Curt Cignetti & Steve Ryan Headline The 2024 AFCA Regional Coach Of The Year Winners
November 19, 2024
Indiana’s Curt Cignetti and Morningside’s Steve Ryan highlight today’s announcement of the American Football Coaches Association’s 2024 Regional Coach of the Year winners for FBS, FCS, Division II, Division III, and NAIA. These winners will be honored on Monday, January 13, during the 2025 AFCA Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina.
The AFCA recognizes five regional Coach of the Year winners in each of the Association’s five divisions: Football Bowl Subdivision, Football Championship Subdivision, Division II, Division III, and NAIA. The winners are selected by Active members of the Association who vote for coaches in their respective regions and divisions.
2024 AFCA Regional Coach of the Year Winners
FBS
Region 1: Jeff Monken Army
Region 2: Clark Lea Vanderbilt
Region 3: Curt Cignetti Indiana
Region 4: Kalani Sitake BYU
Region 5: Spencer Danielson Boise State
FCS
Region 1: Billy Cosh Stony Brook
Region 2: Chennis Berry South Carolina State
Region 3: Nathan Brown Central Arkansas
Region 4: Tim Polasek North Dakota State
Region 5: Tim Plough UC Davis
Division II
Region 1: Jim Clements Kutztown
Region 2: Tremaine Jackson Valdosta State
Region 3: Adam Dorrel Central Oklahoma
Region 4: Todd Knight Ouachita Baptist
Region 5: Jerry Olszewski Augustana (S.D.)
Division III
Region 1: Curt Fitzpatrick Cortland
Region 2: Sherman Wood Salisbury
Region 3: Andy Frye Centre
Region 4: Peter Stuursma Hope
Region 5: Ryan Munz Wisconsin-Platteville
NAIA
Region 1: Myles Russ Keiser
Region 2: Aaron Mingo Taylor
Region 3: Paul Hansen MidAmerica Nazarene
Region 4: Steve Ryan Morningside
Region 5: Berk Brown Southern Oregon
Region 5: Jarrail Jackson Texas College
Curt Cignetti earned his first AFCA Regional honor by guiding Indiana to its best season in school history so far, winning 10 games for the first time in program history. The Hoosiers are 10-0 with two games left in the season and ranked No. 5 in the US LBM Coaches Poll in Cignetti’s first year at the helm. He has an overall record of 129-35 in his 14 years as a head coach at Indiana, James Madison, Elon and Indiana University of Pennsylvania.
Steve Ryan moved into second place on the all-time AFCA Regional Coach of the Year winner list with his 12th honor. Ryan has his Morningside Mustangs at 10-1 as they claimed their 14th Great Plains Athletic Conference title and a spot in the NAIA Football Championship Series. In his 24 years as a head coach at Morningside, Ryan has an overall record of 238-46 with three NAIA national titles and four AFCA NAIA National Coach of the Year awards.
AFCA National Coach of the Year: The AFCA will announce the 2024 National Coaches of the Year winners in FBS, FCS, Division II, Division III and NAIA on Monday, December 16. The Regional winners in each division are finalists for National Coach of the Year.
Award History: The AFCA began recognizing district coaches of the year following the 1960 season. The awards were established the same year Eastman Kodak agreed to sponsor the AFCA Coach of the Year award. Prior to 1960, the Scripps-Howard newspaper chain had sponsored the program, which recognized one national Coach of the Year.
The AFCA first recognized eight district winners in each of two divisions: university and college. In 1972, a ninth district was added in each division. In 1983, the award was changed to recognize regional winners instead of district winners. The number of divisions was also increased from two to four and five regional winners were selected in each division. This resulted in a more equitable selection process and better represented the make-up of the membership. At the same time, the new system increased the number of honorees from 18 to 20. In 2006, the AFCA Division II Award was split into separate Division II and NAIA divisions, giving us the 25 winners we now recognize.
