The Concordia College basketball coach says Division III programs offer balance and competition to student athletes.

Tyler Bormann is the men’s basketball coach at Concordia College in Moorhead, Minn. In 2024, the team reached the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic College playoffs for the first time since 2016. 

We recently sat down with Bormann via Zoom to ask about coaching at a Division III school. 

Q:  What is your biggest selling point to prospective athletes as a Division III school? 

A: I think the biggest selling point at Division III is student-athlete balance. Our student athletes compete at a high level, but they don’t sacrifice their academic goals and aspirations. And they also, I think, have a college student life that is a little more balanced. While there are still demands on them as an athlete, it doesn’t interfere with or take the place of also being a student and being prepared for life after being a student athlete. 

Q: What are the biggest adjustments that great high school athletes need to make when they play Division III sports? 

A: I think it’s the same adjustment that good high school players at every level and every sport have to make. It’s just being around the depth of quality in student athletes. I think every sport has a couple of characteristics that maybe make it tough for high school student athletes to transition and have immediate success at this level. When our guys come into our program, they’re surrounded by 15 other young men who may have been the best player on their high school team.  I think it is a transition for all high school kids at every level, and Division III is no different. It’s probably just kind of relative to the level. 

Q: If you could make one wish as Division III coach, what would that be? 

A: Wow. I’m honestly not sure because I think part of what makes Division III special is that we aren’t like every other level, but it also brings challenges.   There’s a lot of financial aid available at the Division III level, but it is all academic and need-based aid, and that can be a challenge. However, that’s also what I look at also as kind of a positive because we build relationships with student athletes. It’s not transactional, and at higher levels, it has really become very transactional in terms of why people are making decisions to go where they are. So, honestly, it’s a great question.