Brandon Good was more than just consistent on the football field – he was a sure thing – making at least one reception in all 40 games he played at Wooster, an NCAA Div. III record at the time for most consecutive games with a reception, and of more importance to the Fighting Scots, he served as one of the key players who resurrected the program’s winning tradition.
Good didn’t have the prototypical speed and physical skills that are associated with top receivers, but according to current Wooster head coach Mike Schmitz, who was the Scots’ offensive coordinator during the mid-to-late 1990s, his work ethic and great hands allowed him to develop into something special.
“He got the very most out of his ability,” said Schmitz. “He is a guy who is really self-made. He worked so hard on the field and in the weight room, and he had a savvy about him. If the ball got close to him, he caught it, and he really understood what was going on out there and how to make himself available to the quarterback.”
Having gone just 1-9 the year prior to Good’s arrival on campus, the Scots began heading in the right direction, thanks in large part to the rookie receiver as he hauled in 41 passes for 483 yards and three touchdowns to help Wooster to a 5-5 overall record. Getting to .500 showed strong progress, but Good and company were only getting started, as they would lose just six more games over the next three years.
As a sophomore, Good broke the program’s single-season records for receptions (57) and touchdowns (10) while accumulating 691 yards on his way to first-team all-North Coast Athletic Conference honors. In the season finale against Ohio Wesleyan University, Good piled up 183 yards and four touchdowns, both team records for a single-game, to lead the Scots to one of their six wins in conference play, although they would ultimately settle for third-place in the league standings.
Good produced another record-breaking season his junior year, and this time his gaudy numbers helped propel Wooster to an NCAC tri-championship – its first title in the league. Totaling 60 receptions, 902 yards, and eight touchdowns, Good was again named to the All-NCAC First Team, as well as to the Football Gazette All-North Region Second Team. His biggest receiving output came against Allegheny College, where he set one new school record with 13 catches and reestablished another at 195 yards, doing so ironically in Wooster’s only loss during an otherwise perfect run through the conference schedule that year (7-1).
As a senior, Good collected his third consecutive first-team all-NCAC selection and repeated his second-team all-region honors after again upping his program record in receptions (66), while adding 762 yards and nine touchdowns for a strong 8-2 squad.
Overall, Good’s statistics have stood the test of time. He holds all the major career receiving records at Wooster – receptions (224), yards (2,838), and touchdowns (30) – by a sizable margin. They were also conference records upon his graduation, and even with today’s pass-happy offenses, still rank second in receptions, third in yards, and third in touchdowns. Even his consecutive games record wasn’t equaled or surpassed until the NCAA recently decided to include postseason statistics in 2002.
An English major at Wooster, Good added a master’s degree in secondary education from Ursuline College, and went on to teach and coach football at Lakewood High School, near Cleveland. He switched gears about five years ago, and currently works as a wealth management consultant at Saybrus Partners, while spending his free time with his wife, Hallie, and their two sons, Nolan (6) and Brooks (3).