Multiple Winners: Multiple winners of AFCA Regional honors in the 2024 class are Jeff Monken (second: FCS 2011), Chennis Berry (third: D2 2022-23), Jim Clements (fifth: D3 2010, D2 2019, 2021, 2023), Adam Dorrel (second: D2 2016), Todd Knight (fifth: D2 2014, 2018-19, 2022), Curt Fitzpatrick (second: D3 2023), Sherman Wood (second: D3 2011), Peter Stuursma (second: D3 2019) and Steve Ryan (12th: NAIA 2005, 2011-12, 2014-21).
First Time Winners: Seventeen coaches earned their first AFCA Regional Coach of the Year Award in 2024: Vanderbilt’s Clark Lea, Indiana’s Curt Cignetti, BYU’s Kalani Sitake, Boise State’s Spencer Danielson, Stony Brook’s Billy Cosh, Central Arkansas’ Nathan Brown, North Dakota State’s Tim Polasek, UC Davis’ Tim Plough, Valdosta State’s Tremaine Jackson, Augustana’s (S.D.) Jerry Olszewski, Centre’s Andy Frye, Wisconsin-Platteville’s Ryan Munz, Keiser’s Myles Russ, Taylor’s Aaron Mingo, MidAmerica Nazarene’s Paul Hansen, Southern Oregon’s Berk Brown and Texas College’s Jarrail Jackson.
Most Awards: Mount Union’s Larry Kehres (1986, 1990, 1992-93, 1996-97, 1999-02, 2006-12) has the most district/regional honors in AFCA history, with 17. Morningside’s Steve Ryan (2005, 2011-12, 2014-21, 2024) moves into second place with 12, followed by Penn State’s Joe Paterno (District 2: 1967-68, 1971-73, 1977-78, 1982; Region 1: 1985; Region 3: 1994, 2005) in third with 11 District/Regional Coach of the Year honors. Tied for fourth is Bloomsburg’s Danny Hale and Mary Hardin-Baylor’s Pete Fredenburg, each with 10 awards. Hale won his first three honors at West Chester and the rest at Bloomsburg (College Division I, Region 1 1986-88, 1994-95; Division II, Region 1, 2000-01, 2005-06, 2008). Fredenburg won his 10 in 2000, 2002, 2005, 2007, 2010, 2012-14, 2016 and 2018. Eight coaches have won the award seven times: Tubby Raymond, Delaware; Jim Butterfield, Ithaca; Chris Oliver, Lindsey Wilson; Bo Schembechler, Miami (Ohio), Michigan; Bob Devaney, Nebraska; Tom Osborne, Nebraska; Mel Tjeerdsma, Northwest Missouri State; and Carmen Cozza, Yale. Seven coaches have won regional honors six times: Vince Dooley, Georgia; Brian Kelly, Grand Valley State, Cincinnati, Notre Dame; Roy Kidd, Eastern Kentucky; John McKay, USC; Jerry Moore, Appalachian State; Darrell Royal, Texas; and Mike Van Diest, Carroll (Mont.).
Most Winners by School: Mount Union-18 (Ken Wable-1, Larry Kehres-17); North Dakota State-17 (Darrell Mudra-1, Ron Erhardt-4, Jim Wacker-1, Don Morton-3, Earle Solomonson-1, Craig Bohl-2, Klieman-1, Entz-3, Polasek-1); Nebraska-15 (Bob Devaney-7, Tom Osborne-7, Frank Solich-1); Morningside-12 (Steve Ryan-12); Penn State-12 (Rip Engle-1, Joe Paterno-11); Alabama-11 (Bear Bryant-4, Bill Curry-1, Gene Stallings-2, Mike Shula-1, Nick Saban-3); Mary Hardin-Baylor-11 (Pete Fredenburg-10, Larry Harmon-1); Texas-11 (Darrell Royal-6, Fred Akers-2, David McWilliams-1, Mack Brown-2); Ithaca-10 (Jim Butterfield-7, Mike Welch-2, Mike Toerper-1); Michigan-10 (Bump Elliott-2, Bo Schembechler-6, Lloyd Carr-1, Jim Harbaugh-1); USC-10 (John McKay-6, John Robinson-2, Pete Carroll-2); Wittenberg-10 (Bill Edwards-3, Dave Maurer-4, Ron Murphy-1, Joe Fincham-2); Arkansas-9 (Frank Broyles-4, Lou Holtz-1, Ken Hatfield-1, Houston Nutt-2, Sam Pittman-1); Bloomsburg-9 (George Landis-1, Danny Hale-7, Paul Darragh-1); Eastern Kentucky-9 (Roy Kidd-6, Danny Hope-1, Dean Hood-1, Walt Wells-1); New Hampshire-9 (Clarence Boston-1, Jim Root-1, Bill Bowes-3, Sean McDonnell-4).
