National Football Foundation

South Region - NFF Mountain Empire (TN) Chapter

Football matters to Mike Gonce. In football, Gonce notices the values of character, discipline and leadership for which he is now recognized as a National Football Foundation Chapter Leadership Award recipient.
 
Gonce graduated from the University of Tennessee in 1988 with a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration, subsequently working as a Global Procurement and Contracts Manager at Eastman Chemical Company for the last 24 years.
 
Gonce is also in his 31st year as a high school football official and over the past several years has served as president of the Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association's Region One Football Officials Association.
 
Gonce's impact on the NFF Mountain Empire Chapter has been significant, playing a key role in the relaunch of the chapter in 2013 after it was dormant for nearly a decade. The chapter serves east Tennessee and southern Virginia, distributing up to eight scholarships per year at its annual awards banquet. Celebrating the fifth year of its revival in 2019, the outpost currently awards more than $5,000 in scholarships annually. Gonce and the chapter also hold an annual golf tournament to help fund the scholarships. East Tennessee State University, which relaunched its football program in 2015, has become one of the chapter's biggest supporters and its coaches have spoken at multiple chapter banquets.
 
"The NFF has been an incredible organization to be involved in and serves as a great magnet in our region to pull all football enthusiasts together," said Gonce. "There is a common bond of promoting this great sport of football and to serving those who play it. The annual awards dinner is a spectacular event that we work every day towards, and the ability to provide scholarships and recognize so many deserving individuals is truly rewarding. Football has been a great part of my life and I have been privileged to be a part of it"
 
Gonce is passionate about all sports, especially football. He has a great love for the outdoors and enjoys going on cruises, community service and cheering on his alma mater, the Tennessee Volunteers.