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| Photo illustration; football by Larry Radloff, d3photography.com |
Hilbert College added football this year, Eastern University is adding it in 2023, Centenary (La.) returns to the gridiron in 2024, Maine Maritime is working towards a comeback, and now, Calvin University is adding the sport as well.
The Knights, full members of the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association and archrivals of Hope College, will make sure The Rivalry comes to the gridiron for the first time. The school announced it was adding the sport, along with two others.
The university's announcement said football was coming in 2023, but in reality, it would be more accurate to say a football coach will be hired in 2023 and that a stadium will be under construction. A varsity program taking the field is more likely to happen in 2025.
The school's Board of Trustees voted on and approved the university’s athletics strategic plan, which includes adding women's acrobatics and tumbling, men’s volleyball, and football to its portfolio of NCAA Division III athletic offerings. It also calls for an exploration of expanded ice hockey programs, including adding a women’s team.
“We are one of the premier athletics programs in all of Division III and so why not add more offerings that meet the needs of our students,” said Wiebe Boer, president of Calvin University. “By adding these sports, we are providing students who have competed throughout high school the opportunity to get the best Christian liberal arts education around and continue in the sport they love. It’s a win-win.”
Boer's inauguration as Calvin's president took place earlier this week.
The athletics strategic plan also includes a significant renovation and expansion of Calvin’s outdoor athletic facilities, including the construction of new outdoor facilities for soccer, lacrosse, and football. Searches for head coaches in men’s volleyball and women's acrobatics and tumbling are underway, with a search for a Calvin football coach kicking off in early November.