Two Consecutive Years, Two Schools: Chennis Berry (Benedict, 2022-23 & South Carolina State, 2024) joined eight other coaches who have earned AFCA Regional Coach of the Year honors at two schools in consecutive years: Fred Akers (Wyoming, 1976 & Texas 1977), Dennis Franchione (Pittsburg State, 1989 & Texas State, 1990), Mike Houston (The Citadel, 2015 & James Madison, 2016), Jim McElwain (Colorado State, 2014 & Florida, 2015), Hal Mumme (Valdosta State, 1996 & Kentucky, 1997), Dick Sheridan (Furman, 1985 & NC State, 1986), Kevin Sumlin (Houston, 2011 & Texas A&M, 2012) and Joe Tiller (Wyoming, 1996 & Purdue, 1997).
Most Schools: South Carolina’s Lou Holtz is the only coach to earn AFCA Regional Coach of the Year honors at four different schools. Holtz earned the honor at North Carolina State (1972), Arkansas (1979), Notre Dame (1988) and South Carolina (2000). Jerry Kill (Southern Illinois, Minnesota, New Mexico State) became the eighth coach to win district or regional honors at three different schools in 2023. He joins Brian Kelly (Grand Valley State, Cincinnati, Notre Dame), Jerry Claiborne (Virginia Tech, Maryland, Kentucky), Darrell Mudra (North Dakota State, Western Illinois, Northern Iowa), Houston Nutt (Mississippi, Arkansas, Murray State), Mike Price (UTEP, Washington State, Weber State), Jim Sweeney (Montana State, Washington State, Fresno State) and Jim Wacker (North Dakota State, Texas State, TCU) on that list.
Consecutive Years: Morningside’s Steve Ryan is in first place with his eight straight NAIA Regional honors from 2014-21. Mount Union’s Larry Kehres is in second with seven consecutive years, winning in Division III from 2006-12. Jacksonville State’s John Grass, Northwest Missouri State’s Mel Tjeerdsma and Nebraska’s Bob Devaney have won district/regional honors in five consecutive years. Tjeerdsma earned the honor in Division II from 1996-2000. Devaney recorded his in the AFCA’s old University Division (1962-66). Grass earned his five straight in FCS from 2014-18. Carroll’s (Mont.) Mike Van Diest, Trinity’s (Tex.) Steve Mohr, North Dakota State’s Ron Erhardt and Kehres are the only men to win the award four years in a row. Van Diest earned the honor in NAIA from 2007-10, while Kehres won his four in a row from 1999-2002 in Division III. Erhardt earned district honors in the AFCA’s old College Division (1967-70) while Mohr earned the honor in Division III (1996-99). South Carolina State’s Chennis Berry (2022-24) makes it 18 coaches who have earned district or regional honors three years in a row. Ithaca’s Jim Butterfield (1978-79-80 and 1984-85-86) earned the award in three consecutive years on two different occasions.
For more information about the AFCA, visit www.AFCA.com. For more interesting articles, check out The Insider and subscribe to our weekly email.
If you are interested in more in-depth articles and videos, please become an AFCA member. You can find out more information about membership and specific member benefits on the AFCA Membership Overview page. If you are ready to join, please fill out the AFCA Membership Application.
