifer with many new players
      • Reese Schaaf named All-American and MIAA Newcomer of the Year
    • Mules Wrestling
      • Jakason Burks won the 125 lb national championship, UCM's first since 2015
      • With Burks, Mules Wrestling had three All-Americans: Damon Ashworth & John Ridle
      • Finished seventh at the NCAA National Tournament, the highest finish in program history
      • Tremendous continued growth under Coach Cody Garcia
    • Mules & Jennies Indoor Track & Field
      • Wrapped up indoor season with five All-MIAA Athletes: Mellanie Nellmer, Myah Morris, Cooper Palmer, Reagan Ulrich, Mules 4x400m relay
      • Two All-Americans performed above the rest at the National Championship: Rachael Molly and Rawley Chard
    • Jennies Bowling
  • Hall of Fame:
    • UCM Athletic Hall of Fame
      • Another great group of outstanding student-athletes inducted into the 2025 UCM Athletic Hall of Fame Class
      • This group should really be celebrated because of how hard it is to get into the UCM Athletics Hall of Fame, due to our tradition of Excellence
      • Inductees accolades included: 11 MIAA Championships, 15 All-MIAA Accolades, 3 Regional Championships, 3 National Championships
    • MIAA Hall of Fame
      • UCM will feature two inductees:
        • Kathy Anderson (administrator): Will be the first two-time inductee, previously as a student-athlete and now as an administrator
        • Mark Burrell: Former UCM National Champion, and first individual wrestler to be inducted into the MIAA Hall of Fame
    • Zach Zebrowski Two-Time Harlon Hill Trophy Presentation
      • Zach was presented with his SECOND Harlon Hill trophy on Friday February 21st.
        • He is only the fifth student-athlete in the history of NCAA D-II Football to win the Harlon Hill Trophy twice
        • It was an outstanding time to celebrate a great athlete and a great person who has left a lasting impact on UCM
        • Even though this is an individual award, it would not be possible without the support of so many people, including but not limited to, his teammates, coaches, our supporters, and you – Mule Nation! Thank you!
  •  Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL):
    • College athletics is changing rapidly and NIL has probably impacted it the most over the last two years
    • At UCM, we want to continue to compete at the high-end of NCAA D-II for national championships, and NIL is something our competitors have embraced.
    • We want to be on the forefront of NCAA D-II and ensure our student-athletes and coaches have the resources they need to succeed
    • NIL allows student-athletes to profit off their Name, Image, and Likeness, by partnering with business, alumni, donors, or supporters.
    • Personnel: To manage this changing landscape, we have elevated Bree Heathscott to our Assistant AD for Student-Athlete Success and NIL
      • Bree will serve as the point person for our student-athletes, recruits, coaches, community members, and supporters who want to learn more about NIL.
    • Fee-Free Marketplace
      • Last spring UCM Athletics became the first NCAA D-II Athletic Department to feature a fee-free marketplace.
      • Football Alum Brett Ginn and founder of Ginn Wealth Management has helped sponsor the marketplace and helped us launch it.
      • The marketplace allows our student-athletes to maximize 100% of the profits from their NIL deals, without anyone taking a cut of the transaction.
      • Intended for lower level NIL transactions targeted at specific student-athletes
    • Central Stable Collective
      • Recently announced the launch of the Central Stable Collective
      • Allows supporters to give to specific teams in their NIL efforts
      • TheCentralStable.com
    • UCM is the first NCAA D-II Athletic department to provide our student-athletes with both a fee-free marketplace and a collective
    • Giving Model – With the addition of NIL, we have updated our giving model.
      • Cardinal & Black Fund is the foundational support of UCM Athletics and supports the operational budgets of all our sports.
      • Corporate Partnerships, Ticket Sales, & Excellence Funding support are all critical to continue to move our athletic department forward.
      • In this new era, we have added NIL to our giving model, and we ask that NIL support is incremental to what our supporters are all ready doing to support UCM.
      • Just as we ask our student-athletes to give 110% on the field and in the classroom, we are asking the same of our supporters when it comes to NIL.
  • Facility Updates:
    • Facilities are important for recruiting as it is one of the first things they see, and makes a first impression on recruits.
    • Mules Wrestling Locker Room & Lounge
      • Dan Power & Gary Ervin committed a lead gift of $500,00 each ($1,000,000 total) to jump start the locker room project
      • Chris Heckadon & Jeron Quincy recently committed a joint gift of $250,000
      • $1.5 million is our goal, and we have over $1.3 million committed.
      • There are opportunities to sponsor a locker in the project for $5,000 each, over the course of 5 years, to help the project get over the finish line – click here for more info
    • Jennies Volleyball Locker Room & Lounge
      • We are over halfway to our fundraising goal for this project thanks to $250,000 and $200,000 lead gifts and a few other commitments.
      • If you are interested in supporting this project please contact myself or Billy Ukrazahenko at ukrazahenko@ucmo.edu or 660-543-4133. 
  • Mules & Jennies Spring Sports Preview:
    • Mules Baseball
      • Have been ranked consistently in the top in the country this season, recently reaching as high as first.
      • Coach Kyle Crookes became the winningest coach in Mules Baseball history. Congrats, Coach!
    • Jennies Softball
      • Booke Weimer threw the 24th no-hitter in program history and passed 200 career strikeouts as a sophomore
    • Outdoor Mules & Jennies Track & Field
      • Off to a strong start and hoping to carry over some of the positive momentum from the Indoor Track & Field Season.
      • Tucker Woolsey has recently announced his retirement. His impact on the program cannot be understated. Thank you, Tucker!
    • Jennies Golf
      • Our back-to-back defending MIAA Champions are off to a strong start.
      • They recently won their home event, the Midwest Intercollegiate.
      • They have been ranked in the top 25 rankings all season and were recently listed as first in the region in the initial regional rankings.
    • Mules Golf
      • Listed ninth in the initial regional rankings with one more tournament before the MIAA Championship.
  • Upcoming Events:
    • We have several upcoming events with opportunities to support our student-athletes:
      • Mules Baseball First Pitch Banquet: Saturday April 5
        • George Brett is our guest speaker
      • Mules Wrestling Golf Tournament: Friday April 11
      • Mules Wrestling Legends Banquet: Saturday April 12
      • Mules Football Golf Classic: Friday May 16
  • Thank You:
    • Thank you to all our donors, sponsors, and supporters!
      • Whether you are a member of the Cardinal & Black Fund, a corporate partner, or participate in the golf tournaments, these achievements would not be possible without you!
    • We are entering the renewal phase for next year for the Cardinal & Black Fund and our corporate partnerships.
      • We encourage you to renew early as it helps us with planning and budgeting for our coaches and student-athletes.
      • We've seen a lot of tremendous growth in both of these over the last year.
        • Cardinal & Black Fund membership has grown by over 120 percent
        • Corporate partnership revenue has grown by over 45 percent
    • Thank you for the collective progress we have made in these areas and for your support of our student-athletes.
Go Mules & Jennies!
 
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