My City January 2023

MYSPORTS

The Bulldogs took off and completed an unbeaten (14-0) season during which they outscored foes by an average margin of 47-18 points per game. Matiere-Bey, who had held tight to the hope of returning to football, was now alternating between holding his children, then five and two years of age, and the national championship trophy.

Perhaps nobody was more thrilled for him than Hodges, a former Montrose High School standout, who had kept in touch with Matiere-Bey and encouraged him during his years away from the program. During his comeback season, he con tributed 24 tackles, including three for loss, and recovered a fumble.

In addition to all that being part of a powerhouse football program entails, he attended classes on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday and two more online, while working full-time as a Planet Fitness trainer and always making time for his children. For example, a typical Wednesday, Matiere-Bey said, entailed a 6am work out, 7am weight-training, 8am football meeting, work from 9-11 am, practice from 11am-1pm, back to work from 2-10pm and then, finally, back home for time with his kids. “They were not in school yet, so they could stay up sometimes until 1am, so we could spend time together,” he says. “Then, I’d get a little sleep and start over again at 6am the next day. Emotionally, I honestly can't tell how I managed to juggle all that." Last spring, Matiere-Bey graduated from Ferris with a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice before returning to the football program as a graduate assistant coach for the defensive line this fall. He was six credits shy of an associate degree in integrated studies and taking those classes made him eligible to become a graduate assistant. On December 16, Matiere-Bey and the Bulldogs were back in McKinney to defend their national title, this time against a potent Colorado School of Mines squad, averaging nearly 47 points and 162 rushing yards per game. Not so against Ferris, as the linemen Matiere-Bey helped coach spearheaded an astounding defensive performance which limited CSM to a mere four net yards rushing and sacked dangerous quarterback John Matocha six times as the Bulldogs rolled to a 41-14 national championship repeat. “On the sideline, it was a great expe rience to watch the guys I worked with practice their craft,” said Matiere-Bey,

NIC MATIERE-BEY ANCHORED THE FERRIS STATE DEFENSIVE LINE DURING THE RUN TO THEIR FIRST DIVISION I I NATIONAL TITLE IN 2021 .

"Nic was extremely important to our success," Hodges says. "He was very physical and quick for an interior defensive lineman. And, of course, he is a tremendous motivator for his teammates." How could anyone not be motivat ed by Matiere-Bey's encouraging na ture and ability to deftly handle such a crazy schedule during that season?

"I get so emotional every time I look at pictures from that day, especially with my girls being able to be there, the red and yellow confetti coming down and the journey it took to get there," he says. "Seeing (head) coach (Tony) Annese's face light up and coach Hodges (Defensive Coordi nator Ryan Hodges) celebrating after getting us there. It felt so perfect."

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