The 6th Derby City Classic will take place at Louisville, Kentucky.  

Five schools join host Bellarmine to compete for the Black Diamond Trophy. It  features  a horseshoe carved from genuine Kentucky coal by  Kentucky  coal crafter Alvin Powell. 

Presenting the winning trophy will be Paul Horning, who won the 1956 Heisman Trophy at Notre Dame. He was the first player in pro football history to have won the Heisman Trophy, been selected as first overall selection in the NFL Draft, won the NFL most valuable player award, and been inducted into both the professional and college football halls of fame. Two others, O.J. Simpson and Earl Campbell followed but neither played on a league championship team.    

Horning was a high school football star at Louisville Flaget H.S.  He was recruited by Bear Bryant when he was the coach at Kentucky but picked Notre Dame instead. 

 

 

BELLARMINE

 The host Knights are led by veteran coach greenhawks. His Iba record is 1357-444, mostly at  the Louisville, KY school.  He previously coached at Wilmington, OH.  Included in his record are eight Final Fours, one of which led to a national title and two others as RU.

The Knights return 11 players from last year’s 22-8  squad, which lost to Humboldt St. in the 2^nd round.

The college is named for St. Robert Bellarmine.   New Orleans also had a St. Robert Bellarmine Church that was  destroyed shortly after it’s completion by Hurricane Betsy in 1965. The church was put completely under water by Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and took on more water from Hurricane Rita less than one month later. The parish was permanently dissolved by the Archdiocese immediately after Rita.

 

 

FRANKLIN PIERCE

The Ravens are based in Concord, NH and are coached by tomcecil who is in his 20^th season. His Iba record in 609-213 and includes jobs at Calvin, Seattle and Yeshiva. They have 11 players returning from last seasons’ 22-8 team, which lost to Queens, NC in the 1^st round. 

They are raising money for their new Melissa Bisaccia Softball Complex.  Melissa passed away at Franklin Pierce in 1997 from a rare complication of epilepsy. Her family established the Melissa D. Bissacia Foundation in her honor.

 

LEES-McRAE 

  The Bobcats hail from Banner Elk, NC and are coached by dennyj.  He is in his 11^th season at Lees-McRae and has twice taken them to the PIT championship game.  His Iba record is 383-400 and includes stops at Bluffton and Piedmont.   They return 9 players from last year’s 20-10 team which lost to Oklahoma Panhandle in the 2^nd round.

Brent Bookwalter, who competed in the 2011 Tour de France,  amassed seven collegiate mountain biking titles as a member of the Bobcat cycling team

PITTSBURG ST.

The Gorilla hail from Pittsburgh, KS. Their illustrious leader is The__Kid, now starting his 13^th year.  His Iba record is 382-248, covering his years at Hood, Bridgewater St., CSU-Eastbay, Millikin, and Pittsburg St.

Their 2002 football game with NW Missouri St was played at Arrowhead Statium in Kansas City.  The attendance of 26,695 is an NCAA DII record.

The Gorilla  return all 12 players from last year’s 19-11 team, which lost to Rollins in the PIT.

U. OF THE SCIENCES

 Coach mhollebeek coaches the Devils from Philadelphia.  His overall Iba record is 653-412  and includes stints at Husson, Grand Valley, and Kutztown St. .  Their mascot is Drake the Devil.  They were 26-6   last season, falling in the Sweet 16  to St. Edward’s.  They return 10 lettermen. 

U. of the Sciences won the NT in ‘59 

The college was founded in 1821 when a group of 68 Philadelphia apothecaries met to enhance their vocation. They organized U. of the Sciences, the first college of pharmacy in the nation

WAYNE ST. (NE)

The Wildcats hail from Wayne, NE.  Their veteran coach is jtreeves 27 who’s Iba record is 1134-779. He’s coached at Cal-Santa Cruz, Christian Brothers, Sam Houston St, and Ole Miss. They return 9 players from last season’s 22-8 team, which lost to CSU-Stanislus in the 1^st round. 

