Ferris State University men’s basketball head coach Andy Bronkema announced today that honorary team member Mitchell Peterson has been elevated to “Volunteer Assistant Coach” on the Bulldog staff.
Peterson, who is the brother of Bulldog alum Michael Peterson, has been with the program for the past four years and is a Rockford native who regularly attends FSU contests.
The announcement comes prior to this Saturday’s (Aug. 21) 23rd annual Mitchell’s Run Thru Rockford, a 5K Run/Walk and Kids Fun Run, that takes place in downtown Rockford to raise support and donations for Parent Project Muscular Dystrophy in Mitchell’s name.
“Mitch has been such a key member of our program and has helped contribute to the success of our program and is very deserving of this recognition and position,” Bronkema said. “He’s such an inspiration to our players and staff and we look forward to having him around our program for years to come.”
Over the past five years, the Bulldog men’s basketball program has annually taken part in Mitchell’s Run Thru Rockford, joining more than 10,000 participants along with more than 1,000 volunteers and several thousand spectators who have helped raise more than $1.2 million dollars for the cause over the past 20 plus years. The event has been designated by Classic Race Management as “One of the Premier Running Events in West Michigan.”
The son of Steve and Sandy Peterson, Mitchell was diagnosed with Duchenne shortly before his third birthday, leading to the start of “Mitchell’s Run.” The Bulldog men’s basketball program is once again slated to be part of this Saturday’s special event.
Mitchell became involved in the Bulldog program in 2016 when his brother, Michael, joined the program and eventually became a starter, playing in 96 career contests for the Bulldogs over the past four seasons. He graduated from FSU this spring and has since joined the Michigan State men’s basketball squad as a preferred walk-on graduate transfer for his final collegiate campaign.
Both Michael and Mitchell were members of the Bulldogs’ historic 2017-18 NCAA Division II National Championship squad. As part of the squad’s “National Championship Celebration” in 2018, Coach Bronkema and then senior standout Noah King “shaved their beards” to help support Parent Project Muscular Dystrophy in honor of Mitchell, generating more than $10,000 for the cause thru a Go Fund Me page.
https://www.ferrisstatebulldogs.com/sports/mbkb/2020-21/releases/20210819h6k9j3
