Head Coach Steve Staker

Staker enters his first season at the helm of the Kohawks after spending the past four years as the defensive coordinator for Coe. Staker left Fredericksburg in 2004 after serving as head football coach for 35 seasons. His coaching experience extends to include head baseball coach for 31 years, head boys track coach for 28 years and assistant boys basketball coach for 36 years. He served as the high school and middle school athletic director at Fredericksburg for 31 years.

Staker led Fredericksburg to a state championship in football in 2001 and a state championship in track and field in 1992. His football teams won six district titles over a span of 15 seasons. He was the Class A State Football Coach of the Year in 2001. Staker was also selected as the head coach for the 2003 Iowa Shrine football game. Steve’s son Tyler Staker is the wide recievers coach and is the last of Steve and Linda Staker’s five children to attend the college.

Assistant Coaches

Larry Atwater- Defensive Backs Coach
Atwater is in his 18th year as an assistant football coach at Coe. A 1982 graduate of Coe, he is the physical education department chairman and an assistant professor of physical education. Atwater wrestled and played football all four years in college and ran track for one year. In his senior year, Atwater threw for 1,615 yards and 16 touchdowns while posting a passing percentage of 53.7. Atwater received his master’s degree from Northeast Missouri State and is married to Sue, a science teacher at Linn-Mar Middle School, in Marion. They have two sons, Jordan, 15 and Mark, 13.

Damon Walker - Quarterbacks/Running Backs Coach
After serving as Coe’s linebackers coach for five years (1990-94), coach Walker returned to his alma mater in 2004 as the quarterbacks coach for the Kohawks. Walker served as Defensive Coordinator for Cedar Rapids Washington from 1995-1999. A 1988 graduate of Coe, Walker was a four-year starting defensive lineman, earning All-Midwest Conference honors three times. He was a member of Coe’s first-ever playoff team in 1986. Walker was a graduate assistant coach at the University of South Dakota, where he earned his master’s in education with an emphasis in Sports Psychology. He is currently a Financial Advisory at ING Financial Partners. He and his wife, Carolin, have two sons, Jackson, 8, and Lucas, 5.

Tyler Staker - Offensive Coordinator
Staker, a 2006 graduate of Coe, will begin his second year on the staff as the wide receivers coach. Staker was a four-year letterman for the Kohawks, and a two-time all-conference and an all-west region defensive back. A native of Fredericksburg, Iowa, Staker led the Falcons to a state high school football title in 2001. He also represented Coe College and the IIAC in the 2005 Aztec Bowl, pitting the top DIII players in the nation in a 53-15 win over the top collegiate football players in Mexico.

Ricky Legree - Running Backs Coach
Legree, a 2005 graduate of Cornell College, returns for his second year on the staff as a running backs coach. He was a four-year letterwinner for the Rams in both football and baseball. Legree played a key role in the Ram offense as he led the team in rushing yards his junior and senior years, as well as leading the team in rushing touchdowns during his final three seasons with the Rams. He currently works for Intermec in Cedar Rapids.

Doug Brissey- Tight Ends/Offensive Line and Special Teams Coach
Brissey, a 1994 Coe graduate, will begin his second year on the staff as the tight ends coach. Brissey was a three-year letterman for the Kohawks from 1991-1993. During his time at Coe, the Kohawks accumulated an overall record of 27-4, including two Midwest Conference championship teams. Brissey played in all 31 games during his three years and garnered second team all-conference honors as a junior punter and first team all-conference honors as a senior tight end. As a senior, Brissey led the Kohawks in receiving touchdowns with eight. He currently works for AEGON in Cedar Rapids. Brissey and his wife Rachelle, a 1995 Coe Graduate, have a daughter Madison, 4.

Jim Dostal - Defensive Line and Special Teams Coach
Dostal, a 1987 graduate of Coe College, begins his first season as defensive line coach for the Kohawks. Dostal played a key role on the 1986 Kohawk football team that made the NCAA Playoffs as he was named a Third Team All-American. He helped the Kohawks to a 18-2-1 record in his two years at Coe and was an All-Midwest Conference selection both years.

Joe Freitag - Offensive Line Coach
Freitag begins his first season as a defensive line coach for the Kohawks. Freitag graduated from Monmouth College and was a three-year starter at left tackle. During his time at Monmouth, he helped the Fighting Scots to a 34-7 record, the most wins ever in a four-year time span for the school. His junior year the Fighting Scots won their first Midwest Conference Championship by going 10-1. He was named to the All-Midwest Conference First Team in 2005 and 2006.