THE HUNTINGTON HERITAGE
"I've always loved watching the Foresters. Whether it's Brodie stripping the ball from his guy, witnessing Porter's dunks, watching Adam Hill take over a game, seeing Thwaits get every rebound in sight or Verba leading a fast break, they haven't skipped a beat.
"I think every group of seniors has been taught by the previous group, just like Brod, Shep, Ebs and I learned from guys like Steve Biberstine, Derek Sheridan, and Brandon Murphy. It continues with guys like Adam Hill, Ryan Thwaits and Derek Yoder, Chase Verba and Steve Snider. They have all provided that same type of leadership and they've passed it on to the next class.
"They've led by example and they've led by getting in people's faces when it was needed. I can't really express in words the pride I feel to have been a part of a program that has been so successful and yet so classy at the same time. I still celebrate every win and agonize over those rare losses on the court."
RIP'S WORDS OF WISDOM
Ryan offers these words of advice to the Foresters:
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"Continue to work hard all year long, polish your game, turn your weaknesses into strengths and continue to love your teammates, and love winning so much that you don't care who gets the credit. That's the foundation of this program."
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While Ryan Ripke may never be known for his statistical records at Huntington, he will certainly be known and well remembered for what he has done to help make Forester basketball the awesome program that it has become. Thanks Ryan!
- by Ryan Thwaits
Huntington Defies the Odds as well as the Opposition
A VERY COMPETITIVE PROGRAM
Everyone in the MCC knows Huntington will be competitive on the hardwood. And they know it in the NAIA, too. After eleven seasons under Coach Platt, the Foresters have a 246-112 record (a 69% win ratio), three MCC Conference titles, three MCC Tournament Championships, and five NAIA National Tournament appearances (all in the last 6 years). |
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The Foresters have been rated as high as #2 in the NAIA Division II (out of 150 schools across the US, some with over 10,000 students) and they were rated in the Top 10 of the NAIA all of last season.
A BIT OF DAVID AND GOLIATH
Everyone knows HU will compete, but many don't know that HU has one of the smaller basketball programs in the NAIA and in the MCC.
In fact, many of the MCC programs don't match up well against schools they meet at the NAIA tournament.
Newman University, the Foresters' last opponent in Branson, had 34 players: 18 on their varsity team, 16 on their JV team, plus 6 guys on the coaching staff (that's three times the size of last year's HC program).
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SCHOLARSHIPS - AN EQUALIZER?
The only factor that tends to equalize competition for the Foresters is a limit on varsity scholarship awards. The total amount that any NAIA D2 school can award its varsity basketball players cannot exceed the equivalent of six full-ride scholarships.
This seems to equalize things, but scholarships to red-shirt and JV players are excluded. Since there is no limit on the overall basketball budget, one school may spend several times more money than another, give out more total scholarships (counting JV team members) than another, and still remain within the rules of the NAIA.
SOURCE OF SCHOLARSHIP FUNDS
One would hope that Huntington could at least meet the varsity scholarship award quota but, if you've been
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around Huntington basketball very long, you know that the University budget provides only about half of the amount allowed by the NAIA.
The other half, if it is to exist, must come from corporate sponsorships, a benefit Golf Outing in the summer, a benefit Meet-the-Team Dinner in the fall, and individual donations.
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We know the young men Coach Platt recruits deserve scholarships. They are real students, fine young men of character, dedicated to a demanding regimen that exceeds that required of most college students.
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