Jace Rindahl enters his third season at the head coach of the Warhawk football program in 2025. Rindahl has been on staff since 2015 serving as run defense coordinator, linebackers coach and defensive coordinator prior to taking the helm in 2023.
In his first year as head coach, Rindahl led the Warhawks to an 11-2 mark that included a 6-0 start to the season - all against ranked opponents. Rindahl picked up two NCAA postseason victories in his first year, leading the Warhawks to the quarterfinals. The 2024 squad capped the season with a 6-4 record.
Prior to taking over the head role, Rindahl helped the Warhawks win the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championship and reach the semifinals of the NCAA Playoffs as the defensive coordinator. Rindahl's defense allowed 12.2 points per game, good for 11th in NCAA Division III, and also ranked among the top 15 in the nation in rushing defense (56.7 yards per game) and turnovers forced (27).
The Warhawks finished as WIAC champion and NCAA Division III national runner-up in 2019. The team led the WIAC and ranked sixth in the nation in rushing defense, allowing only 63.8 yards per game on the ground. Linebacker Kaleb Kaminski was named honorable mention All-America by D3football.com, and he was joined as an All-WIAC honoree by linebacker Jacob Erbs.
Rindahl earned Wisconsin Football Coaches Association College Assistant Coach of the Year honors following the 2018 season, when the Warhawks led the WIAC and ranked eighth in NCAA Division III in scoring defense, allowing just over 10 points per game. Three UW-Whitewater linebackers were named All-WIAC in 2018, including all-region selection Bryce Leszczynski.
The Warhawks led the WIAC in scoring defense in 2017, allowing only 14.7 points per contest. Bryce Leszczynski led the team and ranked second in the conference with 90 tackles, and was named first team All-WIAC following the season.
In 2016, UW-Whitewater claimed the WIAC championship and a berth in the quarterfinal round of the NCAA Playoffs. With the help of a solid linebacking corps, the team allowed only 83.1 rushing yards per game, good for 16th in the nation. Two linebackers garnered All-WIAC accolades, including first-teamer Matt Seitz, and three different Warhawk linebackers tallied 60 or more tackles during the season.
In Rindahl's first season on staff, the Warhawks allowed a WIAC-leading 112.9 yards per game. Two UW-Whitewater linebackers earned All-WIAC honors, including senior Justin Dischler, an All-America selection by the American Football Coaches Association, the Associated Press and D3football.com.
A member of the UW-Whitewater football team from 2005-08, Rindahl was a first team All-American and the D3football.com Defensive Player of the Year as a senior linebacker in 2008 after leading the Warhawks to their fourth straight appearance in the Stagg Bowl national championship game. UW-Whitewater won its first NCAA Division III title in 2007, when Rindahl tallied 107 tackles, good for second on the team, and four interceptions. In 2011, he was selected to the WIAC's All-Time Football Team as a prelude to the conference's Centennial Celebration in 2013.
Following his playing career, Rindahl served as linebackers coach and special teams assistant from 2009-12, a span during which the Warhawks won three conference and national championships. Under Rindahl's leadership, one linebacker was named an All-American in each season from 2009-11.
Rindahl returned to UW-Whitewater following a two-year stint as running backs coach at the University of South Dakota, a Football Championship Subdivision institution.
A native of Cambridge, Wis., Rindahl graduated from UW-Whitewater with a bachelor's in physical education in 2010. He earned his master's in professional development in 2012.
