FARGO -- The nickname is among one of the most creative in NCAA athletics. The Saint Francis University Red Flash go back to 1927 when the school's running backs and their red jerseys made up one of the fastest backfields in college football.
Hence, the Red Flash.
This week, it's more like the Flash Flood. There has been more rain in the rural countryside of Loretto, Pa., than head coach Chris Villarrial would care for. It hasn't made preparing for a Saturday night game against eighth-ranked North Dakota State in the Fargodome any easier.
Then again, the former All-Pro offensive lineman spent 11 seasons in the NFL for the Chicago Bears and Buffalo Bills, the last in 2006, and there's not a lot he hasn't seen in football. A native of Hershey, Pa., the school located in west central Pennsylvania provided the ideal spot for Villarrial to begin his post-NFL passion: coaching.
"When I reached the NFL, it was something I felt that, 'What if I could go back home and give back to the kids, keep them off the street and give them an education?' " he said. "I felt like it was my calling."
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He picked a challenging calling. The Red Flash have an 18-99 record since 2000. They haven't had a winning season since 1992 when they went 8-2-1 and reached the conference championship game.
"It's definitely tough, very, very tough," Villarrial said. "Rebuilding a program is not easy for anybody. Anybody who gets in this profession knows that rebuilding a program is one of the toughest things you can do. We're at ground zero and we're going to build it one brick at a time."
That is one reason for taking the game at NDSU. He wants his players to see what it's like to play a nationally ranked program in the Division I Football Championship Subdivision. The Fargodome will be a different environment then Saint Francis' DeGol Field, which is surrounded by trees on three sides.
"It will be exciting for the kids to come up there and play in the dome and in an NFL-type of atmosphere," Villarrial said.
He wants to get the Saint Francis name out there, beyond the Northeast Conference borders. One of the first priorities is to recruit bigger linemen - and that's where his NFL background and name could come in handy.
He's long known about NDSU from his days at Indiana University (Pa.), a school the Bison played in the 1990 Division II championship game (a 51-11 win). Villarrial played in the 1993 championship game and eventually had his jersey retired by IUP.
That's about all that's retired about him. Looking for a quest in his post-NFL life, he found one in trying to turn around the Red Flash.
"It's a process," he said.
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Kolpack is a sports writer at the Fargo Forum
