Following 23 seasons as Hobart's head football coach, Mike Cragg tackled a new role in athletics when he was named the senior director of development for athletics in 2017. In that role, he continues to build on the relationships he established as a coach, working closely with the HWS advancement team and the athletics departments to achieve institutional goals.
In 23 seasons at the helm of the football program, Cragg compiled a 157-62 record (.717). He has more career wins at Hobart than any two of his predecessors combined. At the end of the 2017 season, he was 20th among active NCAA Division III head coaches in total victories.
The Statesmen earned at least a share of 11 of the Liberty League’s 23 championships during Cragg's tenure. His teams made 11 postseason appearances, including NCAA quarterfinal runs in 2012 and 2014.
Cragg mentored 326 all-conference selections, including 24 players of the year (offensive, defensive, or special teams) and seven rookies of the year. He coached dozens of All-Americans, including consensus All-Americans Dave Russell ’98, Alex Bell ’05, Tyre Coleman ’15, and Ali Marpet ’15. Several Statesmen have gone on to play football professionally, most notably Marpet, who was the 61st overall pick by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 2015 NFL Draft.
Cragg’s success resulted in 10 Liberty League Coaching Staff of the Year awards and two AFCA Regional Coach of the Year awards. In 2010, he was inducted into the Hobart Athletics Hall of Fame.
Cragg’s Class of 2015 was the most dominant in program history. Coleman, Marpet and their classmates notched a 41-5 record (.891), four straight league titles, and two NCAA quarterfinal berths. No graduating class has left campus with more victories—although the Class of 2016 also graduated with 41 wins—and only the Class of 1958 had a higher winning percentage.
Cragg followed up a 9-2 campaign in 2011 by leading his 2012 squad to the program’s first undefeated regular season since 1957. Hobart extended its winning streak to 12 games with a pair of NCAA playoff victories to reach the quarterfinals for the first time in school history. The Statesmen won the league championship for the second year in a row, running through the conference slate with a perfect 7-0 record, the team’s first undefeated league record since 2004.
In 2013, Hobart kept its momentum, posting a second straight undefeated regular season and a third straight league title. The Statesmen ran their win streak to 10 games with a 34-7 NCAA playoff victory over Gallaudet. The accolades poured in with 21 all-conference honors, including the Offensive and Defensive Player of the Year and Coaching Staff of the Year awards, seven all-region honors, and five All-Americans.
Hobart maintained its winning ways with another 12-1 season in 2014. After cruising to an 8-0 record and climbing as high as No. 7 in the national polls, the Statesmen proved they could win close games too, winning each of its next four games by a touchdown or less.
With All-American offensive linemen DeAndré Smith ’15 and Marpet leading the way, Hobart’s offense was sixth in the nation in fewest sacks allowed. On the other side of the ball, Coleman finished his career second in Division III history in sacks and third in tackles for loss while earning the D3football.com National Defensive Player of the Year award. The 2014 Statesmen also earned six All-East awards and 21 All-Liberty League honors, capturing the Offensive and Defensive Player of the Year hardware for the second straight season.
The 2015 season saw Cragg's squad compile a 7-3 record that included a 19-17 upset of then No. 25 St. Lawrence. Hobart featured an exceptional defense, ranked among the best in the nation in passing yards allowed (2nd), total defense (6th), third down defense (9th), and first down defense (9th). His players merited 16 all-conference awards.
In 2016, Cragg and the Statesmen reclaimed the Liberty League Championship. Hobart showed a flair for the dramatic, winning five games with a go-ahead touchdown in the final three minutes of the fourth quarter. The team's top performance was a 34-18 win at then No. 13 St. Lawrence. The Saints entered the game with the nation's top pass defense, but the Statesmen threw for 363 yards and five touchdowns. Nineteen Hobart players earned all-conference honors, including Offensive Player of the Year and Special Teams Player of the Year.
Cragg, who served as Hobart’s defensive coordinator from 1991 to 2006, directed the 2000 Statesmen into the NCAA records book. The Hobart secondary, aided by a relentless pass rush, broke the NCAA Division III record for lowest pass completion percentage allowed. Hobart opponents were successful on just 31.3 percent of their pass attempts, eclipsing the old mark, 33.5, set by Plymouth State in 1987. The 2000 season also marked the Statesmen’s first NCAA playoff appearance. Hobart won the program’s very first postseason game by a score of 25-0 over Bridgewater State.
In addition to the team’s on-field success, Cragg’s Statesmen received a great deal of recognition for their efforts in the classroom. During his tenure, seven Hobart players were named to the CoSIDA Academic All-America teams—including offensive lineman Brian Monaco ’10 who became the first two-time first team Academic All-American in Hobart history—while 163 Statesmen earned Liberty League All-Academic honors.
Cragg's Hobart coaching career began as an assistant football coach in 1986. He also served as the head coach of the tennis team for three seasons, compiling an overall record of 36-10 and three conference titles from 1992-93 to 1995-96.
Cragg came to Hobart after serving as the head coach of the varsity football program at Corry (Pa.) High School. He led the Beavers to a third-place finish in the Erie County League in his first year, a first-ever appearance in the District X Playoffs in 1986, and was named Coach of the Year.
A 1983 graduate of Slippery Rock University with a bachelor’s degree in health and physical education, Cragg was a two-year letter winner for the Rock at free safety and linebacker. He owns a share of the school’s single game interception record (3 vs. Edinboro, 1980).
Cragg and his wife, Holley, have two children, Michael, a defensive assistant coach for the Statesmen, and Kristen Alexandria ’13.
