Mike Welch (American football)

Mike Welch
Sport(s) Football
Biographical details
Born June 11, 1951 (1951-06-11) (age 60)
Playing career
Ithaca
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1980–1984
1984–1994
1994–present		 Wash-St. Louis (off. coord.)
Ithaca (linebackers)
Ithaca
Head coaching record
Overall 128–46
Statistics
College Football Data Warehouse

Mike Welch (born June 11, 1951) is an American football coach. He has been the head football coach at Ithaca College since 1994 and has led the team to a winning record in all 16 seasons as head coach. He has compiled a record of 128–46 for a winning percentage of .736.

Contents

Athlete

Welch attended high school in Dansville, New York, where he played football at the halfback and linebacker positions.

Welch enrolled at Ithaca College athletics in 1969 and played both football and lacrosse.[1] He played for Ithaca's varsity football team under College Football Hall of Fame coach Jim Butterfield from 1970 to 1972. After missing most of his sophomore year with an ankle injury, Welch gained 467 yards on 117 carries as a junior in 1971. As a senior in 1972, he played fullback and was selected as the team captain. He gained 257 yards on 61 attempts in 1972.[2]

Coaching career

Rush-Henrietta High School

Welch graduated from Ithaca in 1973 and worked from 1973 to 1976 as an assistant football coach at Rush-Henrietta High School in Rochester, New York.[1]

Albany

In 1976, Welch became the offensive backs coach and later the defensive line coach at the University of Albany. He also received a master's degree in education from Albany in 1977.

Washington University in St. Louis

Welch accepted the offensive coordinator position at Washington University in St. Louis in 1980 and remained there for four years.

Ithaca College

In 1984, Welch returned to Ithaca College as the school's linebacker coach. He later recalled, "Coming back to Ithaca College as a coach became a goal of mine once I started coaching at the college level. This was and continues to be one of the best small college coaching jobs in the country. For Division III, it does not get much better than Ithaca College."[1] Welch spent ten years as an assistant coach at Ithaca, and during that time, the football team won national championships in 1988 and 1991, made NCAA playoff appearances in 1985, 1986, 1990, and 1992, and participated in the Eastern College Athletic Conference ("ECAC") playoffs in 1984 and 1987.[2]

Welch took over as the head football coach in 1994 and, in his first season, led the Ithaca Bombers football team to a 10-3 record and a berth in the NCAA playoffs. Between 1994 and 2009, Welch led Ithaca to 16 consecutive winning seasons, a 128-46 record, and a .736 winning percentage.[3] His teams have made the NCAA playoffs in 1994, 2001 and 2003 and the ECAC playoff participant in 1996, 1998 and 1999.[2] His best seasons as a head coach at Albany were: 2001, with an 11-2 record (.846 winning percentage) outscoring opponents 446 to 207; and 2004, with a 9-2 record (.818 winning percentage) outscoring opponents 420 to 150.[3]

In 2006, Welch was elected to the American Football Coaches Association Board of Trustees. He is married to the former Susan Price with whom he has two children, Jessica and Jeff.[2]

Head coaching record

Year Team Overall Conference Standing Bowl/playoffs
Ithaca Bombers (Eastern College Athletic Conference) (1994–2001)
1994 Ithaca 10–3
1995 Ithaca 5–4
1996 Ithaca 7–3
1997 Ithaca 7–3
1998 Ithaca 9–2
1999 Ithaca 7–4
2000 Ithaca 7–3
2001 Ithaca 11–2
Ithaca Bombers (Empire 8) (2002–2009)
2002 Ithaca 7–3
2003 Ithaca 10–3
2004 Ithaca 9–2
2005 Ithaca 8–3
2006 Ithaca 7–3
2007 Ithaca 8–3
2008 Ithaca 9–2
2009 Ithaca 7–3
Ithaca: 128–46
Total: 128–46
      National championship         Conference title         Conference division title

References

  1. ^ a b c Mbeti Hyess and Michael Warwick (Jan. 2009). "'We Are Family': Football Coach Mike Welch '73". Ithaca College View. http://www.ithaca.edu/icview/6297/. 
  2. ^ a b c d "2008 Football Coaching Staff: Mike Welch". Ithaca Bombers Official Site. http://bombers.ithaca.edu/coaches.aspx?rc=432&path=football. 
  3. ^ a b "Mike Welch Records by Year". College Football Data Warehouse. http://www.cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/coaching/alltime_coach_year_by_year.php?coachid=4469. 

External links