Christian Braat realizes that going from Edgewood High School to the University of Mount Union for school and to play football will be a big change.

But he's looking forward to the challenge.

"Having a short memory is something my father [Raymond] has always preached to me," the senior said. "If I have a bad play and mess up, just play the next down and everyone what I'm capable of."

Braat, who goes 6'3", 265 pounds, will join the Division III national and state powerhouse program, starting in the fall.

"I've always heard that Mount Union is a great program, and a championship-caliber team year in and year out," he said. "The campus was beautiful when I visited and I really enjoyed the conversations I had with coach [Geoff] Dartt and coach Kappas, and that is what led me to choose Mount Union."

The Purple Raiders, who play in the Ohio Athletic Conference, have captured 13 national championships, the last one in 2017.

"I considered Walsh, Gannon and Lake Erie, but none of those schools ended up offering me, and they wanted me to walk-on, so it was a no-brainer to choose Mount Union."

Braat was recruited as defensive lineman for the Purple Raiders.

"But any opportunity available I'm up for," he said.

Braat, who has a 4.0 GPA, said he plans on studying criminal justice or cybersecurity.

"Christian is very deserving of this opportunity, and has earned the right to continue his academic and athletic career at Mount Union," Warriors coach Olajuwon Cooper said. "He fully understands the magnitude of playing for a national championship-caliber team.

"Their standard of excellence will bring out the best in Christian on and off the field."

Braat is embracing his new challenge.

"I am looking forward to playing with some of the best competition, and meeting new friends, as well as learning new lessons that will help me only be a better football player, but a better man in the end."

In the 2025 season for Edgewood, Braat notched a team-leading 61 total tackles, including seven for loss, and three sacks in earning honorable mention Northeast Lakes District, first-team all-county and second-team Chagrin Valley Conference Lake Division (at linebacker in just six games) accolades.

In his career, Braat played on three teams which advanced to the Division IV playoffs.

"I'm going to miss being one of the best players on the field," he said. "I know when I first get there, I won't be where everyone else is, and I'm going to have to prove myself, and earn myself a spot in the starting lineup."

Braat will close out his Edgewood athletic career in the spring playing baseball.

"It is coming a lot quicker than I thought it would," he said of competing in his last sport in a Warriors uniform. "I'm really pumped for it, considering we have a trip to Florida over spring break."

But when it's finished, Braat will take the lessons learned from Edgewood to Alliance and beyond.

"It's not always about the flashy equipment or being on the best team, it's about heart and how much effort you're willing to put into the game of football to be successful," he said.

PHILADELPHIA —On the eve of UCF basketball’s first NCAA Tournament appearance in seven years, discussions surrounding a possible contract extension for coach Johnny Dawkins have already begun.

Dawkins, who is wrapping up his 10th season with the Knights, signed a two-year contract extension in 2024 that runs through the 2026-27 season. However, the final year of the deal is non-guaranteed.

UCF athletics director Terry Mohajir said the university is considering several scenarios regarding any future deal with Dawkins.

“We’ll talk to his representatives,” Mohajir told the Sentinel. “There are several different scenarios that we’re looking at — short-term extension or long, we’re going to look at some different options.”

Mohajir indicated that a governance process is involved in extending a contract, with UCF President Alexander Cartwright and the school’s Board of Trustees working with the athletics department on a new deal.

“We’re talking to his representatives and I’ve got to work through the university,” he said.

Mohajir said he sat down with Dawkins last season to discuss expectations surrounding the program.

“We had high expectations,” said Mohajir, who was in Philadelphia for UCF’s first-round game against UCLA on Friday. “No one has higher expectations for the basketball program than Johnny. Obviously, he lives it every single day.”

The Knights won a program-best nine Big 12 games this season, finishing eighth in the conference standings. The team also secured five Quad 1 victories, including wins over Texas A&M, Kansas, Texas Tech, BYU and Cincinnati.

The win over the Bearcats came in overtime in the second-round of the Big 12 Tournament.

Mohajir said he tries to avoid entering the last year of a coach’s contract unless there are expectations for that year.

“That’s kind of been our thing, if you look at our history of all of our sports, it’s pretty common,” Mohajir explained.