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Indiana’s Curt Cignetti and Morningside’s Steve Ryan highlight today’s announcement of the American Football Coaches Association’s 2024 Regional Coach of the Year winners for FBS, FCS, Division II, Division III, and NAIA. These winners will be honored on Monday, January 13, during the 2025 AFCA Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina.
The AFCA recognizes five regional Coach of the Year winners in each of the Association’s five divisions: Football Bowl Subdivision, Football Championship Subdivision, Division II, Division III, and NAIA. The winners are selected by Active members of the Association who vote for coaches in their respective regions and divisions.
2024 AFCA Regional Coach of the Year Winners
| FBS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Region 1: | Jeff Monken | Army | |
| Region 2: | Clark Lea | Vanderbilt | |
| Region 3: | Curt Cignetti | Indiana | |
| Region 4: | Kalani Sitake | BYU | |
| Region 5: | Spencer Danielson | Boise State | |
| FCS | |||
| Region 1: | Billy Cosh | Stony Brook | |
| Region 2: | Chennis Berry | South Carolina State | |
| Region 3: | Nathan Brown | Central Arkansas | |
| Region 4: | Tim Polasek | North Dakota State | |
| Region 5: | Tim Plough | UC Davis | |
| Division II | |||
| Region 1: | Jim Clements | Kutztown | |
| Region 2: | Tremaine Jackson | Valdosta State | |
| Region 3: | Adam Dorrel | Central Oklahoma | |
| Region 4: | Todd Knight | Ouachita Baptist | |
| Region 5: | Jerry Olszewski | Augustana (S.D.) | |
| Division III | |||
| Region 1: | Curt Fitzpatrick | Cortland | |
| Region 2: | Sherman Wood | Salisbury | |
| Region 3: | Andy Frye | Centre | |
| Region 4: | Peter Stuursma | Hope | |
| Region 5: | Ryan Munz | Wisconsin-Platteville | |
| NAIA | |||
| Region 1: | Myles Russ | Keiser | |
| Region 2: | Aaron Mingo | Taylor | |
| Region 3: | Paul Hansen | MidAmerica Nazarene | |
| Region 4: | Steve Ryan | Morningside | |
| Region 5: | Berk Brown | Southern Oregon | |
| Region 5: | Jarrail Jackson | Texas College |
Curt Cignetti earned his first AFCA Regional honor by guiding Indiana to its best season in school history so far, winning 10 games for the first time in program history. The Hoosiers are 10-0 with two games left in the season and ranked No. 5 in the US LBM Coaches Poll in Cignetti’s first year at the helm. He has an overall record of 129-35 in his 14 years as a head coach at Indiana, James Madison, Elon and Indiana University of Pennsylvania.
Steve Ryan moved into second place on the all-time AFCA Regional Coach of the Year winner list with his 12th honor. Ryan has his Morningside Mustangs at 10-1 as they claimed their 14th Great Plains Athletic Conference title and a spot in the NAIA Football Championship Series. In his 24 years as a head coach at Morningside, Ryan has an overall record of 238-46 with three NAIA national titles and four AFCA NAIA National Coach of the Year awards.
AFCA National Coach of the Year: The AFCA will announce the 2024 National Coaches of the Year winners in FBS, FCS, Division II, Division III and NAIA on Monday, December 16. The Regional winners in each division are finalists for National Coach of the Year.
Award History: The AFCA began recognizing district coaches of the year following the 1960 season. The awards were established the same year Eastman Kodak agreed to sponsor the AFCA Coach of the Year award. Prior to 1960, the Scripps-Howard newspaper chain had sponsored the program, which recognized one national Coach of the Year.
The AFCA first recognized eight district winners in each of two divisions: university and college. In 1972, a ninth district was added in each division. In 1983, the award was changed to recognize regional winners instead of district winners. The number of divisions was also increased from two to four and five regional winners were selected in each division. This resulted in a more equitable selection process and better represented the make-up of the membership. At the same time, the new system increased the number of honorees from 18 to 20. In 2006, the AFCA Division II Award was split into separate Division II and NAIA divisions, giving us the 25 winners we now recognize.
