FootballScoop is proud to announce that Shane Dierking (North Central College) is the 2025 FootballScoop Division III Coordinator of the Year, presented by Teamworks as selected by prior winners.
The North Central Cardinals are on the hunt to defend their Division III championship thanks once again to arguably the nation's top defense.
For starters, the Cardinals lead the nation at 9.2 points allowed per game. North Central has pitched four shutouts through 13 games and held seven opponents to single digits, including all four they faced in November. No opponent topped 14 points throughout North Central's 10-game regular season, and all three playoff opponents to date have been held below their scoring averages. Hanover was held to a season-low six points in North Central's opening round win, and Bethel's 21-point quarterfinal effort was less than half their season average of 47.
As implied by their scoring numbers, Dierking's unit is a top-10 group against the run and the pass.
The Cardinals are fifth in the nation in passing efficiency, permitting completions on 48.8 percent of their 404 passes defended to date for just 2,142 yards (5.3 per attempt) with 13 touchdowns against 15 interceptions -- and five of those interceptions have been returned for touchdowns. Of the nine Division III teams to post a defensive passer rating under 100, only North Central and Mount Union defended more than 400 passes.
Teams have futility attempted that many passes against Dierking's defense because running the ball hasn't gone much better. In 393 carries, opponents have totaled 893 yards and just four touchdowns. At 68.7 yards per game, the Cardinals are 10th in Division III and eighth in yards per carry. North Central averages 7.3 tackles for loss per game and 2.92 sacks per contest, 15th nationally. The Cardinals have also returned a fumble for a touchdown, and their six defensive touchdowns are one off the lead in Division III.
At 26.9 percent, North Central is a top five unit on third down, and opponents have scored on only 11 of 23 red zone opportunities, making NCC's 52.2 percentage the best in Division III.
North Central will face Johns Hopkins in the Division III semifinals on Saturday, their sixth consecutive season reaching this round of the playoffs. The Cardinals have lost one game over the past four seasons, a 38-37 setback in the 2023 title game.
Dierking told FootballScoop, "This is an award for our entire defensive staff, and that starts at the top with the best head football coach in the country in Brad Spencer. Our defensive staff is elite with Kalus Murphy coaching safeties, DJ Warkenthien leading the defensive line, Clay Martin coaching corners, Kyle Lane working with our nickels (defensive grad assistant), Ethan Vashel working with our defensive backs (defensive grad assistant), and Martin Egbo our defensive line assistant. This is a staff award in my opinion and we are all grateful to have such a great group working together here."
Defensive tackle John Sullivan led the unit's honors by making the AFCA All-America team. His 19.5 tackles for loss are a top-25 number nationally. Defensive back Rhameron Roby joined Sullivan on the D3Football.com All-Region 5 team, and linebackers Danny Nuccio and Matt Janiak were Second Team All-Region honorees. Defensive linemen Maverick Ohle and Eli Renick were Third Team All-Region 5 selections. Sullivan was named the Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin's Don Larsen Defensive Player of the Year, his second time winning the award. Bobby Medina joined Sullivan, Ohle and Renick in NCC's clean sweep of the First Team All-CCIW defensive line, and defensive back Brayden Garrigan joined Roby, Nuccio and Janiak on the First Team as well. In all, nine of NCC's 11 defensive starters earned First or Second Team All-CCIW honors.
A two-time North Central graduate, Dierking played in a school-record 51 games before moving into a graduate assistant role in 2014. He then took a job at Benedictine College, first as defensive backs coach and then as defensive coordinator before returning to his alma mater in 2018 to run the defense, where he has remained ever since. Dierking has coached three conference defensive players of the year in his eight seasons on staff. He was promoted to assistant head coach in 2022.
The FootballScoop Coaches of the Year awards presented by Teamworks are the only set of awards that recognize the most outstanding position coaches in college football. The finalists (Colin Duling [Bethel], Kole Heckendorf [Saint John's], Joe Matheson [UW-River Falls], Ryan McElwain [DePauw], Matt Tschetter [Wartburg] and Dierking) 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 OβGrady (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), Patrick Rotchford [Cortland [N.Y.], 2023), and Drew Chance (Illinois College, 2024).
Created in 1999, FootballScoop.com is the premier source for coaching job information and has long been the most widely viewed website by coaches, athletic directors, strength & conditioning coaches, operations and equipment staff across America. As the leading coaching job information venue, FootballScoop.com serves our viewersβ needs by providing first hand, timely & accurate information for our audience. FootballScoop.com is the premier provider of official job postings.
Teamworks Coaching and Teamworks Scouting have quickly become essential platforms inside college football offices. As programs sharpen their game-prep processes, strengthen roster management, and prepare for the transfer portal, these platforms are shaping how staffs operate across the country.
