Over the last 154 years, North Central’s athletic programs have accounted for over 150 NCAA National Championships and over 1,000 All-American student-athletes. Surprisingly, the Cardinal’s Hall of Fame is only 11 years old but already has over 70 of North Central’s finest in the club.
Of that exclusive group of athletes, three remain a crucial part of the day-to-day running of North Central ’ s athletic programs. Those athletes include, Tim Winder, Frank Gramarosso and Jim Miller.
Tim Winder was be the newest member of the group when he was inducted last homecoming, which was on Saturday, October 24. Winder has been with the college’s track and field program for over 22 years, specializing in pole vaulting.
Since coming over from Naperville Central High School, Winder has overseen 14 vaulting individual national championships along with 73 NCAA Division III All-Americans.
“When an athlete overcomes an emotional or spiritual obstacle or confronts and overcomes a fear, that is a very important moment of personal development,” Winder said. “That’s exciting to me, so over the course of 20 plus years, those are my favorite memories.”
“Honestly, my only goal in coaching the vault that I’ve ever had is to help my athletes achieve their ultimate potential in the vault. I have worked with some pretty special athletes over the years, and I’m thankful that I’ve had the opportunity to help develop their talent.”
Winder is a man of more than just sports. “I backpack with my three sons every summer for four days and last year we tackled the Smokey Mountains,” Winder said. His love for the outdoors is not limited to hiking; Winder is also an avid fly fisherman. His other hobbies include riding and working on motorcycles, compiling around 6,000 miles a year cruising.
Frank Gramarosso, Hall of Fame Class of 2012, has been instrumental in the success of both the men’s track and field program and the cross-country program over the last thirty years. Gramarosso helped the Cardinals to an additional 11 national team titles before taking over as the head track and field coach in 2010.
Gramarosso was a great athlete himself, earning All-Big Ten conference honors in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at Northwestern University. After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in health and physical education, he began his coaching career at Glenbard East High School in Lombard, Ill.
Gramarosso moved on to Eisenhower High School in Blue Island, Ill., where he established himself as a coach and earned the Northern Illinois Track and Cross Country Coaching Association’s Track Coach of the Year award in 1981. He joined coach Al Carius’ staff at North Central in 1982.
Before Jim Miller (’86) started his tenure as the North Central College athletic director, he was a North Central athlete and coach at other schools. Miller was both a captain in football and wrestling during his time as a North Central Cardinal.
Miller was born on a military base and grew up under great discipline living in a military town. After attending North Central, he moved to New York City to pursue a job in sales. It was a change from Naperville, but a change that Miller embraced and something that transferred over well with his admiration of sports.
“The (New York) Giants won the Super Bowl and the (New York) Mets won the World Series the year I moved out there,” Miller said. “I remember watching the famous Bill Buckner play.”
In 1987, Miller returned to North Central as an admission counselor as well as an assistant coach of the wrestling and football teams. He went on to become the head wrestling coach, from 1989 to 2005, where he worked his way to be inducted into the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) Hall of Fame.
“Seeing individuals set and achieve goals, along with the relationships that form with both athletes and coaches have been the best memories in my time here at North Central,” Miller said.
Since Miller has become athletic director, the Cardinals have won 60 CCIW team championships along with 34 national championships. “Every year is a new journey and no team will ever be the same as the last, but a constant goal is to see how many athletic and academic All-Americans we can have,” said Miller.
