Edition #1
September 1, 2026
Van Wagner is a leading sports advertising and entertainment agency, with global expertise in live events, sponsorship sales, multimedia rights and aerial advertising. Van Wagner creates, advises and sells on behalf of world-class teams, leagues, brands and properties. An innovator in the sports and media business, Van Wagner is a global leader in high-impact broadcast visible signage throughout the NCAA, MLB, NBA, and international soccer, as well as collegiate multimedia rights and in-venue content production at the world’s biggest sporting events. For more information, visit www.vanwagner.com.
Welcome to the inaugural issue of NJCAA.ticker.
At College.town, our mission has always been to equip college athletics leaders with the intelligence they need to navigate a rapidly changing industry. After years of serving administrators across the Division I, Division II, Division III, and NAIA levels, we are incredibly proud to partner with the NJCAA to bring a dedicated, premium briefing to the executives of two-year college athletics.
Delivered every Tuesday and Friday afternoon, NJCAA.ticker is designed to cut through the noise. We will curate the most critical national news, administrative updates, and emerging trends directly to your inbox, saving you time and keeping your campus connected to the broader landscape.
Thank you to Dr. Christopher Parker and the entire NJCAA leadership team for their partnership in building this platform, and thank you for reading.
— The Team at College.town
Allen AD Doug Desmarteau is no longer leading the Red Devils, according to Ad Astra’s Aaron Napier. President Lyvier Leffler will serve as Interim AD as the college launches a national search for the next AD. (link)
Delta promotes Student Engagement Coordinator Alison Ginter to Director of Athletics and Student Engagement. VP of Student Empowerment and Success:” Alison brings a wealth of experience in student engagement, leadership development, intramurals, and clubs and organizations. … Her leadership will focus not only on competitive success, but on developing our student-athletes as students, leaders, and individuals prepared for success well beyond their time at Delta. What stands out most about Alison is that students are always at the center of her work. She has a genuine passion for student success, and her ‘why’ consistently comes back to creating opportunities for students to grow, feel connected, and reach their full potential.” (link)
NJCAA President and CEO Christopher Parker sits down with College.town’s Anthony Grassi to dive into the state of the association, eligibility, media rights and much more. Here are some of his most notable comments…
➤ Parker says the association will work with the NCAA and NAIA on potential eligibility changes as DI and DII have moved to their age-based, five-year model while DIII and NAIA are considering similar options. Parker: “What is two-year college athletics? Is it still two or is it three years? We haven't made any of those decisions yet. Kind of starting those conversations, what does that look like? What's more important for the student-athlete? Is it for them to get longer experience towards a bachelor's degree to four year or making sure they complete at the two years? … It's tough to always be a follower in these situations rather than the leader, but unfortunately that's the position we're in. So we have to lead while following at the same time and we have to lead our student-athletes and our schools in the best position possible for their student-athletes, coaches, administrators and everybody to be successful. So we're going to take it slow. We're going to move in a projective moment, but really take all aspects objectively and review the best-case scenario. So probably 12 months from now, we'll be looking at a lot of what evolution is for college athletics that's impacting the two-year college space.”
➤ As conversations around the Protect College Sports Act continue in DC, Parker says the association’s leadership has been walking the halls of Congress relentlessly. “In the bill that's proposed, there's actually a carve-out directly from stuff that we asked for. So that's all there as part of the bill and that's from relationships, telling and explaining to senators and congressmen and congresswomen two-year college student-athletes. Understanding the entire gamut of all those things has been very influential and very beneficial for our association, but also for them to understand it. So when they start making decisions, it's not in a silo. They're looking at the complete package of college sports.”
