CLEVELAND - The Division 2 Conference Commissioners Association (D2 CCA) is pleased to announce Richard Hannan, Ralph McFillen, Tim Selgo, Mel Tjeerdsma, Marvin Vanover and Sue Willey as its D2 CCA Meritorious Service award recipients.
"The D2 CCA is excited to honor this distinguished group of colleagues. They represent the strength and passion of Division II athletics while being committed to serving the institutions and student-athletes that make up the division." said D2 CCA President and Gulf South Conference Commissioner, Matt Wilson.
The D2 CCA Meritorious Service Award recognizes a commissioner with ten years of service once he/she leaves the position for the time and dedication they have made to Division II and is decided by the full CCA membership upon recommendation by the Awards Committee. In addition, other individuals, including but not limited to conference office staff, institutional staff members, or NCAA staff members are also eligible to be recognized with this award. The intent is to recognize these individuals once they retire or depart Division II; however, if an individual goes above and beyond in service to Division II, in particular, the CCA, they may be recognized even if they are still employed at a Division II conference office or institution.
Richard Hannan – GNAC
Hannan has been involved in intercollegiate athletics for more than three decades, and was appointed the first commissioner of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) in May 2001. Prior to taking over as commissioner, Hannan served as interim athletics director at Lewis-Clark State College (LCSC), where he developed an honorary coaches' program. He also helped organize the LCSC Warrior Booster Club, which became a substantial funding source for the college. The LCSC program made substantial growth during his tenure, correcting inequities in the women's sports programs, and adding the sports of men's and women's tennis. Hannan was the head basketball coach at LCSC between 1974 and 1989 and also served as athletics director at two NCAA Division I schools, Weber State University and Southwest Texas State University. During his tenure at Weber State, he implemented a student advisory board and created an academic support system for student-athletes. He also created a radio broadcasting program and coaches' television shows. Hannan was able to bring the game broadcasts, promotions, and marketing "in-house." At Southwest Texas State, Hannan was responsible for creating and developing the school's first athletics endowment fund, helping double the revenue production for the athletics department. He initiated a television program for football, adopted by the Southland Conference. He also developed and implemented a program to eliminate Title IX department deficiencies. Hannan is a member of the NAIA Hall-of-Fame and the NWAACC Hall-of-Fame.
Ralph McFillen – MIAA
In 1972, McFillen began his 40-year career in athletics as an assistant director of championships at the NCAA. In 1984, 12 years after working at the MIAA, McFillen became the commissioner for the Gulf South Conference. After three years, McFillen moved to the NCAA Division I level as the next commissioner for the Metro Conference. While at the Metro Conference, McFillen faced many obstacles, such as trying to expand the "super conference." In 1997, McFillen was hired as the second commissioner for the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA), an NCAA Division II school. During his time as commissioner, McFillen was able to secure a contract to air five football games on KSMO-TV in the Kansas City area in 1997. As a new millennium took over, the MIAA continued to make history under McFillen's leadership. On October 17, 2002, over 26,000 fans filed into Arrowhead Stadium to watch a rivalry game between Northwest Missouri State University and Pittsburg State University. The game is the largest crowd to watch a MIAA event and one of the largest crowds in NCAA Division II football history. In 2007, MIAA launched themiaa.tv, which was the portal to access live video of MIAA events on the internet. Other accomplishments during McFillen's term as commissioner were the addition of two schools – Fort Hays State University in 2006 and University of Nebraska Omaha in 2008.
Tim Selgo – Grand Valley State University
Selgo was the athletics director at Grand Valley State University (GVSU) for 20 years and put his stamp of leadership on Laker athletics. A promoter of a well-rounded athletics department, Selgo was a key figure in the Lakers' rise to the top of Division II athletics. GVSU finished among the top two in the LEARFIELD Directors' Cup standings for 14 consecutive years, including 10 titles (2004-11 and 2014-15). While GVSU was dominant nationally, the Lakers have also been a pillar of strength regionally and in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC), having won 17 straight GLIAC Presidents' Cup titles as the top athletics program in the 16-team GLIAC. GVSU, which won 45 GLIAC titles in the 24 years prior to Selgo's arrival, won 161 GLIAC titles in his 19 years as the GVSU athletics director. The Lakers also captured 18 NCAA Division II National Championships and 74 regional championships during his time at the helm. Selgo spent the 2015-16 year as the President of NACDA. He previously served as the Chair of the NCAA Management Council (2012), the top post in Division II athletics, following his four-year stint on the NCAA DII Management Council (2007-11). Selgo was also named the NACDA Division II AD of the Year three times (2003, 2007, 2013). He was a key figure in the development and enhancement of several athletics facilities and programs at GVSU. Selgo was inducted into the Toledo Athletics Hall of Fame in February of 2001 and into the Grand Rapids Sports Hall of Fame in the fall of 2015.
