Jesse Scott was named the 22nd head coach of the Wheaton football team following the conclusion of the 2019 season, and the upcoming campaign will mark his seventh year in charge of the program. Scott served as Wheaton's offensive coordinator between 2016 and 2019 and has been a member of the Thunder coaching staff since 2010.
Heading into the 2026 season, Scott holds a career record of 59-14 as Wheaton's head coach and has the fourth-most wins of any head coach in program history. His 81% winning percentage is currently the best mark of any Thunder football coach.
Scott took over a Wheaton program that went 12-1 in 2019, tying the school record for victories in a single season. Wheaton advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division III Playoffs that year for the fourth time in program history.
Due to the cancellation of the 2020 season amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, Scott's first season at the helm of the Thunder program came in the fall of 2021. Wheaton posted a 10-2 overall record and an 8-1 mark in conference play, while advancing to the second round of the 2021 NCAA Division III Football Championship playoffs. Scott earned his first postseason win as the head coach of the Thunder football team in November 2021 when Wheaton defeated Aurora, 63-31, at McCully Stadium in the first round of the playoffs. Wheaton placed 15 football players on the 2021 All-Conference teams, six of whom also earned All-American recognition. Additionally, the Thunder earned an all-time best representation figure on the 2021 CoSIDA Academic All-District football team with six student-athletes being selected. Wheaton finished the season ranked ninth in the D3football.com and AFCA national polls, and the Thunder remained in the top ten of the D3football.com national rankings for the entirety of the 2021 season.
Scott led the Wheaton football team to an 8-3 record in 2022 and a 10-2 record in 2023, finishing second in the CCIW and earning NCAA Division III Playoff berths in both seasons. The Thunder advanced to the second round of the national playoffs in 2023 thanks to a 41-34 home win over Mount St. Joseph University in the first round. Wheaton posted a 9-2 overall record in 2024 and defeated University of Wisconsin-Stout, 35-32, in the Culver's Isthmus Bowl to capture the program's first-ever bowl victory and become the first CCIW program to win the Isthmus Bowl.
The 2025 season was a successful one for the Thunder, as Wheaton posted an overall record of 11-3 and advanced to the NCAA Division III quarterfinals for the first time under Scott and the fifth time in program history. After beginning the season 2-2, the Thunder rattled off a nine-game winning streak and won three playoff games for just the second time in program history before falling on the road to the eventual national champion, UW-River Falls. Wheaton finished the season ranked seventh in the country by both the AFCA and D3football.com, and Scott was named the Region 5 Coach of the Year by the latter organization.
Scott served as Wheaton's Offensive Coordinator between 2016-2019 and the program's offensive line coach from 2012-2016. He has also served as the recruiting coordinator for Thunder Football since 2013 and spent one season as a defensive line coach. Under his guidance, the Wheaton offense was ranked in the Top 10 in Division III in scoring in every season between 2017-2023 (not including the canceled 2020 season). In the 2019 campaign, Wheaton set a school record for points in a season (611), shattering the previous best of 505 points in 2008. Wheaton advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division III Playoffs twice (2016 & 2019) in Scott's tenure as offensive coordinator.
In his tenure on Wheaton's staff, Scott has coached 30 players who have collectively earned 41 All-America recognitions. Among those honorees was Spencer Clark, the 2014 recipient of the Rimington Award as the top center in Division III. In Scott's four seasons as offensive coordinator, the Thunder offense achieved Top-20 placement in Division III in 14 different statistical categories.
Scott says of his appointment, "I am thrilled and humbled by the opportunity to lead the Wheaton Football program. Wheaton Football will continue to change lives. Our program will shape young men for the glory of God through our pursuit of excellence on the field and off of it. I want to thank Julie Davis for entrusting me with this opportunity and Coach Swider for his affirmation that I am the right man for the job."
A 2009 Wheaton graduate, Scott earned a Bachelor's Degree in Business and Economics. His four-year playing career (2005-08) for the Thunder featured All-CCIW selections in his junior and senior seasons. As a senior, Scott earned D3Football.com All-North Region First Team honors and was named to the D3football.com All-America First Team. As the starting right tackle, Scott was part of the record-breaking 2008 Thunder offense that broke 17 single-season and career records while advancing to the NCAA Division III National Semifinals.
COMMENTS ON JESSE SCOTT
JULIE DAVIS ('91), ATHLETICS DIRECTOR (2011-2022)
"Jesse brings a passion for Wheaton football, a deep knowledge of what it takes to compete at this level, and a commitment to maintaining the distinctives that make this program thrive on the field and in the lives of our players. He is a talented coach, and I believe he has all the tools to continue the great tradition of Wheaton football, which is to develop young men in their faith and character through excellence in football."
MIKE SWIDER ('77), HEAD FOOTBALL COACH (1996-2019)
"I am really excited about Jesse Scott as the head coach here. I remember recruiting and coaching Jesse here at Wheaton. He has coached alongside me for the past 10 years. He loves Wheaton football as much as I do. This program is as important to him as his next breath of air. He will embrace Wheaton football and respect its core values. He will continue to build it in the years to come."
TIM HARDY ('99), HEAD FOOTBALL COACH AT GREATER ATLANTA CHRISTIAN SCHOOL AND FORMER WHEATON OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR
"I am really excited for Wheaton football and the future of the program under Jesse Scott's leadership. He has invested greatly as a player and as a coach – this is a natural extension of the program. Jesse is a great representation of Wheaton College. He has a deep personal and abiding faith. He is about excellence in all that he does and he has a passion to pursue excellence. That is what Wheaton stands for – honoring Christ through excellence. Jesse is the right man for the next chapter of Wheaton football."