Multiple Winners: Multiple winners of AFCA Regional honors in the 2024 class are Jeff Monken (second: FCS 2011), Chennis Berry (third: D2 2022-23), Jim Clements (fifth: D3 2010, D2 2019, 2021, 2023), Adam Dorrel (second: D2 2016), Todd Knight (fifth: D2 2014, 2018-19, 2022), Curt Fitzpatrick (second: D3 2023), Sherman Wood (second: D3 2011), Peter Stuursma (second: D3 2019) and Steve Ryan (12th: NAIA 2005, 2011-12, 2014-21).
First Time Winners: Seventeen coaches earned their first AFCA Regional Coach of the Year Award in 2024: Vanderbilt’s Clark Lea, Indiana’s Curt Cignetti, BYU’s Kalani Sitake, Boise State’s Spencer Danielson, Stony Brook’s Billy Cosh, Central Arkansas’ Nathan Brown, North Dakota State’s Tim Polasek, UC Davis’ Tim Plough, Valdosta State’s Tremaine Jackson, Augustana’s (S.D.) Jerry Olszewski, Centre’s Andy Frye, Wisconsin-Platteville’s Ryan Munz, Keiser’s Myles Russ, Taylor’s Aaron Mingo, MidAmerica Nazarene’s Paul Hansen, Southern Oregon’s Berk Brown and Texas College’s Jarrail Jackson.
Most Awards: Mount Union’s Larry Kehres (1986, 1990, 1992-93, 1996-97, 1999-02, 2006-12) has the most district/regional honors in AFCA history, with 17. Morningside’s Steve Ryan (2005, 2011-12, 2014-21, 2024) moves into second place with 12, followed by Penn State’s Joe Paterno (District 2: 1967-68, 1971-73, 1977-78, 1982; Region 1: 1985; Region 3: 1994, 2005) in third with 11 District/Regional Coach of the Year honors. Tied for fourth is Bloomsburg’s Danny Hale and Mary Hardin-Baylor’s Pete Fredenburg, each with 10 awards. Hale won his first three honors at West Chester and the rest at Bloomsburg (College Division I, Region 1 1986-88, 1994-95; Division II, Region 1, 2000-01, 2005-06, 2008). Fredenburg won his 10 in 2000, 2002, 2005, 2007, 2010, 2012-14, 2016 and 2018. Eight coaches have won the award seven times: Tubby Raymond, Delaware; Jim Butterfield, Ithaca; Chris Oliver, Lindsey Wilson; Bo Schembechler, Miami (Ohio), Michigan; Bob Devaney, Nebraska; Tom Osborne, Nebraska; Mel Tjeerdsma, Northwest Missouri State; and Carmen Cozza, Yale. Seven coaches have won regional honors six times: Vince Dooley, Georgia; Brian Kelly, Grand Valley State, Cincinnati, Notre Dame; Roy Kidd, Eastern Kentucky; John McKay, USC; Jerry Moore, Appalachian State; Darrell Royal, Texas; and Mike Van Diest, Carroll (Mont.).
Most Winners by School: Mount Union-18 (Ken Wable-1, Larry Kehres-17); North Dakota State-17 (Darrell Mudra-1, Ron Erhardt-4, Jim Wacker-1, Don Morton-3, Earle Solomonson-1, Craig Bohl-2, Klieman-1, Entz-3, Polasek-1); Nebraska-15 (Bob Devaney-7, Tom Osborne-7, Frank Solich-1); Morningside-12 (Steve Ryan-12); Penn State-12 (Rip Engle-1, Joe Paterno-11); Alabama-11 (Bear Bryant-4, Bill Curry-1, Gene Stallings-2, Mike Shula-1, Nick Saban-3); Mary Hardin-Baylor-11 (Pete Fredenburg-10, Larry Harmon-1); Texas-11 (Darrell Royal-6, Fred Akers-2, David McWilliams-1, Mack Brown-2); Ithaca-10 (Jim Butterfield-7, Mike Welch-2, Mike Toerper-1); Michigan-10 (Bump Elliott-2, Bo Schembechler-6, Lloyd Carr-1, Jim Harbaugh-1); USC-10 (John McKay-6, John Robinson-2, Pete Carroll-2); Wittenberg-10 (Bill Edwards-3, Dave Maurer-4, Ron Murphy-1, Joe Fincham-2); Arkansas-9 (Frank Broyles-4, Lou Holtz-1, Ken Hatfield-1, Houston Nutt-2, Sam Pittman-1); Bloomsburg-9 (George Landis-1, Danny Hale-7, Paul Darragh-1); Eastern Kentucky-9 (Roy Kidd-6, Danny Hope-1, Dean Hood-1, Walt Wells-1); New Hampshire-9 (Clarence Boston-1, Jim Root-1, Bill Bowes-3, Sean McDonnell-4).
