Wheaton, Ill. – Wheaton College football coach Mike Swider has been named as a finalist for the 2007 Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year Award, which honors college football coaches who best exemplify responsibility and excellence on and off the field of play. Swider is one of five finalists for the Division III Coach of the Year award. Fans can cast a vote for coach Swider to win the Division III award until December 15 at www.coachoftheyear.com. The winner will be announced on December 29 during an ABC/ESPN special.

In 11 seasons at the helm of the Thunder, Mike Swider has compiled a record of 96-29, with a 76.8% winning percentage. He is ranked among the top-ten winningest active Division III coaches in winning percentage. Swider has guided Wheaton to five College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) championships since 2000, with four NCAA Division III playoff appearances since 2002.

Joining coach Swider as the finalists for the Division III Coach of the Year Award are: Greg Debeljak of Case Western Reserve; John Gagliardi from St. John's (Minn.); Eric Hamilton, head coach at The College of New Jersey and Joe King of RPI. During the initial fan-voting (September 6 – November 27), the top 25 vote getters in each division qualified to be evaluated by an objective panel designed exclusively for the Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year Award and reviewed and endorsed by the College Football Hall of Fame. The panel arrived at the finalists by scoring each of these qualifying coaches in four areas: coaching excellence, sportsmanship and integrity, academic excellence, and community commitment.

Fan votes in this second phase will account for 20 percent of each coach's final score, with a voting committee of college football media (25 percent) and College Football Hall of Fame coaches and players (55 percent) contributing the remainder. Voting at www.coachoftheyear.com will close on December 15.