FB: American Rivers Conference

[Norsedad]

Mike Durnin is the new Head coach at Luther

[Klopenhiemer]

dang fingers....elbow still is right yet

I can't type well either...it's 52 degrees in my office...they can't seem to get the heater to work right

That's it I would just go home and work from the home office.  You can only take so much.  Besides the cookies would help.

I guess I should clarify.  I sort of have a semi-home office.  We now live at the family farm and my office is the old wash house next door to our house that had been converted into an apartment for my grandmother before she passed away.  I have now converted it into my office.  So I am actually about 20 ft from home as opposed to my old office that was 20 miles from home.  So my wife and her daycare kids are toasty warm next door while I am freezing over here at the office.  Kind of makes me not too commited to actually working, not that I usually need too much incentive to slack off!!! 

dog having issues with my HVAC as well.  Fighting with my building on a dust v. mold issue.  They say its duest I say its hold.  Waiting test for final final answer.  Point is they are saying to not run the heater.  My office is in home as well. 

[Norsedad]

here is a bit on Mr Durnin

Durnin will assume his duties at Luther immediately. He joins the Luther athletic department from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, where he has served as the defensive coordinator and defensive line coach for the past seven years. During this time, the Eagles produced an overall record of 48-26, capturing three Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championships and making four NCAA Division III National Championship appearances.

[doolittledog]

Klop, I wouldn't want to hear someone say "don't run your heater" when it's mid-december in Iowa!!!

Norsedad, Durnin sounds like a good hire.  Was that the coach that the players were wanting???

[Klopenhiemer]

Klop, I wouldn't want to hear someone say "don't run your heater" when it's mid-december in Iowa!!!

Norsedad, Durnin sounds like a good hire.  Was that the coach that the players were wanting???

I hear what your saying.  Except in Chicago and my office faces the river.  Great scenery in the summer, cold winds battering the glass in the winter

[Norsedad]

Yes I think so....well the one I know my son and his buds wanted.  The other was
Stan Zweifel from UWW.  I guess he was a bit over the top according to many players(or the ones that my son knows).  But it looks like Durnin has a great resume and a bent for Defense.  Many he can bring the Norse D back to where it was a couple of years ago.

[Klopenhiemer]

Yes I think so....well the one I know my son and his buds wanted.  The other was
Stan Zweifel from UWW.  I guess he was a bit over the top according to many players(or the ones that my son knows).  But it looks like Durnin has a great resume and a bent for Defense.  Many he can bring the Norse D back to where it was a couple of years ago.

What does a bit over the top mean? 

[TheOne89.1]

Mike Durnin is the new Head coach at Luther

Good pick up for the Norse.  Plenty of people in the La Crosse area and those close to the Eagles program have spoken highly of Durnin in the past.  Larry Terry is a great head coach who I am sure has passed on some great coaching knowledge to Coach Durnin.  UWL may not have had the season everyone was expecting this year, but they typically are top of the WIAC which is a very high quality conference in my opinion.

Maybe the Norse will be battling the Knights and Dutch as the top Def. in the IIAC.

[Norsedad]

Klop, I wouldn't want to hear someone say "don't run your heater" when it's mid-december in Iowa!!!

Norsedad, Durnin sounds like a good hire.  Was that the coach that the players were wanting???

I hear what your saying.  Except in Chicago and my office faces the river.  Great scenery in the summer, cold winds battering the glass in the winter

I know that....the Windy City can be murder in the winter.

[Floyd in Iowa City]

Yes I think so....well the one I know my son and his buds wanted.  The other was
Stan Zweifel from UWW.  I guess he was a bit over the top according to many players(or the ones that my son knows).  But it looks like Durnin has a great resume and a bent for Defense.  Many he can bring the Norse D back to where it was a couple of years ago.

Zweifel won the player vote by 4 over Durnin (26-22).  They were the top two candidates.  I have A LOT of questions about this hire.

I was holding off on saying anything about this hire until I actually saw the press release.  Let's just say that Zweifel was intense about what he was going to do with the program (from what I heard when he was talking to the players).  That really fired up some of the guys and it sounds like it perhaps scared some of them as well!  Stan actually had the nerve to say things like "you should want a coach who is going to recruit someone good enough to replace you!"  I love that someone was willing to say something like that in an interview process!

Did Zweifel want too much money?

Did he scare some people in the hiring committee by how intense and football driven he seemed to be?  I was hearing crappy questions about whether he would be a "good fit for the school."  As long as he was going to win within the rules and be professional in how he dealt with people, he was a good enough of a fit for me!

The LaCrosse coordinator has a fine resume and UW-LaCrosse is a better program than Luther since 1978, but there is no doubt in my mind from the resumes I saw that Stan Zweifel was clearly the most qualified candidate.