Two Consecutive Years, Two Schools: Chennis Berry (Benedict, 2022-23 & South Carolina State, 2024) joined eight other coaches who have earned AFCA Regional Coach of the Year honors at two schools in consecutive years: Fred Akers (Wyoming, 1976 & Texas 1977), Dennis Franchione (Pittsburg State, 1989 & Texas State, 1990), Mike Houston (The Citadel, 2015 & James Madison, 2016), Jim McElwain (Colorado State, 2014 & Florida, 2015), Hal Mumme (Valdosta State, 1996 & Kentucky, 1997), Dick Sheridan (Furman, 1985 & NC State, 1986), Kevin Sumlin (Houston, 2011 & Texas A&M, 2012) and Joe Tiller (Wyoming, 1996 & Purdue, 1997).
Most Schools: South Carolina’s Lou Holtz is the only coach to earn AFCA Regional Coach of the Year honors at four different schools. Holtz earned the honor at North Carolina State (1972), Arkansas (1979), Notre Dame (1988) and South Carolina (2000). Jerry Kill (Southern Illinois, Minnesota, New Mexico State) became the eighth coach to win district or regional honors at three different schools in 2023. He joins Brian Kelly (Grand Valley State, Cincinnati, Notre Dame), Jerry Claiborne (Virginia Tech, Maryland, Kentucky), Darrell Mudra (North Dakota State, Western Illinois, Northern Iowa), Houston Nutt (Mississippi, Arkansas, Murray State), Mike Price (UTEP, Washington State, Weber State), Jim Sweeney (Montana State, Washington State, Fresno State) and Jim Wacker (North Dakota State, Texas State, TCU) on that list.
Consecutive Years: Morningside’s Steve Ryan is in first place with his eight straight NAIA Regional honors from 2014-21. Mount Union’s Larry Kehres is in second with seven consecutive years, winning in Division III from 2006-12. Jacksonville State’s John Grass, Northwest Missouri State’s Mel Tjeerdsma and Nebraska’s Bob Devaney have won district/regional honors in five consecutive years. Tjeerdsma earned the honor in Division II from 1996-2000. Devaney recorded his in the AFCA’s old University Division (1962-66). Grass earned his five straight in FCS from 2014-18. Carroll’s (Mont.) Mike Van Diest, Trinity’s (Tex.) Steve Mohr, North Dakota State’s Ron Erhardt and Kehres are the only men to win the award four years in a row. Van Diest earned the honor in NAIA from 2007-10, while Kehres won his four in a row from 1999-2002 in Division III. Erhardt earned district honors in the AFCA’s old College Division (1967-70) while Mohr earned the honor in Division III (1996-99). South Carolina State’s Chennis Berry (2022-24) makes it 18 coaches who have earned district or regional honors three years in a row. Ithaca’s Jim Butterfield (1978-79-80 and 1984-85-86) earned the award in three consecutive years on two different occasions.
For more information about the AFCA, visit www.AFCA.com. For more interesting articles, check out The Insider and subscribe to our weekly email.
If you are interested in more in-depth articles and videos, please become an AFCA member. You can find out more information about membership and specific member benefits on the AFCA Membership Overview page. If you are ready to join, please fill out the AFCA Membership Application.
