Colgate Attendance by the Numbers
By Gary Braham 2-1-2000
Colgate does not seem like the most promising site for aspiring professional athletes. We're not a top athletic school, we have some good sports and teams, but they typically fail to compete with the best on a national level. There have been several athletes however, who have risen to the level where they can and did move on to play in professional leagues. These exceptional atheltes, have gone on to represent Colgate and hone thier talents on a professional level.
Let's start recently. Andy McDonald was overlooked by most colleges during his recruitment period. He ended up at Colgate, and began to improve swiftly all through his time at Colgate. From 9 goals as a freshman, to 13, to 20, to 25 as a senior and the ECAC player of the year honor. As the seasons end approched, several NHL teams came to visit the center from Canada. He finally narrowed it down to the Fliers or the Mighty Ducks. Due to the Ducks program and style, he chose to go with them. The contract was worth nearly 2 million dollars for a 2 year deal. He will begin training with the team this summer, and will be at thier camp next year. It's very likely we see him make the big team next year.
It's hard for an offensive lineman to stand out, but thats what Steve Estes did. There are no stats that could tell you how good he is. He is 6'6" and almost 300 pounds. This past year, Colgate's rushing was 9th in the nation and we were 7th in scoring average. Estes has been signed as a free agent for the Cleveland Browns.
Ryan Vena was a standout quarterback for Colgate, and one of the finest football players Colgate has ever seen. Ryan pushed himself to the limit, and proved to be a very versitile player. He kept himself in shape after his football career at Colgate ended, so when the Peoria Pirates of the IFL needed an emergency quarterback, he was ready to go. Vena sat on the sidelines most of the time, as he just arrived on the team and was new to arena football. Vena was given a quarter after a week or two, and scored his first professional touchdown. In the end, there were too many QB's on the team, so Vena was traded off to the Erie Invaders, where he will be the teams second string QB for now. His scrambling ability should prove to be a big asset for him.
Two other Colgate hockey alum have made thier way to professional leagues. The first is Jed Whitchurch, one of Colgate's craftiest players, now plays for the Trenton Titans of the ECHL. In his first year, he led the team in plus minus and was second in points. Jed is currently thinking of going to play abroad.
The other, is Mike Harder, one of Colgate's best hockey players ever. He originally signed on with the IHL, but soon found himself in the AHL, the league one step away from the NHL. In his first season, he rose right to the top of the team, and helped lead the Rochester Americans to the Calder Cup finals. Now a member of the Hartford Wolfpack, the NY Rangers AHL team, he was one of their top centers until a thumb injury set him back for part of the year. When I talked to people about mike Harder, the first thing I heard was about what a nice guy he was. One young fan told me that Mike talked to him like a friend, and not just a fan looking for an autograph. He's won sportsmanship and community service awards, and was nominated as AHL man of the year. Look for him to make the trip to the NHL some day.
Finally, a recent graduate who has become a starter in the NBA. Adonal Foyle was a standout player at Colgate and in the Patriot League. No one could stop him, for three years, he led the Colgate team. He was signed by the Golden State Warriors. He now averages about 5.5 points and rebounds per game. In addition to that, he is 14th in the league and first on his team in blocked shots. Foyle has just begun a successful NBA career.
I'm sure I've forgotten players, and I'm sure more will come. Consider this a first installment of the players who readily come to mind. These athletes excelled at Colgate, now they get a chance to prove what they can do to a much larger sports community. They are the pride of Colgate athletics, and have already begun to earn the respect of thier new followers.