North Central College football’s (from left) quarterback Garrett Wilson, wide receiver David Ballard III, defensive back Kaden Arnett and coach Brad Spencer meet the media after Saturday’s 44-21 victory over No. 2 Bethel University. The top-ranked Cardinals, with five consecutive title game appearances, have been labeled the most dominant football team in Illinois. (Photo taken from YouTube video)
North Central College has not lost a regular-season football game this decade.
Even taking the 2020 season, which was nixed because of the COVID-19 pandemic, out of the mix, the numbers are stunning. During the last five years, North Central has a 71-3 record for a .959 winning percentage.
Coach Brad Spencer said the program’s success comes from commitment.
“Our players do it for the right reasons: to make the school proud, to make their families proud, and to make God proud,” he told Chronicle Media. “There are a lot of people in the world chasing a starting position. There is a lot to be said for following through, for valuing the experience here.
“When we are recruiting, we keep that standard in mind. We want young men who are going to thrive here.”
The Cardinals’ amazing five-year run, with five straight Division III title-game appearances and two national titles, led The Action Network, which provide data-driven sports research to fans, to call North Central the most dominant college football team in Illinois. The research company ranked North Central the second most dominant team in the country, only behind Division II’s Ferris State in Michigan, which has four titles in five years.
North Central was ranked ahead of every Division I football program, including Georgia, Ohio State and Alabama, for dominance.
Pillars of success
Spencer, who has been at the helm of the North Central program for the past four years, credits his predecessors, John and Jeff Thorne, with laying the groundwork for what the program has become.
Brad Spencer
“I was fortune to have John and Jeff ahead of me,” said Spencer, who played at North Central himself. “To me, they provided the foundation in a lot of ways. Faith, family and academics are the starting point for anything. From there, you can make enhancements.”
Spencer is unapologetic in saying faith plays a role in the coaches he brings onto the Naperville campus.
“I try to get to the heart of who he is,” Spencer said. “There are many All-American coaches out there that you could hire.
“Does he have a heart for God? That was the starting point with John (Thorne) in 2002. The college brought in a godly person who treated people the right way. He provided the pillars for so many things we do today. He exposed players to a character-building experience, that equates to their identity.
“He provided the foundation that is still there, the rock that the house is built on, and the house keeps getting taller.”
North Central’s dominance shows no signs of waning anytime soon. The Cardinals entered the season as the favorite in the American Football Coaches Association Preseason Top 25 Poll for Division III.
They opened their season Saturday with a 44-21 victory over No. 2 Bethel University behind four forced turnovers by the Cardinal defense at North Central’s Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium.
Spencer said recruiting is paramount for his program’s success.
“I say I will make them two promises — that I will always give it everything I’ve got and that I will always be honest with you. If we get someone on campus and he doesn’t respect the women on campus or he doesn’t respect the lunch guy — some schools will be OK with that sometimes — we are going to go the other way.
“I tell recruits that our program is about faith, development, academics and internships. If they only want to talk football and numbers and playing time, I am going to be transparent and honest.
“There is no secret envelope, no blue chip players coming here to make us great. If we can use football to help someone become a real man, that is a great thing.”
Relationships
He said by the time a football player arrives on campus as a freshman, he may have been on the Naperville campus four times.
“It all goes back to relationships. Once they get here, there is more love and even more transparency,”
Spencer said. “If I have 150 kids, there are 150 different ways to coach to get the best performance from them. You have to find a way to talk and treat each kid.
“I don’t treat them differently in terms of the X’s and O’s. It is always the same goal: to produce great young men, but there are things you need to say to a freshman that you don’t need to say to a senior. It is not the identical plate you are using. You need to change the standard.”
Spencer says being a successful coach, pushing his players, and being a man of God do not have to be mutually exclusive.
“In the Bible, you read about Jesus and how he acted with his disciples,” Spencer said. “You see how he acted in public when they were trading coins. He was throwing tables. He was fiery.
“He was sad. He cried. He showed human emotions. I believe Jesus was about love and you need to coach with love. You can be a tough guy that’s macho and bullish, crude, selfish, where it’s all about me. That’s not what a real football player is. That is not what a real man is.
“You treat your neighbor as you want to be treated. You treat everyone fairly. You love them. Any discipline comes from a place of love. If they don’t think you care, they will turn you off. The more you dive in, the easier it is to coach kids.”
Spencer said his squad has gotten used to having a target on their backs.
“We know that every single game we are going to get the best version of the other team,” the North Central coach said. “We are accustomed to getting everybody’s best. That is what we want. That makes us better.”
Spencer and his top-ranked Cardinals travel Saturday to Waverly, Iowa, to face No. 9 Wartburg College. The Cardinals and Knights last met in 2023, when North Central earned a national semifinal victory, 34-27.
