Alaska Nanooks rifle coach Dan Jordan resigns

Earlier in the day, Jordan announced his resignation from his alma mater’s rifle team because he’s going to be a co-owner and brewmaster for White Dog Brewing Co. in Boise, Idaho. Troy Moore, who was a Nanooks teammate of Jordan, started the brewing company in Bozeman, Montana.

“Over the last several years, we had joked about working together,’’ Jordan said.

Moore opened the Boise location two months ago.

“All of a sudden, it became a legitimate opportunity and everything fell together super fast,’’ Jordan said. “It’s a business and career opportunity that kind of presented itself.”

The 38-year-old Jordan guided the Nanooks for 11 seasons and led them to three of the 10 NCAA team championships in the program’s history.

Jordan shot for UAF from 1997-99. He earned First Team All-America in 1998 and 1999, the same year UAF won its second NCAA team championship.

Jordan graduated with a natural resources management degree in 2001 and three years later, he earned the silver medal in the men’s three-position rifle at the 2004 Paralympic Games in Athens, Greece.

Jordan became paralyzed after he was injured in an accident in the summer after his sophomore year at UAF.

As the Nanooks head coach, Jordan led the team to NCAA championships in his first three seasons at the helm, 2006-08. The 2007 title run occurred in the UAF Patty Center.

The Nanooks also played host to the NCAA national meet at the Patty Center in 2015 and they placed second to West Virginia, which has a NCAA-record 18 national team titles in its history. The Nanooks placed sixth in the team standings in this year’s NCAA competition in Akron, Ohio.

“The championships and the wins are nice, but it’s about the shooters,’’ Jordan said. “Seeing them do well and have success, and seeing them go on and do well at the national level. That’s important to me.

“The championships are fun to win, but it’s not the only thing,’’ he continued. “It’s super fun to be a coach and have that experience.”

He helped three Nanooks shooters experience winning NCAA national individual titles. Jamie (Beyerle) Corkish captured the smallbore honor in 2006; Patrick Sartz won in the air rifle in 2008; and Tim Sherry took first in smallbore in 2014.

Jordan coached 24 Nanooks to 78 All-America recognitions and two to Academic All-America. Mats Eriksson, in 2015, received the then Elite 89 Award, which honored the student-athlete with the highest cumulative grade-point average at an NCAA championship event.

Jordan was the recipient of NCAA Rifle Coach of the Year honors from 2005-07 and UAF Athletics Department Coach of the Year accolades in 2006, 2007 and 2014.

Jordan’s coaching style included a philosophy of three words — family, legacy and purpose.

“Everybody that came in knew about the culture and what was expected of them,’’ Jordan said. “You then treated everyone (teammates) like a family ... and we were all working toward a similar goal.

“You did everything with a purpose, whether it was training, academics or (service to the) community,’’ he added. “Those three things helped guide us and build that culture of excellence around the team.”

The Nanooks also won NCAA team titles in 1994, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003 and 2004. Two Olympic medalists also came from the program.

Matt Emmons, who shot for the Nanooks from 1999 to 2003, won the gold medal in the men’s 50-meter rifle prone shooting in the 2004 Summer Games in Athens, and took silver in the same event in 2008 in Beijing. He also gained the bronze medal in the 50-meter rifle three-position at the London Olympics.

Corkish, a Nanook from 2002-06, was the women’s gold medalist in London in the 50-meter rifle three position.

Jordan contacted current and former Nanooks shooters Tuesday about his resignation before he informed UAF athletics director Gary Gray.

“It was everything from support and understanding to a little bit of anger and frustration,’’ Jordan said of reactions from Nanooks shooters present and past. “There were a litle bit of tears, too. It was kind of a little bit conflicting.”

JT Schnering, a Lathrop High School graduate who’s entering his sophomore year at UAF, said Jordan’s resignation “was a shocker to all of us.”

“He really pushed us to do our best; he didn’t want any slacking off,’’ Schnering said. “When we needed help, he was there to help us. He wanted the best team possible, and I think he got it.”

Schnering, as a freshman last season, qualified for the NCAA Championships in Akron.

“It was definitely a good year of memories with him, that’s for sure,’’ Schnering said.

2016 Hutchison High School graduate Amy Gentry is entering her freshman year at UAF and said she was looking forward to be coached by Jordan.

“I’m kind of sad about it,’’ Gentry, by cellphone, said of Jordan’s resignation. “It’s upsetting to not be able to work with such a great coach and a great guy.

“It’s going to be sad to see him go,’’ she added, “but hopefully we’ll find someone as good as him because he’ll be hard to replace.”

According to a UAF news release Wednesday, Gray and Mike Sfraga, UAF vice chancellor for university and student advancement, will be seeking to replace Jordan before the start of the upcoming season.

Jordan said he will provide whatever help he can to find his replacement. He’s contacted coaches from other NCAA programs and the U.S. National Team about his resignation.

“I’ve reached out to quite a few shooters, and it’s a great time with the Olympics coming up,’’ Jordan alluded to the 2016 Summer Olympics. “After the Olympics, they’re going to be evaluating their lives for the next four years, and a lot of them may be looking at retirement and getting into a coaching situation.”

His replacement, said Jordan, will be inheriting a strong, independent Nanooks team for 2016-17.

“No matter who comes in, they’ll be coming into a very mature group that will help the coach be successful,’’ Jordan said.