Mel Tjeerdsma – Northwest Missouri State University
In 27 years as a head coach, Tjeerdsma stocked up an outstanding record of 242-82-4. From 1984 to 1993, Tjeerdsma was the head coach for Austin College. Tjeerdsma moved on to Northwest Missouri State University (NMSU) in 1994. In just three years, Tjeerdsma took the program from 0-11 to 11-2, making their first playoff appearance since 1984. In 1998, he guided the Bearcats to a 15-0 record and the 1998 NCAA Division II National Championship. It was the first national title ever won by the Bearcats in any sport. NMSU would add a second straight title in 1999 and would go on to play in five more national championship games, winning a third title in 2009. At both Austin College and NMSU Tjeerdsma became the winningest coach in both programs' histories. Tjeerdsma was named AFCA Division II Coach of the Year four times (1998, 1999, 2008, 2009) and was a seven-time AFCA Regional Coach of the Year winner. In 2011, he led the United States national team to a title in the International Federation of American Football (IFAF) World Cup. In 2013, he became athletics director at NMSU, a post he would hold for five years. Tjeerdsma worked and chaired many committees. He served on the AFCA Board of Trustees for eight years, culminating as president of the association in 2006. Tjeerdsma is a member of the NCAA Division II Football, Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association, State of Missouri Sports, State of South Dakota Sports, and Northwest Missouri State's M-Club halls of fame. In 2018, he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.
Marvin Vanover – Peach Belt Conference
Vanover was the first commissioner of the Peach Belt Conference (PBC) and served in that capacity for 16 years. Beginning in 1989, Vanover became involved with the initial planning of the PBCand was asked to serve as interim commissioner in April 1990 for one year. He was named the PBC's first full-time commissioner in June of 1991. His term as commissioner followed a 25-year career as the head men's basketball coach and athletics director at Augusta University. In 1978, he led the team to their first NCAA Division II Tournament appearance. Coach Vanover received many accolades including the NAIA District 25 Coach of the Year and the Georgia Collegiate Coach of the Year from the Atlanta Tipoff Club for the 1969-70 season. It was also during this time that "Marvin Vanover Day" was declared in Augusta on February 14, 1970, and he was named a Kentucky Colonel by the Governor of his home state. He received a certificate of commendation from the mayor of Augusta and the Georgia state senate, and a commendation presented personally by the Governor of Georgia. He was named Coach of the Year in 1975-76 and 1980-81 from the South Atlantic Conference as he moved the Jaguar program to the NCAA Division II level. In 1980-81 he was also named Coach of the Year in the NCAA's south district by the National Association of Basketball Coaches. Vanover served as the commissioner of the South Atlantic Conference in 1981-82 and was instrumental in moving the Augusta College program up to the NCAA Division I.
Dr. Sue Willey – University of Indianapolis
Dr. Willey has been a part of the University of Indianapolis (UIndy) for 45 years, including 17 years as the vice president for intercollegiate athletics. Dr. Willey established UIndy as one of the top overall athletic programs in NCAA Division II. She was a two-time recipient of the Under Armour Division II Athletic Director of the Year award. Dr. Willey was selected as the 2005 Division II Administrator of the Year by the National Association of Collegiate Woman Athletic Administrators (NACWAA). She was also selected as the 2004 Pathfinder Award winner, presented in recognition of her strong commitment to providing quality sports and leadership opportunities for girls and women in the state of Indiana. Dr. Willey served a four-year (2006-10) term on both the NACWAA Executive Board and the DII Nominating Committee and is currently serving a four-year stint on the NCAA Division II Membership Committee that started in September 2010. She is also a graduate of the NACWAA Institute for Athletic Executives. From 2002-2006, Dr. Willey served on the highest NCAA Committee available to athletics administrators, the NCAA Division II Management Council, and served as chair of the Council in 2004. Her Management Council assignments included the DII Budget and Finance Committee, Student-Athlete Reinstatement Committee, Management Council Identity Subcommittee, Championships Regionalization Task Force, Project Team to Review Issues Related to Diversity, and the Championships Eligibility Project Team. The versatile Willey coached for 23 years at UIndy, directing 43 different teams in five sports. She was the GLVC Softball Coach of the Year in 1989, and her softball teams earned national academic honors in 1996 and 1997. Dr. Willey has proudly forged a path for women in athletics from the moment she was hired in 1975. Seeing firsthand how the roles of women have changed in the industry during her career, she has remained at the forefront of the fight for equal opportunity in sports. She broke barriers when she became the University's first female director of athletics and one of the first women to be a member of the President's Cabinet.
About D2 CCA: Initiated in 1992 to promote its member conferences and institutions, D2 CCA has made its mark in providing a united front for NCAA Division II athletics. Created after the break-up of the College Division Commissioners Association, the D2 CCA continues to create lines of communication and opportunities for its member conferences. The D2 CCA is administered by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA), which is in its 58th year. For more information on NACDA and the 18 professional associations that fall under its umbrella, please visit www.nacda.com.