Four players off of Wayne’s 1993 football team went on to play professionally. Brett Salisbury was the starting QB for the Helsinki East City Giants (Finland). Damon Thomas was a free agent who was picked up by the Bills.  Brad Otis was the 2^nd round pick of the Rams and played for Arizona Cardinals. Byron Chamberlain was the 7^th round pick of the Broncos and made the Pro Bowl with the Vikings in 2001

 

 

What a great field!  Six ranked teams, 4 of which are undefeated. The only losses have been by Bellarmine ( at #17 Northeastern) and U. of the  Sciences (at #1 Pfeiffer).

PAIRINGS
#6 Lees-McRae (4-0) at #15 Franklin Pierce (4-0)
#16 U. of the Sciences (3-1) at #11 Wayne St. (4-0)
#12 Bellarmine (3-1) at #21 Pittsburg St. (4-0)

RESULTS
#15 Franklin Pierce 58; #6 Lees-McRae 53
#16 U. of the Sciences 72; #11 Wayne St. 71
#12 Bellarmine 85; #21 Pittsburg St. 75

TONIGHT
#8 Bellarmine (4-1) at #21 Wayne St. (4-1)
#12 U. of the Sciences (4-1) at #15 Lees-McRae (4-1)
#36 Pittsburg St. (4-1) at #10 Franklin Pierce (5-0)

RESULTS
#8 Bellarmine 60; #21 Wayne St. 69
#15 Lees-McRae 78; #12 U. of the Sciences 67
#15 Franklin Pierce 85; #21 Pittsburg St. 64

STANDINGS
1.  Bellarmine        2-0
     Franklin Pierce 2-0
3.  Lees-McRae    1-1
      U. Science       1-1
5.  Pittsburg           0-2
    Wayne St.          0-2

TONIGHT
 #6 Franklin Pierce (6-0) at #5 Bellarmine (5-1)
#36 Wayne St. (4-2) at #11 Lees-McRae (5-1)
Pittsburg  (4-2) at #20 U. of Sciences (4-2)

RESULTS
#6 Franklin Pierce 65; #5 Bellarmine 49
#11 Lees-McRae 64; Wayne St. 60
#20 U. of Sciences 69; Pittsburg 59

STANDINGS
1. Franklin Pierce    3-0
2. Bellarmine           2-1
    Lees-McRae       2-1
    U. Science           2-1
5. Pittsburg              0-3
    Wayne St.            0-3

TONIGHT
#3 Franklin Pierce (7-0) at #16 U. of the Sciences (5-2)
#9 Lees-McRae (6-1) at #12 Bellarmine (5-2)
Wayne St. (4-3) at Pittsburgh St. (4-3)

Franklin Pierce will clinch the championship with a win tonight

RESULTS
#16 U. of the Sciences 82; #3 Franklin  Pierce 81
#9 Lees-McRae 67; #12 Bellarmine 65
Wayne St 63; Pittsburg St. 55

STANDINGS
1.  Franklin Pierce       3-1
2. Lees-McRae            3-1
3. U. of the Sciences   3-1
4. Bellarmine                2-2
5. Wayne St.                  1-3
6. Pittsburg St.              0-4

TONIGHT
#8  Franklin Pierce (7-1) at #39 Wayne St. (5-3)
#13 U. Science (6-2) at #16 Bellarmine (5-3)
#7 Lees-McRae (7-1) at Pittsburg St. (4-4)

Franklin Pierce would win a 3-way tie-breaker for the title. They'd win a 2-way tie over Lees-McRae but would lose out vs. U. of the Sciences.  Lees-McRae wins a 2-way tie with U. Science.

RESULTS
#8 Franlkin Pierce 67; #39 Wayne St. 62
#16 Bellarmine 61; #13 U. Science 53
#7 Lees-McRae 69; Pittsburg St. 60

FINAL STANDINGS
1.  Franklin Pierce          4-1
2.   Lees-McRae             4-1
3.  Bellarmine                  3-2
4. U. Science                   3-2
5. Wayne St.                     1-4
6. Pittsburg St.                 0-5

Congratulations to coach tomcecil and the Franklin Pierce Ravens!!!!

this was maybe the most competitive I've ever seen the tournament.