When you look at some of the greatest teams in sports history, what is the first thing you think of? The players? The coaches? The game-changing plays? All those things could be true, but there is one defining trait that all great teams have: team culture. The NCC men’s track and field team certainly has built a winning culture over the years. This includes 12 national championships and 22 CCIW conference championships. That is to say, it is a distinct culture that has turned NCC into the powerhouse it is today.
Teamwork is dreamwork
In an article done by the University of Pennsylvania, team culture “refers to the shared beliefs, behaviors, working practices, and values of a particular company or organization.” Likewise, the track and field team’s culture perfectly exemplifies this definition.
“The culture of the NCC Track & Field Team has been built over the decades around the concepts of family, connection, togetherness, discipline and hard work,” Head Coach Gabe Rivera says. “It’s a never-ending process and a lifelong endeavor.”
Rivera and other coaches on the staff try to set their players up for success both on and off the field, so this idea has been stamped into the program.
A history of success
The philosophy of the team was built from its two architects. What Al Carius and Frank Gramarosso have done to this program is remarkable, taking the newly founded cross country and track programs and turning them into national juggernauts. Above all, these two men were the blueprint for every coach at NCC.
“For decades they have preached a culture of love, support and class,” said thrower Anthony Zajac, ‘24, about the impact of Carius and Gramarosso, “that so long as we as a team have each other’s backs, and hold each other accountable, we can accomplish anything.”
Both men retired from coaching in 2020. As a result, it was a struggle for upperclassmen athletes to educate newcomers about what their culture was all about.
“My first two years running track here, there was a sense of accountability that the upperclassmen held for each other and the underclassmen,” says sprinter AJ Lehman, ‘24. “It was hard to get these guys into the old culture and values of what we used to have.”
However, fortunes changed for the Cardinals as they found new energy last season, winning both the CCIW indoor and outdoor championships while also sending six athletes to the individual national championships.
Different faces, same goal
While there will be many athletes to compete for the Cardinals, the team’s identity will remain the same.
“We want our athletes to learn how to set goals and work relentlessly toward them, while maintaining balance in their lives.” Rivera says, “Most importantly, I hope they gain confidence in their abilities and the understanding that success is earned through effort and persistence.”
A team’s culture is just as important as its players. The culture of this program is evident in the minds of every athlete, whether it’s competing for CCIW title or trying to achieve academic goals. Everything that the program is built upon can be summed up in one quote by Carius.
“The thing we value most is personal improvement, doing something you haven’t done before. You’re not a better person if you’re an All-American, and not a worse person if you’re not. Athletics should be fun. It does mean you always give your best. And when you do that, you can live with the results.”
So, with these words, the Cardinals will certainly be flying for years to come.
