Shippensburg University Athletics

Mick Chronister is in his ninth overall season as an assistant coach for the Shippensburg University football team in 2017. His coaching emphasis is the defensive line.
 
It is Chronister’s eighth straight season on the staff since returning to his alma mater in 2011 to work with head coach Mark ‘Mac’ Maciejewski. He previously served as a student/graduate assistant offensive line coach for the Red Raiders in 1988, when he coached then-freshman Maciejewski.
 
Overall, the 2018 campaign marks Chronister’s 31st season as a football coach.
 
Since Chronister’s return to the Red Raiders, Shippensburg has averaged 2.65 sacks per game – a rate which is tied for the best in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) during that span. SU has amassed 212 sacks in its last seven seasons with Chronister on the staff. 

 
In Chronister’s first three seasons, the Red Raiders recorded 105 sacks – a total that led the PSAC and was 12 more than any other conference school during that span. SU has recorded 30 or more sacks in five of the last seven seasons. The 38 sacks recorded by SU in 2011 are the most since 1991 and the third-most in a single season in school history.     
 
Over the last seven seasons, SU’s defense has amassed 602 tackles for loss (TFLs) – an average of 86 per season. In 2017, the Red Raiders set a school record with 103 TFLs, as 10 different players recorded at least 5.0 TFLs for the season. Also under Chronister’s direction, SU totaled 94 TFLs in 2013 and 93 TFLs in 2011, which are the third and fourth-highest single-season totals in school history.
 
Among the many talented linemen Chronister has instructed includes current senior Richard Nase, who became the first rookie named to the All-PSAC East First Team Defensive squad since 2004 and the first rookie defensive lineman honored in more than 20 years. Nase set SU’s single-season school record for sacks in 2015 with 12. Despite starting just five games, Nase also led the Red Raiders with 16.5 tackles for loss.
 
Prior to Nase’s arrival, Chronister instructed two-time Associated Press (AP) All-American Jake Metz, who finished his storied career as SU's all-time career sack leader (30.5; previous record was 24) and 55 TFLs, also a school record. He set a school record of 11.5 sacks in a single season in 2012 and finished with 11 in 2013. Metz, who attended 2017 NFL preseason camp with the Buffalo Bills, was an All-Arena Football League Defensive First Team selection with the Philadelphia Soul after leading the league in sacks. 
 
From 1984-87, Chronister was a defensive tackle under head coach Joe Bottiglieri. He was a three-year letterman and served as a team captain during his senior season in 1987. Chronister’s senior season included 28 tackles, two sacks and four fumble recoveries – which at the time was the second highest single-season total in school history.
 
Overall, in three years as a regular, Chronister totaled 55 tackles and three sacks in 29 career games. He graduated in 1988 with a degree in history.
 
Chronister spent 15 seasons as an assistant coach at nearby Dickinson College, where he served as a defensive line coach for the Red Devils. He also spent six years as a coach at Northern High School and one year as an assistant at Boiling Springs High School.
 
A native of Aspers, Chronister graduated from Biglerville High School – where he earned All-Blue Mountain league honors. He has been a teacher for 30 years, serving Northern High School since 1989. He currently works in Alternative Education. Chronister resides in Carlisle with his children, Ty, Kija and Jake.