CoSIDA 360 Fall 2019: From the President's Desk – The Gift of Making An Impact
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Note: This story appeared in the Fall 2019 November edition of CoSIDA 360 Magazine. To view the full magazine, click here.
From the President's Desk
The Gift of Making An Impact
by Herb Vincent – CoSIDA President 2019-20 / Southeastern Conference Associate Commissioner/Communications
One of the great opportunities we have in the communications profession is the ability to tell stories that are human and moving, stories that evoke emotions and reveal life-changing perspectives.
Such was a story penned recently by one of our colleagues. What made this story unique was the fact that it was a very personal story, a story about the writer himself.
Mike Scala is in his 19th year as Director of Sports Publicity for Montclair State University. He’s a one-man shop who handles all communications for the Red Hawks’ 18 sports.
Any routine he may have developed in his nearly two-decade service to Montclair State was shattered in January when he was diagnosed with colon cancer, followed by eight rounds of chemotherapy. Through it all he persevered, and in doing so made an impact in ways even he did not comprehend.
In September, he revealed his medical condition on social media and told a story that is a lesson in many ways for all of us:
Mike gave us all a gift by sharing this story. It’s a story that tells us that we are in a position to have an impact on young people, to teach them lessons, to make them better and to prepare them for a better life.
It tells us that, when we step out of our comfort zone, we can do amazing things and we can move people in ways they did not know they could be moved.
It also tells us about what is important in life, and that is life itself. The teams and student-athletes we serve work hard every day and their efforts are measured in wins and losses. But Mike Scala has been fighting through the most important game of his life for 10 months and we are all praying he will crush his opponent for the biggest win of all.
Thank you, Mike, for sharing your story. And thank you for helping us understand the impact all of us in college athletics can have on the student-athletes around us who are looking for inspiration from courageous leaders like you.
Herb Vincent
Southeastern Conference
CoSIDA President 2019-20
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- 06/23/26 / 11:59 P.M. M/W At-Large Academic All-America National Ballot Voting Deadline (NCAA, NAIA, College Division)
- 06/30/26 / 11:59 P.M. M/W Track & Field/Cross Country Academic All-America National Ballot Voting Deadline (NCAA, NAIA)
- 07/07/26 / 12:00 P.M. W At-Large Academic All-America Announced (NCAA, NAIA, College Division)
- 07/08/26 / 12:00 P.M. M At-Large Academic All-America Announced (NCAA, NAIA, College Division)
- 07/14/26 / 12:00 P.M. M Track & Field/Cross Country Academic All-America Announced (NCAA, NAIA)
- 06/07/26 / All Day 2026 CSC Unite Convention in Las Vegas
- 06/08/26 / All Day 2026 CSC Unite Convention in Las Vegas
- 06/09/26 / All Day 2026 CSC Unite Convention in Las Vegas
- 06/09/26 / 11:59 P.M. Baseball Academic All-America National Ballot Voting Deadline (NCAA, NAIA, College Division)
- 06/10/26 / All Day 2026 CSC Unite Convention in Las Vegas
[Facebook media]
Mike Scala
Each week our football team brings in someone to speak to the team. For the most part it's former players and/or coaches. Last year our now retired AD and athletic trainer were among the group. Last week, they asked me to be that person. We had lost our opener the previous week which left the team disappointed. It was a punch in the gut for them and so I decided to use my own personal experience on what it means to get back up from a tough blow.
I haven't spoken much in publi...c about it except to my family, friends and close colleagues but for the last eight months I've been battling colon cancer. I was diagnosed in late January and have since gone through eight rounds of chemo which went very well and my doctors are very pleased with the results. I'm actually headed for surgery on October 1 to remove spots that were found on my liver as well as the original cause.
So that was my talking point to the team about responding when you're given such a "gut-punch". I borrowed the ideals of Jim Valvano, my inspiration throughout this fight, using his Mind, Heart and Soul approach (along with a lot of prayers) and how by following it, I began to see the positive results physically. A lot of my bad numbers climbed back toward normal levels and the lesions that were on my liver began to shrink. I explained to them that if followed the same approach on the field (and in life) putting their minds, hearts and souls into every day, they too would see the "physical results".
It must have a been a message that resonated with them. This past Saturday we went out and won 28-11. Today when they had their team meeting they called me back in. Together they had all voted to present me with the Game Ball and thanked me for helping them to the first "W". In my 20+ plus years being in my profession it's probably the greatest gesture I've received from any team and I've gotten many over that time. It's interesting that tomorrow is by birthday (something else I don't discuss too much about) because today they gave me one the best gifts I've ever received.
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