[Norsedad]

Since I was not there...Im going on what my son and the other 2 players I know well enough to read.  It sounded like his presentation was something along the lines of what the Michigan players got after the App. State game.  And a promise to beat Central in the next 2 or 3 years.  Now Im all for a guy who fires up players, although as much as I would like to see it, beating Central will take either the greatest recruiting year ever for Luther (or a really bad one for Central) or several years of very good recruiting.  Players like Sherden, Sweers, Scheetz, and Pearson, and Stavast dont come along often.  Im not saying that Luther cant do it.  Heck we played Central tough this year.  And I have stated before that Coe, UD and Luther (This year) would have been atop most of the conferences over here in Ill.  I just think, as it has been said on this board before, that Central and Wartburg get a great portion of the Iowa D3 talent.  Coe seems to do well also.  That is why you see UD, Loras and Luther.....even BV to an extent go for out-of-state players.  Luther needs to draw more on Chicago and N. Ill areas.  And we have former players at Curie (dbJay) and at East Aurora.  Hopefully Durnin can even bring a few in from Wisconsin.

[oldNorse]

There will be an interview with Mike Durnin in tomorrow's Waterloo Courier since the Courier had a reporter at the announcement this morning.  About 50 people attended.

I understand Durnin will interview with each of the assistant coaches to see what their plans are, how they might fit with his program and then will be on campus in early January.

[Floyd in Iowa City]

Stan Zweifel profile -

July 2007 to present - Beloit Memorial High School Athletic Director

January 1991 to May 2007 - University of Wisconsin-Whitewater Assistant Head Coach, Offensive Coordinator 6 Conference Championships, 2 Division III Championship Game Appearances.  In 16 seasons they won 75 WIAC conference games and lost 34.  This represents one of the highest conference winning percentages (sixty-eight percent) for any period in the history of UW-Whitewater football.

February 1987 to January 1991 - University of Minnesota-Morris Head Football Coach 22 Wins, 18 Losses, 1 Conference Championship (For those that know of this athletic program, he actually had a winning record at Morris!)

July 1985 to February 1987 - University of Northern Colorado Offensive Coordinator (Quarterbacks and Receivers Coach)

March 1983 to June 1985 - Yankton College Head Football Coach10 Wins, 8 Losses, 2 Ties (This school actually closed to end his tenure as the Yankton coach)

June 1981 to March 1983 - Mankato State University Offensive Coordinator (Quarterbacks and Receivers Coach)

June 1976 to June 1981 - New Ulm High School (New Ulm, Minnesota) Head Football Coach

September 1975 to June 1976 - Markesan High School (Markesan, Wisconsin) Head Football Coach

September 1974 to May 1975 - University of Wisconsin-River Falls Graduate Assistant (Receivers Coach)

He has written and published seven books on offensive football.  To supplement those books, he also has produced 37 videotapes, and been asked to speak at several local, state, and national football clinics on a wide variety of topics related to offensive football.

[Floyd in Iowa City]

Yes I think so....well the one I know my son and his buds wanted.  The other was
Stan Zweifel from UWW.  I guess he was a bit over the top according to many players(or the ones that my son knows).  But it looks like Durnin has a great resume and a bent for Defense.  Many he can bring the Norse D back to where it was a couple of years ago.

What does a bit over the top mean? 

I would like to know that as well!

[Norsedad]

Yes I think so....well the one I know my son and his buds wanted.  The other was
Stan Zweifel from UWW.  I guess he was a bit over the top according to many players(or the ones that my son knows).  But it looks like Durnin has a great resume and a bent for Defense.  Many he can bring the Norse D back to where it was a couple of years ago.

Zweifel won the player vote by 4 over Durnin (26-22).  They were the top two candidates.  I have A LOT of questions about this hire.

I was holding off on saying anything about this hire until I actually saw the press release.  Let's just say that Zweifel was intense about what he was going to do with the program (from what I heard when he was talking to the players).  That really fired up some of the guys and it sounds like it perhaps scared some of them as well!  Stan actually had the nerve to say things like "you should want a coach who is going to recruit someone good enough to replace you!"  I love that someone was willing to say something like that in an interview process!

Did Zweifel want too much money?

Did he scare some people in the hiring committee by how intense and football driven he seemed to be?  I was hearing crappy questions about whether he would be a "good fit for the school."  As long as he was going to win within the rules and be professional in how he dealt with people, he was a good enough of a fit for me!

The LaCrosse coordinator has a fine resume and UW-LaCrosse is a better program than Luther since 1978, but there is no doubt in my mind from the resumes I saw that Stan Zweifel was clearly the most qualified candidate.

I agree with you Floyd....although Im not sure it was that Zweifel scared players off.  Remember the players are used to Hefty and i can tell you Hefty got all his players, regardless talent... starter/non-starter....fired up and ready to contribute in anyway possible.  Clearly Durnin and Zweifel were the 2 best candidates.  It sounded like as I talked to the 3 guys I know that Durnin was closer to the kind of coach Hefty was.  As for the money issue Im not sure we would ever know the answer to that question.