Dylan Bekemeier has known for a while that he wants to play golf in college. And winning a state golf championship as a sophomore gave him a lot of options.
But when his senior year as a basketball player rolled around, he knew he wasn’t ready to give up life on the hardwood either.
“After starting this year…I started my first game, I said this could be my last ‘first game’ I ever play. I just didn’t know what I’d be able to do if that was my actual last game,” Bekemeier says. “I wanted to push it back another four years. I wouldn’t be able to stand not playing both sports, because I would just miss them both.”
Enter Evangel University, a school with a golf team and a basketball team coached by the same man: Steve Jenkins. After a visit to the campus, Bekemeier says he knew it was where he wanted to attend.
“It was just one of those places you go, and you feel at home. Coach Jenkins — I couldn’t have picked a better coach to have, and he’ll work with you on anything,” Bekemeier says. “And him being both basketball and golf coach, that will help tremendously with time management, because he’ll know where I’m going to be, what I’m going to be doing, so he’s just one of the best guys to work with.”
The campus visit was just in the nick of time for Evangel, just one day before Bekemeier had planned to commit to another college. Jenkins says he wanted Bekemeier on both the basketball and golf teams for a couple of reasons.
“I like to recruit winners. Dylan’s track record speaks for itself,” says Jenkins. “I don’t know that we’ve ever recruited a player that’s won a state championship in golf.
“There’s a reason why Dylan’s successful. He’s had good training at home. He’s had excellent coaching here at Republic. And he’s a competitor,” Jenkins says. “If skill level is similar, competitiveness is the trump card, and Dylan is a competitor.”
Golf coach Ben Wolfinbarger, who played for Jenkins himself, says he believes Bekemeier made the right choice.
“I’m really excited and proud of him that he’s made a good decision to play at Evangel. He won’t play for anybody better than Coach Jenkins. There’s nobody else who’s a better man or a better coach to play for,” Wolfinbarger says.
Basketball coach Trevyor Fisher — who played basketball for Jenkins in grade school — agrees.
“You’re not going to find a better guy to play for, a better school. I think it’s the perfect spot for him,” Fisher says. “He has a chance to excel in both. I couldn’t be more excited for Evangel and Dylan and his family.”
Bekemeier will join 2013 graduate Marcus Miller at Evangel, who was a senior on last year’s state championship basketball team.