Spring and fall are usually known as seasons of change. This applies to the coaching staff of the Iowa State men’s golf team as well.

Jamie Bermel is the new leader of the men’s ISU golf team after five seasons as Drake’s head coach.

He grew up in the southeastern Iowa town of Keota, and is a 1986 graduate of Central College in Pella.

“By default,” is how Bermel explains winding up in a coaching career after experimenting as an assistant golf pro.

In 1992, he found himself at Drake University as the intramural director and men’s golf coach.

Even though sports are a substantial part of his life, he said education is especially important to him.

He said part of his mission as a coach is to seek out recruits who have a “legitimate shot at graduating.”

He pointed out that thousands try to enter the PGA tour and fail, and he wants his players to have a worthwhile degree.

Bermel said he also looks for “a kid that’s a winner.”

He said the winner mentality he seeks is demonstrated by his favorite PGA stars Tom Watson and Jack Nicklaus.

He said his motivation as a coach comes from watching for progress in his players and getting a chance to develop relationships. “Seeing them get better, I think that’s a lot of fun,” he said.

Assistant Coach Donnie Teeter is a former ISU golfer who is assisting both the men and women’s teams this season.

He said he is impressed with Bermel’s coaching style.

“He’s a real disciplinarian and has the respect of the players,” Teeter said.

Teeter also has a history with the game.

He captained the men’s team and helped lead the Cyclones to a third-place finish at the Big 12 Championship last year.

As a Cyclone golfer, Teeter earned first team All-Big 12 honors and finished sixth at the Big 12 championship.

Bermel, too, had good things to say about his co-worker.

He described Teeter as “real personable, enthused and excited.”

“He will be a great ambassador for Iowa State, [and] a great recruiting asset,” Bermel said.

Bermel joked, “I would have liked him a lot better if he would have came to Drake.”

Bermel heavily recruited Teeter throughout high school.

Bermel’s greatest accomplishment as a coach came last spring, when Drake earned its first Missouri Valley Conference title since the conference formed 90 years ago, shocking the athletic world.

“When I took the job, I don’t think anybody thought we could do it, or believed we could do it.

“This is real rewarding to me,” he said.

The Cinderella season was capped off by qualifying for the national tournament.

Bermel is excited about his team and the opportunity to coach in the electric atmosphere of the Big 12.

“We’re going to be unproven, but there is a lot of talent.

“Hopefully we’ll be a team that puts five guys out there at anytime and get hot. That’s going to make our year. It’ll be fun,” Bermel said.

Teeter said his biggest accomplishment “was winning the Iowa Masters two times.”

He enjoys being around the sport and said, “both programs are on the way up, especially the men’s program.”

His experience should greatly help both programs in their quest for excellence in the 1997 fall season.

The men’s season opened Tuesday at the Big Four Championship in Des Moines.

The women start kick off their season Sept. 9 in Lincoln, Neb.. at the Nebraska Invitational.