As passionate as he was successful, defensive coordinator Don De Waard ‘82 is giving up his position on the Central College football staff after an unrivaled 35-year career.
A staple on the Central sidelines, De Waard prodded Dutch defenses tovictory in 302 of 377 games during his tenure. If he were a head coach, he’d rank No. 1 in the U.S. among active coaches on the NCAA college and university wins list, and 11th all-time. His .801 victory percentage would be seventh among active Division III coaches. He’s been part of 18 Iowa Conference championships, 18 NCAA Division III playoff appearances, 19 playoff victories and two appearances in the NCAA title game at the Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl.
In 2000, the American Football Coaches Association named De Waard the Division III assistant coach of the year.
“I don’t like talking about retiring from it, because that indicates this was a job,” said De Waard, who also served as linebackers coach. “It never was. This was all about the relationships I was able to have with the players and coaches.”
De Waard will still continue to coach in the annual Tazon de Estrellas (Bowl of the Stars), played this year in Baja, Mexico Dec. 19. De Waard served as head coach for the fourth time for Team Stars and Stripes, a 50-player squad of NCAA Division III seniors nominated by head coaches. De Waard led a Central contingent that included seniors Cael Halfman, Jake Wassenaar, Dustin Smith and Nick Watson as well as athletic training education director John Roslien, the U.S. team’s player personnel director, and head athletic trainer Frank Neu. The team defeated a squad of top Mexican college players, 15-14.
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