ANNVILLE, Pa. – Pat Ratke, Director of Athletics, announced today that Chris Thompson was named as the Dutchmen's 28th Head Football Coach, removing the interim tag he held since February.

"We are thrilled to elevate Coach Thompson to be the 28th Head Football Coach and welcome him into this role," said Ratke. "Coach Thompson's proven record of success stood out as a pillar in the national search process, in addition to the culture and care that he has created for our student-athletes over the last six months in the interim role. His leadership, professionalism, and passion for LVC Football were unmatched—this past season, only five points separated us from going undefeated in Middle Atlantic Conference play, and we were the only conference school to defeat the eventual conference champion, Eastern. We are very excited for the future of LVC Football, and excited for Coach Thompson as he continues this journey."

Thompson led the Dutchmen to a 6-5 record this fall, and the team earned a spot in the Centennial-MAC Bowl Series for the third time in four years. The Dutchmen went 6-3 in conference play, with all three losses coming by a combined five points. LVC was the only team to defeat Eastern University, the conference champion, during the regular season. The Dutchmen earned a hard-fought 24-21 win over the Eagles on Sept. 20. The following week, the Dutchmen defeated Delaware Valley University 21-18 for the program's first win over the Aggies since 2013. The Dutchmen had 10 All-Conference selections, and senior safety Carter Foust was named First Team All-Region.

"I'm fired up to lead LVC forward as the school's 28th head coach," Thompson stated. "Ours is a special program that one of my mentors built and I'm honored to continue to put my heart and soul into making this a Championship Program. My 21-year journey here in every professional level has paved the way for this opportunity and I couldn't be more excited to continue to lead the historic LVC Football team. We have accomplished a lot since I arrived in 2021, but we are not where we want to be yet. We will say goodbye to a special group of 30+ seniors, who achieved several program milestones. However, we return a strong nucleus of outstanding student-athletes next fall, and have numerous Class of 2030 recruits who will pave the way for our future success."

Thompson is an accomplished football executive and coach with over 20 years of experience, including over 15 years at the highest levels of professional football. His journey in professional football has included stops in the NFL, XFL, Arena Football League (AFL), National Arena League (NAL), Alliance of American Football (AAF), and Indoor Football League (IFL). Thompson's football connections to The Valley include playing at Bloomsburg University for Jim Monos during his collegiate career. Monos, LVC's all-time leader in football coaching victories (109 wins), later hired Thompson as a Dutchmen Offensive Assistant Coach.

Now in Thompson's second stint with the Dutchmen, the LVC offense has consistently ranked among the top in the Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) for the past four years. The program has eclipsed 30 or more points 14 times and has appeared in the Centennial-MAC Bowl Series three times. LVC's 2022 and 2023 postseason appearances marked the program's first consecutive bowl games since 2008 and 2009.

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