Central Michigan Rolls Out the Red Carpet for 'Bronks'

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4/15/2025 5:10:00 PM | Men's Basketball, Our Stories

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Andy Bronkema brings sterling record to Central Michigan men's basketball.

By: Andy Sneddon

MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. – The vibe was positive, the talk upbeat. It always is when a new coach comes on board.

In the case of Central Michigan men's basketball coach Andy Bronkema, the feeling was genuine.

Bronkema was introduced to CMU supporters, student-athletes, alumni, staff, community members, and the media on Tuesday in a "Fired Up to be a Chippewa" ceremony at the John G. Kulhavi Events Center atrium.

The McBain native was named on Monday to head the program by Zyzelewski Family Vice President/Director of Athletics Amy Folan, who introduced Bronkema during the atrium ceremony.

"I like that he's a proven winner and a program builder," Folan said in an interview after the brief ceremony, during which CMU President Dr. Neil MacKinnon addressed the crowd. "He's a Michigan guy, a Michigan product. We looked nationally and we found good coaches who come from all over.

He won a national championship right here in the state of Michigan; he fits nicely with us. He has a passion for coaching. He wants to win, and he gets it done. I admire that I'm looking forward to seeing the program that he builds."

Bronkema was the head coach at Ferris State for 12 seasons, compiling a 278-105 record including 166-73 in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. His teams captured a combined nine GLIAC regular season and tournament championships and his 2017-18 squad won the NCAA Division II national title and finished 38-1.

He led the Bulldogs to nine NCAA Tournament appearances and 10 of his teams captured 20 or more victories.

"It's not easy to win anywhere," Bronkema said. "Every place has a different path and a different set of rules; it's more about how you discover the path, how you figure out the rules on what it's going to take to be successful."

Bronkema is fully aware that the landscape of college athletics is rapidly changing with the transfer portal and Name, Image, Likeness money serving as the catalysts.

"When I figure it out for sure, I'll write a book, but then it will change again," he quipped, and then added "What I have figured out, and what I truly believe in, is that all the changes – you can't let them drag you down.

"You have to stay excited about being with young men and finding a path to victory. … You've got to stay fired up and that's what we're going to do with this culture and as it changes, we need to change and pivot with it and not spend a lot of time complaining about it."

Bronkema said he had just one player transfer from Ferris State in the past two seasons. Culture, and finding student-athletes who fit that ideal and buy-in, is critical, he added.

"You want to build a culture where players and coaches, they love each other," he said. "That's true family and that's a buzzword that gets thrown around a lot.

"But that's how you do it, you do life together every day and you support each other and then you go to work. It goes a lot smoother when there's a common goal, the goal is communicated clearly, and you care about each other.

"You target the people that are the right fit. You don't just say the right things to people who are good at basketball; Central Michigan's not the right fit for everybody. We've got to find guys who are like-minded with our vision and there'll be a bunch of them because it's a vision people can get on board with."

Nearly every Chippewa with remaining eligibility is in the transfer portal though they could withdraw from that and elect to return to the team for next season. That's a very real possibility, as is the prospect of some current Ferris State players ending up in Mount Pleasant.

On Day 1, everything is on the table.

"We need to be thorough, and we need to check references and we need to evaluate and make the right decisions right away," Bronkema said. "The roster's in an interesting spot and it might be next year and the next year.

"Our long-term goal is that if we have anyone leave here, it's because it's for an opportunity they can't turn down and (their destination) is a better fit for them."

Bronkema's 2024-25 Bulldogs led the GLIAC and ranked 47^th nationally in scoring at 82.2 points per game. Ferris State led its league in scoring in seven of the last eight seasons under Bronkema.

"We're up and down, run the fastbreak, press all game long, play a deep rotation, really share the ball offensively," he said. "A style of play that brings the fans to their feet every once in a while and they come back and see what these guys do; real team work."

Bronkema was a standout three-sport athlete at McBain High School, leading the Ramblers to a Class C state basketball title in 2002 and a state runner-up finish in 2001.

He played basketball at NAIA Division II Cornerstone University in Grand Rapids, twice earning All-America honors and three times capturing All-Wolverine Hoosier Athletic Conference honors. He helped lead Cornerstone to two league regular season championships, one conference tournament crown, and four national tournament appearances.

He earned a bachelor's degree in education from Cornerstone in 2007 and a Master's of Education from Ferris State in 2016. He began his coaching career as an assistant at Ferris State in 2007.