Mike Gravier
| Sport(s) | Football |
|---|---|
| Current position | |
| Title | Assistant coach |
| Team | Valparaiso |
| Biographical details | |
| Born | September 27, 1960 |
| Playing career | |
| ? | Grand Valley State |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 1988 | Southeast Missouri State (WR) |
| 1989–1991 | Michigan Tech (QB/RB/WR) |
| 1992–1994 | Malone (OC) |
| 1995–1998 | Malone |
| 2009 | Concord (TE) |
| 2011–2012 | Bluefield |
| 2013 | Valparaiso (interim HC) |
| 2014–present | Valparaiso (assistant) |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 30–24–1 |
Mike Gravier (born September 27, 1960)[1] is an American football coach and former player. He played college football at Grand Valley State University and is currently an assistant coach at Valparaiso University. Gravier is known for significant success as a coach with upstart Malone, having successfully led the team to significant victories early in the history of the program at a time when other peer programs were well-established,[2] including a NAIA playoff appearance in the program's third year.[3]
Coaching career
Malone
Gravier was the second head football coach for the Malone College Pioneers[4] located in Canton, Ohio and he held that position for four seasons, from 1995[5] until 1998. His career coaching record at Malone was 30 wins, 12 losses, and 1 ties.[6] This ranks him first at Malone in total wins and first at Malone in winning percentage.[7]
Gravier's success at Malone is supported by his first-year record of 10 wins, 1 loss, and 1 tie[8] and included a victory over rival Geneva College.[9] The sole loss came in the quarterfinal playoffs for the NAIA national championships.[10] His team also reached the national championship hunt during his last season at Malone, losing to Georgetown College.[11] Three of the four years he coached at Malone, his team was either league champion or co-champion.[12] In spite of his success on the field, he was asked to resign by the administration a week before the season opening game of 1999[13] after allegations surfaced that he struck a student athlete during a practice session.[14]
Assistant coaching
Prior to coaching at Malone, he was an assistant coach for the Michigan Tech Huskies[15] and at Southeast Missouri State[16] He also was an assistant at Malone under head coach Joe Palmisano, whom he replaced to be the head coach.[17][18] He also worked as the tight ends coach at Concord University in Athens, West Virginia.[19]
Bluefield College
Gravier was the head coach for the Bluefield College Rams in Bluefield, Virginia. The program participated in non-sanctioned "club play" for the 2011 season and joined the NAIA's Mid-South Conference beginning in the 2012 football season.[20]
In their first season since 1941, the Bluefield Rams finished without a single win. Their record was 0–11 overall, recording 0–6 in conference play.[21] In April 2013 during spring drills, he was fired by the school.[22]
Valparaiso
Gravier became an assistant coach of the Valparaiso Crusaders for the 2013 season. When the head coach was fired with one game to go in the season, he was promoted to interim head coach for the final game.[23] Valparaiso lost their final game that season.[24]
At the end of the season, Dave Cecchini was hired as a full-time replacement[25] and Gravier was fired shortly thereafter.
Head coaching record
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | NAIA Coaches' Poll# | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Malone Pioneers (Mid-States Football Association) (1995–1998) | |||||||||
| 1995 | Malone | 10–1–1 | 3–0–1 | 1st | L NAIA Division II Quarterfinal | ||||
| 1996 | Malone | 8–2 | 5–1 | T–2nd | |||||
| 1997 | Malone | 5–5 | 3–3 | T–7th | |||||
| 1998 | Malone | 7–4 | 5–1 | 2nd | L NAIA First Round | ||||
| Malone: | 30–12–1 | 16–5–1 | |||||||
| Bluefield College Rams (Mid-South Conference) (2012) | |||||||||
| 2012 | Bluefield | 0–11 | 0–6 | 6th | |||||
| Bluefield: | 0–11 | 0–6 | |||||||
| Valparaiso Crusaders (Pioneer Football League) (2013) | |||||||||
| 2013 | Valparaiso | 0–1 | 0–1 | 10th | |||||
| Valpraiso: | 0–1 | 0–1 | |||||||
| Total: | 30–24–1 | ||||||||
| National championship Conference title Conference division title | |||||||||
| #Rankings from final Coaches Poll. | |||||||||
References
- ↑ "No Better Gift For Gravier 0-2 Pioneers regroup to shut out Trinity – on coach's 37th birthday". Akron Beacon-Journal. September 28, 1997.
- ↑ Perrotto, John (October 27, 1995). "Geneva-Malone a Showdown of NAIA Div II Powerhouses". Beaver Country Times.
- ↑ Perrotto, John (November 15, 1995). "Malone Expected Geneva Rematch". Beaver Country Times.
- ↑ "Puma Football to Host Malone in Homecoming Game". Saint Joseph's College.
- ↑ "Transactions". Kansas City Star. January 14, 1995. p. D6.
- ↑ "2007-2008 Mid-States Football Association Press Guide" (PDF). Mid-States Football Association.
- ↑ DeLassus, David. "Malone Coaching Records". College Football Data Warehouse.
- ↑ "Records and archives". Mid-States Football Association.
- ↑ Robertson, Scott (November 18, 1995). "Malone beats Geneva on last-play field goal". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
- ↑ DeLassus, David. "Malone College 1995 Football Results". College Football Data Warehouse.
- ↑ DeLassus, David. "Malone College 1998 Football Results". College Football Data Warehouse.
- ↑ DeLassus, David. "Mike Gravier Results by Year". College Football Data Warehouse.
- ↑ Call, Andy (September 29, 1999). "Malone's long list of injured includes its starting QB". Canton Repository.
- ↑ "Walsh's win is big news, in small way". Akron Beacon Journal. October 3, 1999.
- ↑ "Football media guide" (PDF). Michigan Tech Huskies.
- ↑ "NCAA Record" (PDF). The NCAA News. April 5, 1989.
- ↑ "Transactions". Baltimore Sun.
- ↑ "Gravier New Malone Coach". Akron Beacon-Journal. January 14, 1995.
- ↑ "2009 Football Coaching Staff". Concord University.
- ↑ White, Jim (July 24, 2010). "Bluefield College names football coach". Religious Herald. Retrieved June 24, 2011.
- ↑ "Bluefield College (2012 season results)". DakTronics 3000. Daktronics, Inc. November 11, 2012. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
- ↑ Redd, Bob (April 27, 2013). "Gravier out at Bluefield College". Bluefield Daily Telegraph. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
- ↑ Barker, Dan (November 10, 2013). "Valparaiso fires football coach after 3-40 record". The Sporting News. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
- ↑ "2013-14 Football schedule/results". Valparaiso Crusaders. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
- ↑ Oren, Paul (December 11, 2013). "New coach Dave Cecchini eager to help Crusaders turn the corner". Northwest Indiana Times. Retrieved January 5, 2014.