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Posted Thursday, October 14, 2021
Author: Mickey Alvarado
Tossing a bag into a hole has become extremely popular in backyards and tailgating events across the nation as the game of cornhole has evolved into a sport. Its players have also advanced, and now there are competitions at the collegiate and professional levels. The increased enthusiasm for the game has caught the attention of Adrian College and prompted the Bulldogs to create a collegiate cornhole program, scheduled to begin competing in the fall of 2022.
“Adrian College was recently recognized by U.S. News and World Report as the number one Most Innovative College in the Midwest, and this program reflects that honor,” Adrian College Athletic Director Mike Duffy said. “People are going to probably say oh my goodness, look at what they’re doing now. This is no different than bass fishing, and everybody kind of laughed at us for that. Now look at us. We are the national champions.”
Duffy expects the new coed sports program will attract a lot of students with the Bulldogs’ players having an opportunity to win large sums of money from the national tournament, which helps pay for their college education.
“It’s big across the country, and there is some local talent,” Duffy said of the sport. “I expect we’ll bring in 48 to 50 students with this new program.”
He added that the cornhole program will not cost very much to operate with limited equipment needed. The Bulldogs already have a main sponsor backing them with Killshots Cornhole, a national cornhole equipment manufacturer located in Adrian, donating custom bags and boards.
The Bulldogs wouldn’t need to buy or build a facility for the program, at least right away, Duffy said. Adrian College joined the American Cornhole League (ACL) and would play in sanctioned tournaments across the nation, similar to the college’s bass fishing program. Duffy said Killshots is also looking into building a facility in Adrian to host tournaments that the Bulldogs may be able to utilize.
There is opportunity to add additional sponsors as the cornhole team would wear uniforms similar to the bass team’s with multiple program supporting businesses featured on the jerseys.
Adrian College’s athletic department will hire a coach in the next month or two and begin recruiting athletes to be ready to start competing by next fall.
The Bulldogs will compete with teams from across the country. The ACL, formed in 2015, would pit Adrian College against teams from NCAA D1 to D3 institutions, similar to bass fishing competitions. The National College Cornhole Championship’s open format allows any size college to participate.
This year’s national championship is in Myrtle Beach, S.C. the weekend of December 31st to January 2nd. The event will feature ESPN broadcasts, and $50,000 will be awarded by the end of the weekend.
In cornhole competition, players take turns throwing bags filled with corn kernels or resin at a raised platform board with a hole in the far end. A bag in the hole scores three points, while one on the board scores one point. Play continues until a team or player reaches or exceeds 21 points.
Duffy said the Bulldogs are taking this sport just as seriously as any of their others.
“We’ll treat it no different than football, baseball or any other sport,” Duffy said. “The end goal is we are trying to build enrollment.”
Adrian College added 12 new academic programs last year to help increase the number of students on campus. Frank Hribar, Adrian College vice president of enrollment and student affairs, said the addition of this newest sport will definitely add to the overall experience at the college.
“There aren’t a lot of other colleges or universities that offer such a wide variety of academic and athletic programs,” Hribar said. “This new sport should receive a lot of attention and get additional students looking at Adrian College who otherwise may not have had an interest in coming to this area.”
The addition of the cornhole program increases the number of the Bulldogs’ sports teams to 50.
For more information about Adrian College and the programs it has to offer, visit Adrian.edu.