Alumni group on way to raising $300k to honor track & field coach

A group of Rider University track & field alumni have joined forces for a fundraising campaign to secure the naming rights of the University’s track in honor of former coach Mike Brady, who in addition to being an outstanding coach, played a prominent role in many lives as a mentor, confidant, advisor and friend.

Brady coached the men's track & field team from 1980-1992. During this time, he compiled a record of 253 wins and only 43 losses, winning nine East Coast Conference Championships and nine New Jersey Collegiate Championships. Under his guidance, his student-athletes set 11 indoor records and five outdoor records that still stand to this day.

Brady, who was inducted into Rider’s Athletic Hall of fame in 2002, will continue to be honored for his excellent coaching and mentoring abilities by having the University’s track named after him, all thanks to a fundraising effort started and led by his former student-athlete Eric Herr '88.

“As I made phone calls and talked to people about Coach Brady, I was blown away by some of the stories I was hearing,” says Herr, whose relationship with Brady has continued to this day. “Everybody had a story of Coach stepping up and doing something generous for them, which is totally in character for him.”

To secure naming rights to the track, the fundraiser reached its goal of $150,000, a majority of which was raised through cold calls done by Brady’s former student-athletes. The new goal of the campaign has been increased to $300,000, which would designate an endowed track & field scholarship in the name of Brady and his wife, Anita, in addition to the naming of the track.

Many of Brady’s student-athletes recall his booming voice and his three simple words— “Let’s Go Rider”—which unified his athletes and motivated them to win. Many also express their gratitude for his willingness to listen to them.

The original group of alumni who started the campaign are currently collecting anecdotes about Brady (send yours to [email protected]). Individually and as a collection, the stories show the true impact Brady made during his time as a coach.

“Hey Coach, I think by now you are getting the idea that you have left a permanent mark on all of us at Rider,” Craig Danielak ’91 wrote. “You see, so many coaches do not understand that it is not only about performing on the track. Yes, it is a very big part of being on a team. However, a true coach understands that each athlete is an actual person, a growing person at that, changing from a boy to a man who quite honestly needs all of the guidance he can get! You are that coach. I have truly appreciated our talks in your office and your ability to balance friendship, top class coaching, as well as the ability to embed camaraderie and team spirit in all of us."

To date, the campaign has raised about $225,000, and Herr says this is only the beginning of honoring Brady.

“During a season, Coach personally took care of 60 athletes,” Herr says. “His hard work and generosity have touched so many people, and that is why people are donating — they feel like they owe him. We secured the track naming rights, but this is bigger than that. In honor of everything that Coach did for us, it’s only right to give a student a full-ride scholarship in his and Anita’s name. The ultimate goal is to raise $1 million. It might be 10 years from now, but we are not stopping.”

For more information about The Coach Mike Brady Track Naming & Scholarship Campaign and to donate, please visit https://alumni.rider.edu/coachbrady.