Football Coaches

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Ross Cimpl

Head Football Coach
University of Sioux Falls ’07
University of Sioux Falls ’10
rocimpl@dwu.edu
605-995-2852

After the head football coaching position opened up on Dec. 8, 2011, Dakota Wesleyan University Athletic Director Curt Hart received dozens of applications from coaches at various levels around the country without ever opening the position to the public.

On Jan. 9, Hart announced that the Tigers’ new leader would come from within the DWU athletic community. Ross Cimpl, who took over as interim head coach after Brad Pole announced his resignation in early December, has been named the 32nd head coach in Dakota Wesleyan football history.

Cimpl – a Wagner, S.D., native – has been the Tigers’ defensive coordinator for the past two seasons. He started at Dakota Wesleyan in March 2010 after a successful stint as both a coach and a player at the University of Sioux Falls, and in his two seasons at Dakota Wesleyan, he has helped the Tiger defense become one of the best in the league.

In 2011, the DWU pass defense was ranked second in the Great Plains Athletic Conference and 21st in the NAIA, giving up just over 160 yards per game. The Tigers also tied for third in the conference and 10th in the NAIA in opponent first downs (154), were third in the GPAC in turnover margin and second in the league and eighth in the NAIA in sacks per game (2.8). In 2010, he helped guide the Tigers to their first shutout of a GPAC opponent when they beat Concordia University 56-0. In two seasons, Cimpl has coached one All-GPAC First-Team selection, five second-team picks and 10 All-GPAC Honorable Mention selections, as well as three NAIA Scholar-Athletes.

Before coming to Dakota Wesleyan, Cimpl spent three years as an assistant coach at USF while pursuing a master’s degree in business administration, which he received in February 2010. He coached everything from the defensive backs to the special teams to tight ends, wide receivers and running backs. Cimpl was a part of the Cougars’ NAIA national titles in 2008 and 2009 and their runner-up finish in 2007. He helped the Cougars to a 42-1 record from 2007 to 2009. Sioux Falls won three straight GPAC titles in those years.

From 2002 to 2006, Cimpl was a member of the Cougar football team. He was a team captain in 2005 and 2006, a member of the 2006 national championship team and was named the team’s Special Teams Player-of-the-Year in 2005. Cimpl was on the dean’s list at USF and earned Academic All-American honors in 2005.

Cimpl will take over the head coaching position immediately and begin recruiting for the 2012 season. He takes over a squad that went 6-4 and started the season on a five-game winning streak for the first time since 1992 in 2011. Dakota Wesleyan returns nine of its All-GPAC selections in 2012, including All-American wide receiver Anthony Muilenburg and running back Josh Endres.

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Zeke Prado

Quarterbacks Coach
Dakota Wesleyan University ’06
zeprado@dwu.edu
605-995-2185

Zeke Prado begins his second season with Dakota Wesleyan in 2011.  This is Prado’s second stint as a coach at DWU and third stint overall at the school.

Prado, who was the wide receivers coach from 2005-07, begins his second year as the team’s quarterbacks coach in 2011.  He has also coached for the Rosemead Rebels organization, at San Gabriel High School, East Los Angeles College and Temple City High School.

Prado started his college football career with Chuck Lyons College of the Canyon and John Cicuto at Glendale Community College before transferring to Dakota Wesleyan before the 2001 season.  In his two-year career as a wide receiver for the Tigers, Prado caught 88 passes for 1,078 yards and 13 touchdowns.  He is among DWU’s leaders for career receiving yards, single-season receiving yards, career receptions and single-season receptions.  Prado, who was also a kick and punt returner, was a two-time All-GPAC Honorable Mention selection.

After completing his playing career at DWU, Prado earned a B.A. in sports and exercise science and a master’s degree in secondary education from Grand Canyon University.  He is the cofounder of Legends of Character, a nonprofit organization that works with parents and student-athletes and uses academics and athletics as a tool to continue their education.

Prado lives in Mitchell.

