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UMD Athletic Director Bob Nielson
Now in its 77th year of operation, the University of Minnesota Duluth offers one of the most competitive and well-balanced intercollegiate athletic programs of its size in the nation.
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Fourteen of UMD’s 16 varsity teams–baseball, men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s cross country, football, women’s soccer, softball, women’s tennis, men’s and women’s indoor and outdoor track and field, and volleyball–will begin their fourth, and final year of competition in the North Central Conference this season (they rejoin the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference in 2008-09). Arguably one of the country’s top Division II alliances, the NCC has produced no less than 43 NCAA II championship teams and over 250 national individual titleholders since it joined the NCAA ranks 58 years ago. The UMD men’s and women’s ice hockey programs, meanwhile, are aligned with the prestigious Western Collegiate Hockey Association, an NCAA Division I circuit.
During the course of the 2006-07 athletic season, the Bulldogs qualified for NCAA post-season play in softball, women’s tennis (which, at 17-4, posted its best record ever), volleyball, women’s hockey, and men’s and women’s cross country. The volleyball Bulldogs paid their second visit to the NCAA II Elite Eight in four years while the UMD women advanced all the way to championship game of the NCAA I Frozen Four hockey tournament.
On the individual front, seven Bulldogs attained All-American status in their respective sports one year ago. That group included junior Vicky Braegelmann, who was also selected the American Volleyball Coaches Association Division II Co-Player of the Year -- the first UMD athlete (female or male) to ever receive a national honor of this type in a NCAA II sport, sophomore Katie Ganglehoff (volleyball), senior Rachel Langseth (volleyball), senior Noemie Marin (hockey), Liz Palkie (track), junior Kari Wolford (volleyball) and senior Katie Winkelman (basketball). In addition, junior Eric Atkinson represented UMD at the NCAA II Cross Country Championships.
The man in charge of supervising the Bulldogs is Bob Nielson, who officially became the school’s director of intercollegiate athletics on December 1, 2003, following a successful five-year head-coaching tenure with the football Bulldogs. Nielson will return to the UMD sidelines this fall as he was reappointed at the Bulldogs' head coach this past January. During his half decade of service, Nielson helped take the UMD football program to unprecedented heights. In 2002, for example, his Bulldogs posted their only perfect 11-0 regular season record to date and advanced to the NCAA Division II playoffs for the first time. One year earlier, UMD made its inaugural post-season appearance (the Mineral Water Bowl in Excelsior Springs, Mo.) and finished 9-3 on the year. He concluded his UMD coaching career with an overall record of 38-19 for a .667 winning percentage–the best figure in school history.
Nielson, the 2002 NSIC Coach of the Year and a runner-up for the American Football Monthly magazine NCAA II Coach of the Year award, joined the UMD staff after guiding the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire to the semifinal round of the 1998 NCAA III playoffs. He amassed a three-year mark of 22-11 with the Blugolds, including a 10-3 record in his farewell season when Wisconsin-Eau Claire claimed a share of its first Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference title in 15 years while setting a school mark for victories. A native of Marion, Iowa, Neilson also spent five years (1991-95) as the head coach at his alma mater, Wartburg (Iowa) College where he strung toegher five succesive non-losing seasons and two years at Ripon (Wis) College (1989-90). He doubled as the athletic director during his five seasons at Wartburg.
MISSION STATEMENT
Department of Intercollegiate Athletics
University of Minnesota Duluth
Intercollegiate Athletics for men and women is an integral part of the
University of Minnesota Duluth. The athletic programs offered at UMD
benefit not only the physical and mental well-being of the
participants, but also the community in which the University is located.
The primary mission of the Department of Intercollegiate Athletics is
to provide an opportunity for educational benefits, personal growth,
and development while adhering to the philosophy that an athletic
program should provide an outlet for students with the talent to
participate in intercollegiate sports.
Student athletes at UMD are put into an environment in which they can
succeed in their competitive sport and progress toward a college degree
at an outstanding academic institution with the availability of
financial assistance if needed. Reaching maturity through athletic
experiences and developing personal values such as dedication,
discipline, responsibility, and leadership are but a few of the skills
athletics provide which attributes to the growth of its participants.
All programs are operated in compliance with its own institutional
rules as well as the rules of the NCAA and other conferences
where applicable.
Another important mission of Intercollegiate Athletics at UMD is to
augment the goodwill and integrity of the University. Through its many
spectator sports, UMD athletic programs serve as a bridge between the
community and the University. Enhancing the University experience of
all students, participants and non-participants alike, develops
community and school spirit as well as a strong public image for the
University through area involvement and support.
Intercollegiate Athletics provides excellent guidance and academic
assistance for the student athlete in obtaining a meaningful degree.
To meet this mission, the department developed the Athletic Academic
Support Center, through which has been built a tradition of
high-achieving student athletes. Our incoming recruits and
upperclassmen receive the best chance that is possible at success in
the classroom and on the field of play.
The primary goal of every student attending the University of
Minnesota Duluth is to receive a degree, and the Athletic Department
provides its participants sound academic planning to ensure that each
student athlete has every opportunity to attain that goal.
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