We’ve seen the trend quite a bit in a collegiate sports in recent years. Alumni who starred for a certain program make their return to campus decades later as a head coach in order to recapture prior glory. Jim Harbaugh with the University of Michigan football team, Penny Hardaway with the University of Memphis basketball team, and Patrick Ewing with the Georgetown basketball team are three prominent examples.
But entrusting a program in the hands of a familiar name is not exclusive to state schools in power conferences. At Erie Community College in upstate New York, the bowling team is looking to a past pillar of the roster to guide the current crop of members to glory. David Zajac has been hired to run both the men and women’s bowling programs at the college. He was an All-American bowler for two seasons, and helped lead the program to an NJCAA national championship in 2010-2011.
“I have confidence that with the support system I have, I’m going to be able to balance it all,” Zajac stated. Via Buffalonews.com
The Erie bowling team certainly has valued continuity and consistency over the years. Remarkably, they have only had three head coaches preside over their men’s bowling team since it was created in 1967. It speaks to the program’s loyalty, and their willingness to remain patient with hires that they have confidence in.
“It’s not very often that you are presented with the opportunity to be a part of the next chapter in such an illustrious collegiate program’s coaching staff,” Zajac expressed. Via Athletics.ECC.Edu
Zajac is also extremely connected with his community. While he will be determined to make a difference in his head coaching role with Erie, he is also employed on a full time basis at Niagara County Social Services. This level of dedication should serve as motivation to his student-athletes that if someone truly wants to do something, or multiple things in life, there is usually a way to accomplish it.
Men's Bowling Participates in Lehigh Valley Classic https://t.co/y5HY05WvrA
— SUNY Erie Kats Athletics (@ErieCCAthletics) December 31, 2021