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Myron Steffen

Defensive Line Coach

Myron Steffen is entering his fourth season as Dakota Wesleyan University’s defensive line coach.  He joined Brad Pole’s staff as an assistant coach in 2008 following a long, successful career as the head coach at nearby Mount Vernon High School.

Steffen has proved to be a valuable addition to the Tiger defensive coaching staff, as the DWU defense has shown improvement in each of his seasons with the team.  With Steffen’s help, some of the Tigers’ younger players have helped secure the defensive line over the past several seasons.  In 2011, Steffen returns just five defensive starters, but 19 total defensive letterwinners will be back to shut down DWU’s opponents.

Steffen’s collegiate coaching career began in 2008 following his reign at Mount Vernon, where he was the head varsity coach for 25 years.  During that span, Steffen’s teams won 12 conference titles, six region championships and two state titles. He earned South Dakota Coach of the Year honors in 2000, and he was Region Coach of the Year in 1999, 2003 and 2005.

At Mount Vernon, Steffen is the current boys’ head track and field coach.  In his 28 years, his teams have won 31 conference titles, including one in 2011, and 11 region championships.

Steffen and his wife, Tammy, have three children.  His son, Jake (junior, defensive end), currently plays football for South Dakota State University, and his son, Mike, graduated in 2010 after a successful stint with the Jacks as a wide receiver.  His daughter, Jordan, attends Dakota State University.

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Jim Pawelec

Graduate Assistant Coach/Defensive Line
Augustana College ’10
japawele@dwu.edu

Jim Pawelec enters his second year as a graduate assistant at Dakota Wesleyan University. Pawelec comes to the Tigers from Augustana College in nearby Sioux Falls, S.D., where he graduated in May 2010 with a degree in sports management and a coaching endorsement.

Pawelec was an offensive lineman for the Vikings and a member of the 2008 Mineral Water Bowl Championship team. He worked for the Sioux Falls Storm, an indoor football team associated with the Indoor Football League, in 2009 and 2010.

The Big Bend, Wis., native earned eight varsity letters at Mukwonago High School in Mukwonago, Wis.

At Dakota Wesleyan, Pawelec is pursuing a Master of Arts degree in education.

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Jason Glasco

Graduate Assistant Coach/Linebackers
University of Sioux Falls ’07
jaglasco@dwu.edu

Jason Glasco enters his first season as a graduate assistant coach for the Tiger football team in 2011. He will work with the team’s linebackers.

Glasco comes to Dakota Wesleyan University after two seasons as an assistant coach at the University of Sioux Falls. While with the Cougars, he worked with the team’s defensive backs.

Glasco joins the coaching ranks after a successful playing career at Sioux Falls. He was a three-year starter at safety and a two-time All-GPAC Honorable Mention pick. He earned All-GPAC First-Team honors and All-America Honorable Mention honors once. Glasco, who graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in exercise science in 2007, played for the Cougars from 2003 to 2006 and was a part of the 2006 national championship team.

Glasco grew up in Sioux Falls and attended Sioux Falls Roosevelt High School. He was named All-City Defensive Captain and All-State First Team. He also was a member of the Sioux Falls Argus Leader Elite 45.

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Josh Kotecki

Graduate Assistant Coach/Offensive Line
Monmouth College ’10
jokoteck@dwu.edu

Josh Kotecki joins the Dakota Wesleyan University coaching staff as a graduate assistant coach in 2011. Kotecki, who will work with the team’s offensive lines, comes to the Tigers after a successful playing career at Monmouth College (Ill.).

Kotecki, who graduated with a degree in physical education in 2010, was an assistant offensive line coach at Monmouth that year. He was also an assistant coach at Beloit College, where he worked with the offensive line, tight ends and half backs.

At Monmouth, Kotecki was a four-year starter and a two-time captain. The offensive lineman was named to the All-Midwest Conference First Team three times, was a two-time All-West Region Selection and was named a d3football.com All-American Second-Team selection in 2008. In his four-year career, Monmouth went 35-8.

Kotecki, a Peru, Ill., native, is pursuing a master’s degree in educational policy and administration.