Daniels Student Leaving as a National Champion

There are not many student-athletes who can walk away from their college careers and say they are a national champion. For the third-string goalie of the Pioneers men’s hockey team, last weekend’s championship provided the perfect finish to a great four years.

“It still hasn’t sunk in what we did and what we accomplished as a group,” says Greg Ogard. “I’m sure that will come as time passes and we realize how special of an accomplishment it was.”

A finance major with a minor in accounting, he is one of a handful of seniors on the team to have completed graduation requirements before the puck ever dropped on spring quarter.

The life of a student-athlete is never an easy one, least of all for a member of a powerhouse team like the Pioneers. Ogard says a typical day involves going to class in the morning, practicing and conditioning for four hours in the afternoon and then attending another class and tackling homework in the evening.

“It was tough my freshman year getting acclimated to the time constraints, school life and being away from home,” he recalls. “Now it’s really done great things for my time management because you really have to be on top of when you’re getting your homework done and studying, when you’re taking care of your body and when you’re hanging out with friends.”

Despite his demanding schedule, Ogard will graduate with a 3.96 grade point average. When he wasn’t doing his own studying, he would help his teammates with theirs.

“He embodies what Denver Hockey is all about; it’s a team first attitude,” says coach Jim Montgomery. “What he really teaches teammates is how to take care of themselves, time management and how to prepare to do well in a course. He’s a 4.0 student — I think he had one course where he got a B+ — he’s exceptionally bright and he’s going to be extremely successful.”

Following Commencement in June, Ogard will begin a two-year position with Citigroup in Chicago, where his family lives. He was able to intern there last summer, one of several internships he had while studying at the Daniels College of Business.

“It’s really nice to have a job and things figured out,” he says. “I know where I’m going come graduation, and at least I have a paycheck so I don’t have to live in mom and dad’s basement.”

Ogard also credits DU’s alumni network for helping him secure internships and that first job.

“The Daniels school has a really great base of alumni, and they make sure students connect with local alumni or alumni wherever they want to go to,” Ogard says. “On top of that, the hockey alumni group is really strong in Denver, and they were really helpful with networking in Denver and in Chicago.”