He went on to add that, because college sports are transactional, athletes are less likely to ask about coaches’ long-term contracts.

“No one asks how long coaches’ contracts are like they did 10 years ago,” Mohajir said. “They’re not asking about that because kids may not be there for five years now.”

Please find me on X, Bluesky or Instagram @osmattmurschel. Email: mmurschel@orlandosentinel.com. Sign up for the Sentinel’s Knights Weekly newsletter for a roundup of all our UCF coverage.

PORTLAND, Ore. — There’s an age-old difference between the starting point guards of today’s NCAA West Region game.

When Hawaii’s Hunter Erickson was a senior at Timpview High School in Utah, Arkansas’ Darius Acuff Jr. was a fifth-grader in Detroit.

“I am old,” said Erickson, 26, with a smile.

While All-American Acuff is a 19-year-old freshman sensation with a quasar-bright NBA future, Erickson is the dean of one of college basketball’s oldest rosters.

At the start of this season, the average age of a Rainbow Warrior was 23 years, three months. Erickson is one of five ’Bows who is married. After serving a two-year mission, Erickson was with BYU for two years, Salt Lake Community College for one season, and Utah for two before joining the ’Bows last June. He qualified for a sixth season because of the pandemic exemption and a one-time special waiver for playing at a junior college.

Although Acuff presents several challenges, Erickson has played against eventual NBA players, such as LJ Cryer, Andrew Nembhard, Jalen Suggs and Caleb Love.

“He’s a very talented player,” Erickson said of Acuff, and “you’re not always going to stop these guys. You’re not going to hold them to zero points. It’s not about that. It’s about getting them to take shots they don’t want to take. Long-range contested shots. Floaters. Deep floaters. Things like that. That’s our game plan. Hopefully we can execute.”

Erickson also has gained confidence through experience.

“Maybe that’s something I struggled with my first two years, going from starting, kind of being the guy on every team I’ve played on my whole life, until then it’s (a limited role) to adjust to,” Erickson said. “But it’s something that paid off in my career and allowed me to realize the value in accepting your role but also excelling at your role regardless of what it is. It’s doing what’s best for your team.”

Erickson has started all 32 games this season, including the past 15 at the point following Aaron Hunkin-Claytor’s season-ending injury.

“Big Fish” circles back to Oregon

For the second time this season, UH senior center Isaac “Big Fish” Johnson has circled back to Oregon.

Johnson, who was born in Oregon, lived in Roseburg, Ore., in his fifth- and sixth-grade years.

“I was a Ducks fan,” Johnson said of rooting for University of Oregon teams.

The father of a youth league teammate had a successful lumber business. He sponsored an event in which Johnson’s youth team played at halftime of a Portland Trail Blazers game at Moda Center.

In November 2021, Johnson, then a backup center for Oregon, faced his brother’s BYU team in a game at Moda. BYU won 81-49.

UH opened this season against Oregon in Eugene. And now Johnson will be back at Moda for today’s opening round of the NCAA Tournament.

“It’s a full-circle moment to be back here for March Madness in what could potentially be my last college game,” Johnson said.

Calipari has a “Classic” history

It was 30 seasons ago when Arkansas coach John Calipari brought his top-ranked UMass team to the 1995 Rainbow Classic in Stan Sheriff Center.

Star center Marcus Camby was injured in the Minutemen’s semifinal victory over USC. The next night, Camby came off the bench to score 20 points to help UMass defeat Syracuse and win the title.

That season, the Minutemen reached the 1996 Final Four, losing to Kentucky in the semifinals. The following year, the NCAA Executive Committee negated the Minutemen’s 1996 NCAA Tournament record because Camby accepted what was ruled to be “improper” gifts from agents.

Camby, who was the second overall pick in the 1996 NBA Draft, played 17 seasons. Calipari won a national title with Kentucky in 2012.

Australia Joins Canada, and Netherlands Face Major Declines in Global University Rankings as Visa Restrictions Shake International Education Landscape

Visa restrictions lead to declining international rankings for universities in Australia, Canada, and the Netherlands, impacting their global competitiveness.

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