FootballScoop is proud to announce that Drew Chance (Illinois College) is the 2024 FootballScoop Division III Coordinator of the Year, presented by AstroTurf as selected by prior winners.
Football is often a family affair, but not in the way Illinois College's offense was -- with older brother coordinator calling plays for his younger brother quarterback.
Destin Chance led Division III in total offense in 2024, averaging 417.9 yards per game on 470 combined rushes and passes. As a result, no team averaged more yards or points per game than the Blueboys in 2024.
On the year, Destin Chance completed 234-of-381 passes for 3,593 yards with 50 touchdowns against nine interceptions, while adding 638 yards and nine touchdowns on the ground. He crossed the 400-yard barrier six times in his 10 outings, and totaled 397 yards in a seventh. Destin Chance opened and closed his season firing seven touchdown strikes, and tossed at least five scores seven times in total.
“Destin’s always been a very talented player,” Drew told the Springfield (Ill.) State Journal-Register last year. “I just knew if I could coach him and get him in my system, he could be special and last year was a really special season for us. Destin grew so much as a player and as a person.”
Colin Brunstein led all Division III receivers with 1,540 yards and 27 touchdown catches -- six more than the next-closest wideout. In total, Brunstein had 50 fewer catches than the No. 2 Division III wideout in terms of total receiving yardage, but still snared eight more touchdown grabs.
Tanner Spencer led the Blueboys on the ground, carrying 173 times for 1,020 yards and eight touchdowns.
As a team, Illinois College averaged 589.4 yards, 8.15 yards per play, and 55.4 points per game. The Blueboys exploded for 848 yards in a 96-14 win over Beloit College, the most yards in an individual game by a Division III team all season. Their 717-yard output against Lawrence University was the fourth-most gained by a D3 team all season.
Illinois College also exploded for three of the top seven scoring totals all season long: 77 against Knox College, 84 against Lawrence, and an eye-popping 96 points to close the year against Beloit College.
Destin Chance is a finalist for the Gagliardi Trophy, the Division III version of the Heisman, while Brunstein was an AP First Team All-American. Chance and Brunstein were joined on the All-Midwest Conference First Team by offensive lineman Collier McPherson, while Spencer, wide receiver Trey Birdsong, and linemen Evan Henley and Jake Benninger were Second Team All-MWC honorees.
A 2020 Illinois College graduate, Chance began his coaching career at West Virginia State as passing game coordinator, quarterbacks and tight ends coach before returning to IC in 2023 as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach.
The FootballScoop Coaches of the Year awards presented by AstroTurf are the only set of awards that recognize the most outstanding position coaches in college football. The finalists (Andrew Hawken [Hope College], Ryan McElwain [DePauw], Jackson Vaughan [Linfield] and Chance) were selected based off of nominations by coaches, athletic directors, and athletic department personnel. The prior winners selected this year's winner.
Previous winners of the Division III Coordinator of the Year award are Glen Fowles (Williamette [Ore.], 2008), Jim Zebrowski (Wisconsin-Whitewater, 2009), Vince Kehres (Mount Union [Ohio], 2010), Wallie Kuchinski (Saint Thomas [Minn.], 2011), John O’Grady (Wisconsin-Oshkosh, 2012), Brian Borland (Wisconsin-Whitewater, 2013), Jackson Vaughan (Linfield, 2014), Chris Kappas (Mount Union [Ohio], 2015), Brandon Staley (John Carroll [Ohio], 2016), Larry Harmon (Mary Hardin-Baylor [Texas], 2017), Mike Fox (Brockport [N.Y.], 2018), Brad Spencer (North Central [Ill.], 2019), Nick Brady (Delaware Valley, 2021), Shane Dierking (North Central [Ill.], 2022) and Patrick Rotchford [Cortland [N.Y.], 2023).
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