Coach Ken Hatfield Visits NLC Men's MAFIA

Coach Hatfield is coming on Tuesday 9/8 – ARE YOU?

Greetings Hitmen,

Just a quick reminder that Coach Ken Hatfield will be addressing the MAFIA on Tuesday, September 9, 2009 at 6:30 PM at the Greater Little Rock campus.  The Godfather and I look forward to seeing you there – capiche?

In His service,

Luke Ribich

MAFIA Prayer Request

Good morning Hitmen,

It was brought to the attention of the MAFIA that one of our NLC youth, Aubrey Bradbury, was hurt in a motorcycle accident last evening.  We have been specifically asked to pray for Aubrey and his family in this difficult time.

In His service,

Luke Ribich

Getting to Know Next Month’s MAFIA Special Guest: Coach Ken Hatfield

To say that Ken Hatfield is unique among college football coaches nationally and in Conference USA may be understating a very obvious point. What separates Hatfield from the rest of the coaching profession is his ability to produce champions, both on and off on the field.

As many of you know Coach Hatfield was scheduled to speak to NLC in the fall of 2008.  The evening of the event arrived and many of you turned out to welcome what may consider th4e “Head Hog.”  Unfortunately Coach Hatfield had to cancel at the last minute to be with is beloved wife.  Prayers and blessings have gone out by the NLC Men’s MAFIA Ministry ever since to Coach Hatfield through this difficult year.

On Tuesday September 8th at 6:30 PM Coach Ken Hatfield will be giving a very special make-up appearance at NLC for the MAFIA.  He will be sharing a very personal story based upon his life experiences.  The NLC MAFIA Leadership Team is asking every man and boy to gather up his teammates and pals to hear one of the most influential, humble and impacting figures of faith and football known to Arkansas and the NCAA.

In addition to his legacy at the University of Arkansas, Hatfield has led highly-successful programs at Air Force, Rice and Clemson.  Coach Hatfield was head coach at the U.S. Air Force Academy when the Falcons entered the WAC in 1980, and three years later he was the coach of the year, not only in the league but nationally as well. In his first Rice season, he became only the second Southwest Conference coach to win a league championship at two different schools.

That Hatfield has enjoyed such success in all his coaching stops should come as no shock. To paraphrase the old saying, look up integrity, character and ability in the coaching dictionary, and you'll find Hatfield's picture next to the definitions.

His peers in the coaching profession recognize those qualities in Hatfield's character. An active leader as the 2004 president of the American Football Coaches Association, he is also served as president of the American Football Coaches Foundation, the charitable arm of the AFCA.

The national coach of the year in 1983 at Air Force, the 62-year-old native of Helena, Ark., has been successful at every coaching stop. He led the Air Force to successive bowl trips in 1982-83, then took Arkansas to dominance in the SWC with six bowl trips in his six seasons in Fayetteville. The Houston Post named Hatfield the SWC's coach of the decade in the 1980's. The Razorbacks were league champions in 1988 and '89 before he moved on to Clemson. By winning another title in his first season back in the league, Hatfield joined a short list of SWC coaches who won three straight titles.

Clemson remained one of the best programs in college football under Hatfield. His first team in 1990 compiled a 10-2 record, including a 30-0 win over Illinois in the Hall of Fame Bowl in Tampa, Fla. The '91 squad won the ACC championship, and the '93 team went 8-3 to win a berth in the Peach Bowl vs. Kentucky. All four of his Clemson teams spent time ranked among the nation's top 20 teams.

Hatfield's college playing career was a fitting prelude to his coaching prosperity. An academic all-America selection for Arkansas' 1964 national champions, he led the nation in punt returns in both 1963 and '64 after a second-place finish as a sophomore in 1962. He remains the only college player to finish in the top two in punt returns for three straight seasons and his 16.2 yard average on 70 career returns still ranks 12th in NCAA history.

As most of you are no-doubt aware, his most memorable play took place against Texas in 1964 when he raced 81 yards with a punt return for a touchdown in the Hogs' 14-13 victory. It was the key win in Arkansas' championship season. Altogether, Hatfield scored five TDs on punt returns, including a record 95-yard effort vs. Tulsa in 1963.

He immediately went into coaching after graduation, first at the high school level and then as an assistant coach at Army, Tennessee, Florida and Air Force. In 13 seasons as an assistant, he helped teams to seven bowl games and was part of a SEC championship at Tennessee in 1969.

In 1978, he was named offensive coordinator at Air Force on Bill Parcells' coaching staff. A year later, Parcells was wooed to the professional game and Hatfield had his first head coaching position.

The Falcons had not had a winning season since 1973, but by his fourth season Hatfield had led the Academy to an 8-5 record and a Hall of Fame Bowl win over Vanderbilt. In 1983, the Falcons went 10-2, including wins over Notre Dame, Navy and Mississippi in the Independence Bowl. Hatfield won the Bobby Dodd Award as the national coach of the year and was selected by the American Football Coaches Association as its national honoree.

Returning to Arkansas in 1984, the Razorbacks became the SWC's dominant team during his tenure. His Arkansas squads compiled a 55-17-1 record and appeared in the Liberty, Holiday, Orange and Cotton Bowls. The 1988-89 teams won SWC championships and he was the league's coach of the year in '88.

At Clemson in 1990-93, Hatfield compiled a 32-13-1 record, topped by the 10-2 mark in '90 and the ACC title in '91.

Hatfield-coached teams have excelled offensively and defensively, but they have been particularly successful in rushing offense and defense. Each of his last 18 teams have finished in the top-20 nationally in rushing offense, including 10 top-10 finishes. The 2002 Owls were second nationally, only trailing Nebraska in the category. In 2003, Rice again ranked second, this time trailing Navy. Two of his last four Arkansas teams finished in the top three in the country in turnover margin, including the '88 team which has first in the nation. Defensively, his clubs have finished in the top 15 in rushing defense in six of the last 11 years. In 1990, Clemson was first nationally in total defense, second in rushing defense and second in scoring defense.

An accounting major who earned his degree in 1965, Hatfield was the recipient of the Swartz Award, presented annually to Arkansas' top student-athlete. The 1964 all-SWC pick was inducted into the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame in 1989 and was a member of the Razorbacks' all-time team selected to celebrate the university's grid centennial in 1994.

He is widowed and survives his wife Sandy Wright of Kennett, Mo., a champion cowgirl who competed as a barrel-racer on the professional rodeo circuit.

ATTENTION ALL HITMEN – NLC Needs A HIT!

Greetings Hitmen,

I hope that this message finds you all well and in good spirits.  As many of you know, the old church campus has been for sale or lease since our congregation moved out last Summer.  That said, a lesser has been found and the church’s remnants need to be removed to our MAFIA storage units in order to properly prepare the facilities for its new tenant.

We are going to schedule at least one, if not two, times to meet and remove the NLC items from the old building.  We are scheduling our first HIT for this Wednesday (August 19, 2009) at 6:00 PM.  We will meet at the old church and load-out the items to the MAFIA storage unit(s) at the Gateway Storage facility on Maumelle Blvd.  The remaining items include a few beds, chairs and other furnishing odds and ends.  We will plan on working on the HIT only until about 8:30 PM so that those of you with families will be able to be home early enough to check the kids homework!

I am asking any volunteers to call me on my cell at 501/944-0562 and let me know your ability to be there.  I really would like to get at least 6 to 8 bodies so that we can expedite things and possibly avoid the Saturday option.

In His Service,

Luke Ribich