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Drake
Bulldogs Updated 03/22/25 |
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Location: Des Moines, IA Enrollment: 3,000 Cost of Attendance: $67,000 Venue: Knapp
Center Arena
Capacity: 7,000 Conference: Missouri Valley, MVC
(1st) Record: 31-3 (17-3) NET Rank: Committee Rank: 44 Tournament History Appearances: 7 Final Fours: 0 Championships: 0 Win-Loss: 6-7 Most Recent: 2024, lost as a 10-seed to
7-seed Washington St, 61-66 |
Drake University
Drake University is a private university in Des Moines, Iowa. It was founded in March 1881 by George T. Carpenter, a teacher and pastor, and Francis Marion Drake, a Union general during the Civil War. Drake was originally affiliated with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) at its founding, but the religious affiliation was terminated in 1907 Drake University began its men's basketball program began in 1906. The Bulldogs finished with a 2 1 record as an independent. The next year, they were charter members of the Missouri Valley Conference. The teams were known as "The Drakes" until 1908, when John L. Griffith, the newly appointed football coach, brought English Bulldogs to the sidelines of games, prompting the local newspaper to dub the teams "the Bulldogs". The Drake Bulldogs are not unfamiliar with the Dance --
they have appeared in four of the last five tournaments. But
after last year's run, almost the entire team and head coach bolted for
greener pastures (and by greener, I mean richer). Former
head coach Darian DeVries left for West Virginia. And
after one season there said, "This place
sucks!", and then headed to Indiana. With no coach and almost no players, the program had to
start over. Drake chose a different route to rebuild its program by hiring four-time DII national champion coach Ben McCollum from Northwest Missouri State. And if worked in DII, why not try it in DI. McCollum brought four of his players from Northwest Missouri State to join his Drake team. And they have all started every game this season and finished with a 31-3 record, including wins over FGCU, Miami, FAU, Vanderbilt, and Kansas State.
Knapp Center Griff II
Griff I is somewhere in upstate New York. Griff II is
informally known as George. The name
"George" is in honor of the first president of Drake University,
George Carpenter. Griff II
will be forced to stay back in Des Moines as Drake travels to the First Round
of the 2025 Tournament because the NCAA only allows live mascots at the Final
Four. I don't think
we will see Griff II. But you
never know. |
Drake's
current live mascot is named Griff II.