Missouri State University head football coach Dave Steckel today called on facility upgrades as part of efforts to turn the Bears team around.
Steckel, who spoke this morning for Springfield Business Journal’s monthly live interview series 12 People You Need to Know, said the football team’s weight room hasn’t been upgraded since the late 1990s. That fact, he said, stifles recruitment, which translates into wins or losses on the field.
“I’m dealing with 18-year-old kids. They’ve very impressionable,” said Steckel, who goes by the nickname Stec. “You walk in and you see a weight room and it’s got all the bells and whistles and you go, ‘Wow this is cool.’ Or they walk in and go, ‘Dude, our high school’s better than this.’”
His solution is an indoor training facility, which he said could be constructed on the site of the grass ROTC field across the street from the Foster Recreation Center.
“We have permission to put it there, and now we have to raise the funds to be able to do that,” Steckel said. “All sports can use that to train in. It’s for everybody.”
It’s an important step for Steckel, who’s tasked with rehabilitating a team that hasn’t won its conference since 1990.
“I didn’t know what I inherited. That was a little bit of a surprise,” said Steckel, noting he and the coaching staff take responsibility for his inaugural season when the Bears finished 1-10 last year with an average margin of loss of 49-10. “Everybody some days has winning records and losing records. It’s just mine’s public.”
One change he’s making involves scholarships. Instead of doling out partial scholarships to many players, Steckel and crew are pushing for full scholarships to fewer recruits to raise quality of play in key positions.
The coach - who last year had a scholarships and grants budget of $1.3 million - can divvy up 63 full scholarships among 85 student athletes. So far this year, he’s recruited 14 new players.
“If we’re going to succeed, it’s going to be our way. If we’re going to fail, it’s going to be our way,” he said.
On an economic level, Steckel leads a program that
last year posted a $2.8 million net loss.
To close the gap, Steckel said the team must first gain confidence in the locker room, followed by trainers, equipment workers and administrators.
“From the very top, from Clif Smart to Kyle Moats on down, they’re very supportive of us. The foundation is growing in that direction,” Steckel said.
From there, it’s getting the community hyped. Attendance is key. On April 23, the Bears will host their spring game as a precursor to the fall season.
Admittedly impatient, Steckel said the team’s resurgence “should have happened yesterday.” In reality, he said his crew is working every day to bring a winning season back to Springfield.
“Winning cures a lot of things,” he said. “We’re going to turn this program around.”
