A two-sport high school standout from southern Florida, Josh Delancy ’10 was attracted to North Central College by the growing prominence of its football program.
As a three-year starter on the Cardinals’ offensive line, Delancy’s work ethic and drive to excel enabled him to play a lead role in elevating the program even further.
Delancy played in a reserve role in 2006, as North Central won its first College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) Championship in nearly 60 years, before ascending to the starting position at right tackle in 2007. The Cardinals repeated as conference champions that season and Delancy was recognized as a First Team All-Conference and Third Team All-North Region selection.
“We had a very good offensive line,” Delancy recalled. “Coach (Rick) Ponx was a great offensive line coach and he taught me a lot, getting the technique down and getting me to understand the work ethic required to be a starter. After that, I just wanted to prove that I could do it and be the best out there.”
The program took a step forward in 2008 by completing its 10-game regular-season schedule unbeaten and ascending to a No. 2 national ranking for the first time. Starting all 12 games at right tackle and earning First Team All-Conference honors once again, Delancy cleared the way for an offense that scored more than 35 points per game and led the conference in passing efficiency.
He pointed to the cohesion and teamwork among the offensive line as a central factor in its success. “We were a very close group,” he said. “We practiced hard, worked out together, and did most everything together. We had the utmost confidence in the skill positions that if we got them some space or gave them some time, they would make big plays for us. We went out every game thinking we just had to do our job and everything else would fall into place.”
The Cardinals claimed their fourth straight conference title in 2009, leading all NCAA Division III teams in scoring offense at 49.0 points per game. Delancy once again started every game at right tackle and capped his career with selections to the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) and D3football.com All-America Teams in recognition of his efforts. Delancy was the sixth North Central offensive lineman to earn All-America accolades and just the fourth Cardinal at any position to be so honored by the AFCA.
“It meant the world to me,” he said. “It kind of validated my whole career. When the coaches told me, I was pretty much speechless; I was so grateful.”
The individual honors took on added significance being achieved in a position that rarely receives such attention.
“Being a lineman, you have to be comfortable knowing you may only be recognized if you do something wrong,” Delancy said. “You have a lot of pressure to perform and make others look good. That’s something I took pride in – if everyone else is excelling and having a great game, I know we’ve done our job well.”
Delancy continues to call upon the skills and principles learned on the gridiron today: “It really helps you to pay attention to details and focus on several different things at once. Being an offensive lineman you have to pick up blitzes, account for people moving around and still be able to do your job. In life, you always have to be ready when something unexpected comes up and adapt to deal with it.”
