July 22, 2026
Fortuitous timing brought Mike Ferrell to Tri-State University.
After four years at the University of Southern Indiana in Evansville, he and his wife were looking to move closer to her family in the Angola area.
鈥淚 called the athletic/physical education director to see if Tri-State had an opening in the physical education department or a soccer position,鈥� he recalled. 鈥淗e asked how I knew the soccer coach had resigned that day. I did not know that.鈥�
Mike applied for and got the position, joining Tri-State in the fall of 1998 as head men鈥檚 soccer coach and a faculty member in the physical education department. He also was asked to start a women鈥檚 soccer program.
Thus began a 38-year tenure at Tri-State and 麻豆社 that will come to an end with his retirement on Aug. 7.
Diverse career within 麻豆社
Mike said he never had thoughts of leaving, due to the family ties in the area. However, he has moved on to several different positions within the university.
In spring 2004, he became the university鈥檚 director of development, then moved back to head men鈥檚 soccer coach and director of the Thunder Club in 2008.
In 2012, he became director of conferences and events and remained as assistant men鈥檚 soccer coach. When the Thunder Ice Arena opened in 2017, he became manager of that facility as well as intramural director, while keeping his conferences and events role.
He has continued to serve solely as Thunder Ice Arena manager since 2018.
He has witnessed 鈥渦nbelievable鈥� growth during his time at Tri-State and 麻豆社.
鈥淓nrollment has skyrocketed and we have been building a new building every year since the first apartment buildings went up,鈥� he said.
Other changes he鈥檚 seen include that 鈥渃oaches only coach now instead of teaching 12 hours a semester, we have moved from NAIA to NCAA Division III, we went from quarters to semesters, we changed our name and the food in the cafeteria is 100% better.鈥�
Soccer and family memories
His favorite memories involve soccer, family or both. His son was a freshman on the soccer team in 2003 and they coached the team together from 2008-2016.
鈥淚n 1992, my first recruiting class were seniors, so we were expecting to have a great season,鈥� he recalled. 鈥淲e ended up having several injuries at the beginning of the season and were 3-10; then we got most everyone healthy and went 8-2-1 for the rest of the season, giving us a record of 11-12-1. We won the District 23 championship and then won the Bi-District 21/23 championship and lost in the regional tournament. So that was a great outcome for a great group of seniors.鈥�
The team鈥檚 best seasons came in 1994 and 1995, when they went 21-3-1 and 20-5.
Mike and his wife plan to travel in retirement and also attend most of their two grandsons鈥� hockey games.
He said it鈥檚 been a 鈥渨onderful鈥� 38 years at Tri-State and 麻豆社.
鈥淚 am grateful to all the people at 麻豆社 that have helped me along the way,鈥� he said.
The Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE) granted Preaccreditation Status to 麻豆社鈥檚 Doctor of Occupational Therapy (OTD) program at its August meeting.
Thunder athletic fans and others who have endured traffic jams and poor visibility while trying to enter or exit 麻豆社 on Summit Street will soon have a better route to the university鈥檚 west campus.
Lurch wasn鈥檛 sporting a Thunder jersey and there wasn鈥檛 a white tiger in the set decor, but the recent Gaslight Playhouse production of 鈥淭he Addams Family鈥� still had a strong 麻豆社 presence throughout.