This year getting the chance to cover the advent of a new NAIA Football program in Iowa at Mount Mercy University in Cedar Rapids, IA has been a lot of fun.
One of our key Sports Guys Iowa leaders – Jordan Cole works right next door to the Mt. Mercy campus every day (All SGI guys are volunteers with day jobs).
So, when Football practice started for the Mustangs, Jordan could just look out the back door and see the action.
It is a great Iowa Football story. Mt. Mercy started in 1928 and has had a history of strong athletics (NAIA level recently), especially in Basketball, but for the close to 100 years of being a College/University they never fielded a football team. Next fall, is going to see the first Mustang Football game ever.
Jordan was able to attend the last scrimmage for Mt. Mercy this Sunday against St. Ambrose, and get to see in person how they are building the foundation of the program in their one prep year. The Mustang program is in a transition year, where they were allowed a practice schedule and limited scrimmages this fall in preparation for their first football game in the fall of 2026.
M.D. Daniels returns to Iowa to build a program from the ground up
Coach Daniels took over a program in January of 2025 that…how can we put it…did not even have football helmets. So, absolutely everything has to be built for the first time – including buying football equipment and erecting goalposts.
Coach Daniels story started when he played college football at McMurry University, Texas. He played for the legendary coach Hal Mumme (Air Raid Founder, Mike Leach, Dana Halverson, et al). He then joined the staff working for Coach Mumme as a graduate assistant and then got promoted to the defensive staff.
M.D then got offered a defensive coordinator role at Iowa Wesleyan in Mt. Pleasant. It’s interesting that Coach Daniels played for Coach Mumme and then went to coach at Iowa Wesleyan (where Mumme and Mike Leach invented the Air Raid Offense that changed college football).
Coach Daniels shared how he moved from defensive coordinator at Mount Pleasant, Iowa, to head coach and how he and his wife both lost their job at Iowa Wesleyan on the same day in 2023 when the school closed. Coach and his family moved to Bethel University in Tennessee where he continued his coaching career.
On the podcast Coach went in depth on how he was approached for the Mount Mercy coaching job and his decision to accept it. *SGI Podcasts are on YouTube – Link above- and Spotify, so please subscribe.
His comments on the importance of building a program from the ground up the right way, and the support he received from his previous coaches and mentors is an excellent listen.
I love that Coach shared his goals for Mount Mercy, including recruiting local Iowa High School talent and building a strong community presence.
“We are investing in Iowa. Plain and Simple”
Coach Daniels
Coach Daniels understands the importance of in-state recruiting and the competitive advantages of Mount Mercy’s location in Cedar Rapids. In the podcast he outlined his recruiting strategy, which includes focusing on the eastern side of Iowa and building strong relationships with local Iowa high schools.
It is going to be fun and exciting to follow a brand-new Iowa Football NAIA program next fall on the gridiron.
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