Finalists Announced for 2024 NCAA Division III Dave Williams Coach of the Year Award presented by Golf Pride Grips
NORMAN, Okla. – NCAA Division III finalists for the 2024 Dave Williams Award presented by Golf Pride Grips have been announced by the GCAA. The Williams Award honors the national coach of the year in NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, NAIA, NJCAA Division I, and NJCAA Division II men’s golf.
The five finalists are Nick Cocalis of Bethel (MN), Steve Conley of Methodist, Jim Owen of Oglethorpe, Dan Rodgers of Carnegie Mellon, and John Sjoberg of Emory.
Bethel (MN) set multiple program records under Cocalis this season. The Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) Coach of the Year guided the Royals to a record six victories in 10 tournaments, including the last three, and finished no worse than sixth while sporting a program-low 293.1 season scoring average. They qualified for Bethel (MN)’s second-ever NCAA Championship and were led on the course by five All-MIAC golfers, including two-time Player of the Year Conor Schubring.
Conley’s Monarchs collected four victories and seven consecutive Bushnell/Golfweek DIII Coaches Poll No.1s in 2023-24. Methodist was led on the course by the entire First-Team All-USA South Conference, including Player of the Year Chase Walts and NCAA Division III Jack Nicklaus Award presented by Workday finalists Cam Cappuzzo and Cooper Hrabak. Walts, Cappuzzo, Hrabak, Caleb Ryan, and Aiden Spampinato are all currently ranked inside Scoreboard powered by Clippd’s top 10 in NCAA Division III National Rankings.
The Petrels won five tournaments this season under Owen, including three of their last four and the Southern Athletic Association (SAA) Championship. Being ranked inside the top four all season, Oglethorpe and the eight-time SAA Coach of the Year were led on the course by five All-SAA golfers, including Co-Athletes of the Year Beck Lewis and Michael O’Sullivan and Co-Newcomers of the Year Ryan Dunn and Jackson Hiller.
After guiding Carnegie Mellon to their first NCAA team national championship in school history last season, Rodgers led the Tartans to top-10 finishes in all eight 2023-24 tournaments with two wins, including the Visit Florence Intercollegiate. The Tartans were led on the course by First-Team All-University Athletic Association (UAA) golfers Justin Chan, Brian Xu, and David Zhang. Chan is a finalist for the Jack Nicklaus Award presented by Workday.
Sjoberg and Assistant Coach Kennan Hickton were named the University Athletic Association (UAA)’s Coaching Staff of the Year after Emory never finished lower than seventh in eight tournaments. The Eagles, who shared the UAA Championship with Carnegie Mellon, were led on the course by All-UAA selections Michael Burry, Jackson Klutznick, a 2024 Arnold Palmer Cup Team USA selection and Jack Nicklaus Award presented by Workday finalist, and Tony Li.
All five finalists are coaching this week at the 2024 NCAA Division III Men’s Golf Championship at Boulder Creek Golf Club in Boulder Creek, Nev.
About Golf Pride Grips
For over seven decades, we’ve been the global leader in golf grip innovation and technology, from the invention of the slip-on grip to groundbreaking advancements in cord with our new Brushed Cotton Technology (BCT®) to the introduction of the hybrid category of grips. Today, Golf Pride® has laid claim to more major wins than any other grip company. More than 80% of Tour professionals choose to play our grips and not one is paid to do so. And in this age of multi-million dollar endorsement deals, that’s the strongest endorsement of all. So, whether you’re a Tour pro playing a major, a rising amateur, or an everyday golfer, you can rest assured knowing you’re playing the #1 Grip in Golf. To learn more about Golf Pride®, go to golfpride.com.