After fielding a team for 115 seasons, Whittier College leadership made a decision back in 2022 to cut the Division III football program to save money.
Under new leadership, the school announced back in May that they'd bring football back...as long as they could raise about $250k.
That proved to not be an issue at all, as fundraising efforts through alumni channels brought in about $814k.
That sound familiar at all?
The school announced that the funds raised will serve "as a foundation to hire a head coach, followed by assistant coaches, and recruit student athletes for the fall 2026 Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Division III season."
This isn't just about bringing back football; it's about doing it right," Chair of the Whittier Board of Trustees and donor Ron Gastelum shared.
“We’re committed to building a robust program that focuses on the holistic development of our student-athletes. We aim to see them succeed on the field, excel in the classroom, and thrive beyond college. I can already envision the stands filled with fans, cheering on our Poets in 2026!”
Back in May as the Poets were looking to resurrect the program, we wrote about how UAB's revival from the dead should serve as some major inspiration.
It's very similar to the story of UAB, where the school decided after their best season in about a decade back in 2014 to shut down the football program, despite the momentum Bill Clark and his staff had built with the Blazers.
UAB president Ray Watts felt they could save about $10 million per year without football on the docket.
However, a grassroots fundraising campaign soon followed and six months after being left for dead, a united Birmingham community learned that UAB football would return to the field in 2017 after over $17 million was raised.
Here's to hoping the next few years of Whittier football continue on that UAB storyline, as the Blazers went 8-4 their first full year back and won the C-USA title, then broke ground on a new stadium the next year before opening it in 2021.
Whittier's release states that the search for coaches, which will involve participation from alumni representatives, will begin in spring of 2025.
As always, stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest.