Valparaiso hires longtime Marietta coach Andy Waddle to take over its football program

Updated Dec. 9, 2024 6:16 p.m. ET

Associated Press

VALPARAISO, Ind. (AP) — Valparaiso hired longtime Marietta coach Andy Waddle as its new football coach, athletic director Laurel Hosmer announced Monday.

Waddle is scheduled to be formally introduced on campus Wednesday.

He spent the last 12 seasons turning around the Division III program located in Southeastern Ohio. There, he went 55-61 after inheriting a winless team. He led the Pioneers to their first 8-0 start last season and matched the 1920 squad's school record with a 13-game winning streak that started in 2023. In 2024, Marietta made its first postseason appearance since 1973.

Waddle went 16-5 over the past two seasons and produced seven winning records over the last eight seasons. The Pioneers had only two winning seasons in the previous 20 years.

“I think there is a great group of young men on the (Valparaiso) roster, and we’re excited to invest in those student-athletes and continue to add more high-quality people and football players to the program,” Waddle said of the program located in Indiana's northwest corner. “I think Valpo is not only an outstanding fit for me professionally, but also an outstanding fit for me and my family.”

Waddle spent eight seasons working with the defense as an assistant for his alma mater, Wittenberg, where he was an all-conference defensive back. He also has coached at Mansfield University in Pennsylvania and at Maryville College in Tennessee.

“His experience building success and winning culture as a head coach, passion for developing student-athletes on and off the field and high character made it clear he was the right leader for our football program,” Hosmer said in a statement.

The move comes two weeks after Hosmer announced the school would not give Landon Fox a contract extension after his deal expired. Fox was 21-42 in six seasons at Valparaiso.

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