Coach Doug Noll begins his sixth season at
IPFW and third as a full-fledged Division I
program, knowing what a fine line there is
between winning and losing at the highest level.
Noll, whose Mastodons finished the season 3-25, saw teams such as 27th-ranked Kent State hit a half-court shot to win by one, Oregon State of the Pac-10 win by two, and 17th-ranked Purdue fight for their lives to lead by one at half and win by 11 over their satellite campus.

Noll also saw 10 other games come down to the last minute with three buzzer beaters against his team, and yet he continues to believe in the course of action IPFW is taking and continues to persevere with a positive attitude, knowing that a conference affiliation is on the horizon.

“When any team loses 60 percent of its offense, there will be struggles,” Noll said. “But I am grateful to the kids who stayed the course and worked extremely hard to finish out the second half of the year. I think our young kids definitely have gained a plethora of knowledge and experience as most of them went from role players to impact players.

”This year will be different as senior David Simon will lead a group of young and somewhat experienced talent with another very challenging schedule. The Dons visit Notre Dame, Xavier, Marquette, and Saint Louis, among many other quality teams, and have a home stand against Air Force, Utah State, Middle Tennessee State, and Maine. Noll has also added the former Mr. Basketball of South Carolina, 6-7 power forward Quintin Butler, as the other upperclassman, but the rest of the young guns for IPFW will continue to work to gain more experience each day.

At Spring Arbor University, Noll’s teams averaged more than 21 wins per year during a six-year span. Under his leadership, Spring Arbor set a record for wins in a season (29) and winning percentage (.820) and was nationally ranked at #2 in preseason NAIA Division II polls.

One of Spring Arbor’s winningest coaches, with a record of 131-108, Noll was twice selected as the Wolverine-Hoosier Conference Coach of the Year (1993–97). His 1997 team finished the season ranked fourth in the nation.

Before moving to Spring Arbor, Noll was the assistant coach at Grace College. From 1990 to 1992, he helped transform a 10-22 team into one that compiled a record of 49-17. In the 1991–92 season, Grace posted a mark of 32-5, winning the first-ever NAIA Division II National Championship.

Coach Noll was also a successful player on the court. He transferred to Grace College from the University of Wyoming. At Grace, he was tabbed as a two-time NAIA All-American. In only two seasons with the Lancers, he poured in 2,250 points, which ranks him fourth All-Time. Between 1976 and 1978, he stepped up to the free-throw line more often than any other college player, connecting on 654 of 741 attempts for an impressive 88 percent. Noll averaged an outstanding 27.7 points per game.

Considered an excellent teacher by his peers, Noll has conducted clinics and camps throughout the United States and in 10 European countries. He has also produced an instructional video on how best to shoot free-throws.

In addition to his aforementioned coaching positions, Noll also coached at Malone College, in Canton, Ohio, and South Adams High School in Berne, Ind.

Noll’s family includes his wife of 29 years, Carla, who is an office manager at International Isocyanate Institute. His son, Brad, played at IPFW from 1999 to 2003, is sixth All-Time on the IPFW scoring list, is also in five Top 10 All-Time categories, and is a successful realtor with Century 21-Bradley Real Estate. His daughter-inlaw, Lindsay, is a registered nurse at Lutheran Hospital, and his daughter, Abby, was Player of the Year in Northeastern Indiana in 2003 at Carroll High School. This year, Abby is a sophomore at Bethel College and a member of the Lady Pilots basketball team.