➤ Some of the association’s top initiatives this year include the launch of a new stats platform and growing storytelling efforts, which includes more with ESPN and the NJCAA Network. “Getting moms and dads to understand, ‘Oh, I can watch my kids on ESPN at the two-year college level.’ Yes, you can. We have our own ESPN channel on ESPN+. You can watch us. We have our own network. We did over 300+ shows in our NJCAA studio last year. So putting all that together and showcasing what it means to be a part of the NJCAA is a big focus and that's allowed companies and other individuals to invest in the NJCAA because they're seeing an ROI on how they're working with us, how they're coming together to promote their brand alongside the national brand.” (link)
Reconvening after a five-week recess, House GOP leaders are weighing an early exit ahead of November’s mid-term elections, with Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) prioritizing a fast-track vote on a Senate-passed stopgap spending bill to avert a September 30 government shutdown. Supported by President Donald Trump and key congressional Democrats, the proposed 10-week funding patch would extend government operations through Dec. 11, effectively deferring major legislative battles, including a party-line budget reconciliation package, Russian sanctions and farm bill negotiations, to the post-election lame-duck session. While Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) plans to focus the upper chamber's brief September session on judicial nominations, cryptocurrency regulation via the Clarity Act and a multi-university college athletics overhaul, the House's stalled legislative agenda and internal procedural gridlock have fueled speculation that lawmakers will depart well before their scheduled Oct. 1 recess target. Rep. Morgan Griffith (R-VA): "So many people are having to run back and forth to campaign. I think we can get some other things done [beyond the spending stopgap], but the big bills will probably have to wait until after the election." (link)
Moving Dirt…
➤ Carl Sandburg broke ground on its new Charger Center, a 70,204-square-foot athletic and conference space. The facility, slated to open in late 2027, includes three gymnasiums, an esports area, and turf fields for baseball, soccer and softball. (link, link)
➤ Iowa Central held a groundbreaking ceremony for its new 24K-square-foot Center for Sports Performance. The facility will be the new home for the Triton Football team and pre-athletic training and athletic training classes, locker room, coaching offices and more. (link)
➤ Lancaster County broke ground on its new $36.9M sports complex that will be the future home of USC Lancaster baseball upon completion in late 2027. (link, link)
Facility Features…
➤ Edison State celebrates the opening of its new Athletics locker room facility with a ribbon-cutting ceremony. (link)
➤ Garden City officially dedicated its football field as Bob Larson Field, honoring longtime Hall of Fame Broncbuster coach and administrator Bob Larson, who currently serves on GCCC’s Board of Trustees. (link)
➤ Navarro is upgrading the turf and lights at its softball and baseball fields. (link)
➤ Northeast Alabama cut the ribbon on its new soccer facility and soccer field for its second-year men’s soccer program. (link)
➤ Check out the new Musco LED lighting system at Northwest's Ranger Stadium. (link)
➤ SUNY Corning has opened a new Athletics Study Center in its Gymnasium and Wellness Education Center, to enhance the academic support network and offer access to tutoring, technology, and campus support services. (link)
Deal Corner…
➤ The NJCAA partners with Pivot Agency to help NJCAA teams navigate and manage the logistics of championship travel, transportation planning, accommodations and other travel-related services. (link)
➤ The FCSAA becomes the first two-year association or conference to partner with Athletic Solutions to provide student-athletes with official NIL stores. (link)
Coaches Corner…
➤ Columbia State selects Middle Tennessee State (NCAA DI) AC Ryan Huber as Baseball HC. (link)
➤ East Mississippi parts ways with longtime Football HC Buddy Stephens after 18 seasons. Assoc. HC/OC Preston Rice will serve as Interim HC. (link, link)
➤ Montgomery chooses travel softball HC Ashleigh Gerber as its new Softball HC. (link)
➤ Northern Oklahoma College Enid brings back Freedom Spirit Championships owner Josh Quintero as Competitive Cheer HC to lead the reinstated program. (link)
➤ Phoenix names basketball clinician/former NCAA DI AC Jermaine Kimbrough as Men’s Basketball HC. (link)
➤ Rock Valley Men’s and Women’s Bowling HC Tony Hall announces that he will retire following the 2026-27 athletic campaign. (link)
➤ Seward County names Barton Men’s and Women’s Tennis HC Lyle Stickney to the same position for the Saints. (link)
➤ SUNY Corning hires its Associate Professor of Mechanical Technology and Engineering Michael Gwin as Esports HC. (link)
➤ SUNY Niagara Men’s and Women’s Golf HC Matt Oleski steps down after 14 seasons to focus on his family. The Thunderwolves promote AC/alum Cam Eddy to be the next HC. (link)
The annual NFHS High School Athletics Participation Survey indicated that 8,415,684 participants were involved in high school sports in 2025-26, good for a YoY increase of 149,440. The total includes 4,761,095 boys and 3,654,589 girls, both record highs. NFHS also reports the spike in the number of girls participating in flag football and wrestling since the pandemic continues. In the first post-pandemic survey in 2021-22, there were 15,716 girls participating in flag football nationally. That number has now ballooned to 102,360. Furthermore, participation in girls flag football increased 48.7% last year as the sport cracked the Top 10 list for most popular girls sports. The number of schools reporting girls flag football participation increased from 2,736 to 3,990 in the past year, and a total of 37 states will be either sanctioning the sport or conducting independent/pilot programs by next year. Meanwhile, participation in girls wrestling increased 19.9% YoY from 74,064 to 88,771. The number of schools sponsoring the sport for girls now totals 8,853. Golf had the largest percentage increase among boys sports with an 8.3% uptick to 175,757 participants, while outdoor track and field was up about 4,000 participants, and tennis and soccer each gained about 3,000 participants. Full report. (link)