The Missouri Western Griffons are the sports teams of Missouri Western State University located in

St. Joseph, Missouri St. Joseph is a city in and the county seat of Buchanan County, Missouri. Small parts of St. Joseph extend into Andrew County. Located on the Missouri River, it is the principal city of the St. Joseph Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includ ...

. They participate in the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

's Division II and in the

Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association The Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA) is a List of NCAA conferences, college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the NCAA Division II, Division II level, headquartered ...

(MIAA).

Sports sponsored

Football

Football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

at Missouri is played at Spratt Stadium. The current head football coach is Matt Williamson, who has held the position since 2017. He replaced Jerry Partridge, who was head coach from 1997–2016. Partridge became Missouri Western's all-time wins leader on September 30, 2006 as the Griffons defeated

Truman State University Truman State University (TSU or Truman) is a public university in Kirksville, Missouri. It had 4,225 enrolled students in the fall of 2021 pursuing degrees in 52 undergraduate and 11 graduate programs. The university is named for U.S. Presiden ...

. His current total of 149 career victories ranks third on the MIAA all-time list.

Kansas City Chiefs summer training camp

The school has been the summer training camp for the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The tea ...

since 2010. The $15.7 million facility was paid for by $10 million from the Chiefs (from state tax credits) and $1.2 million from student fees at Missouri Western, with the rest coming from the City of St. Joseph, Buchanan County and private donations.Chiefs camp carries heftier price tag St. Joseph News-Press – January 16, 2009
It was designed by St. Joseph architect firm Ellison-Auxier architects, Inc., which designed the school's Spratt Hall and clock tower. A climate-controlled, 120-yard

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major ...

regulation grass indoor field, with a locker room, weight room, training room, classrooms and office space was completed in the summer of 2010. This facility is referred to as the "Griffon Indoor Sports Complex."

Notable alumni

Roger Allen III Roger Allen III (born February 10, 1986) is a former American football guard. He played college football at Missouri Western State University. High school career Roger Allen attended Raytown High School in Raytown, Missouri and was earned All-Me ...

offensive lineman *

Chris Ball Christopher Farley Ball (born May 7, 1963) is an American football coach and former player. He assumed the position as the head football coach at Northern Arizona Lumberjacks football, Northern Arizona University in December 2018. Head coaching ...

Northern Arizona University Northern Arizona University (NAU) is a public research university based in Flagstaff, Arizona. It was founded in 1899 as the final public university established in the Arizona Territory, 13 years before Arizona was admitted as the 48th state. ...

head football coach * David Bass, NFL defensive lineman * Michael Hill, NFL running back *

Travis Partridge Travis Partridge (born September 22, 1990) is a former American football quarterback. He played college football at Missouri Western State University and attended Savannah High School in Savannah, Missouri. He has also been a member of the Minn ...

CFL The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

quarterback * Paul Rhoads, college football coach *

Gijon Robinson Gijon Robinson (born October 12, 1984) is a former American football tight end and fullback. He was signed by the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League as an undrafted free agent in 2007. He played college football at Missouri Weste ...

, NFL tight end * Larry Taylor, Olympic basketball player *

Greg Zuerlein Gregory Zuerlein ; (born December 27, 1987) is an American football placekicker for the New York Jets of the National Football League (NFL). A native of Lincoln, Nebraska, he played college football at Nebraska-Omaha and Missouri Western. He ...

, NFL kicker *

Michael Jordan Michael Jeffrey Jordan (born February 17, 1963), also known by his initials MJ, is an American businessman and former professional basketball player. His biography on the official NBA website states: "By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the g ...

, NFL defensive back *

Leonard Wester Leonard Wester (born January 3, 1993) is a former American football offensive tackle. He played Division II college football at Missouri Western. Professional career Tampa Bay Buccaneers On April 30, 2016, Wester signed with the Tampa Bay ...

, NFL offensive lineman *

Sam Webb Samuel Webb (born June 4, 1945) is an American activist and political leader, who served as the Chairman of the Communist Party USA from 2000 to 2014, succeeding the party's longest running leader Gus Hall. Webb did not accept nomination to b ...

, NFL Defensive Back

References

External links

* {{Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association navbox