Release courtesy of Todd Oliver, CEO/President, GameDay Management, Inc
COLUMBUS, Ohio – GameDay Management, in conjunction with the Ohio Army National Guard, is pleased to announce the coaches for the 2013 Ohio vs. Michigan College Football Senior Bowl. Ohio Dominican University head coach Bill Conley will lead Team Ohio, while Team Michigan will be led by head coach Matt Mitchell of Grand Valley State University.
"Once again we are incredibly fortunate to secure two coaches who are well respected in the world of college football as each has a proven track record of success," said Todd Oliver, President of GameDay Management, Inc. "No question Coach Conley and Coach Mitchell are at the top of their game with their respective programs and we look forward to a much anticipated gridiron battle between states."
Conley, an Ohio State graduate, just completed his third season with the Panthers, guiding ODU to an 8-3 record. The Panthers finished the 2012 season with a second place showing the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) South Division and their second consecutive winning season.
Prior to ODU, Conley served as an assistant coach for Ohio State University head football coaches Earle Bruce, John Cooper and Jim Tressel. During his 17 years as an assistant coach for the Buckeyes, Conley was consistently recognized as one of America's top recruiters. His recruiting classes were constantly ranked among the top ten in the nation. He was selected by The Sporting News as one of the top five college football recruiters in the country and was honored by ESPN as the No. 1 football recruiting coordinator in all of college football.
In his third year, Grand Valley State's Mitchell is coming off an 8-3 season which the Lakers claimed a share of the GLIAC North Division title for the second straight year.
Mitchell, a Cornell College graduated, has a career record of 27-8 which includes one NCAA DII Playoff appearance, a GLIAC Championship and two GLIAC North Division titles. He was named the seventh head coach in the programs rich history and set a Grand Valley State record for most wins in a season for a first-year football coach (11) in 2010. A nine-year veteran of the GVSU coaching staff prior to becoming head coach, Mitchell was the defensive coordinator for the nationally ranked Laker defense.
The Ohio vs. Michigan Senior Bowl will be played on Saturday, April 20 at the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Fawcett Stadium in Canton, Ohio. This year marks the fourth year of the Senior Bowl, but the first with the Ohio vs. Michigan format. The Senior Bowl will feature top players from Ohio and Michigan from all divisions including - NCAA FBS, FCS, DII, DIII and NAIA. Presale tickets can be purchased online at www.OhioCollegeFootball.com or by calling 614-282-4097.