| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1941-01-15) January 15, 1941 (age 83) Sioux Falls, South Dakota, U.S. |
| Playing career | |
| Football | |
| c. 1962 | Augustana (SD) |
| Position(s) | Center, linebacker |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| Football | |
| 1964–1968 | Augustana (IL) (line) |
| 1969–1976 | Augustana (SD) (assistant) |
| 1976–2003 | Bethany (KS) |
| Wrestling | |
| 1964–1969 | Augustana (IL) |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 219–57–1 (football) 39–5–3 (wrestling) |
| Tournaments | Football 3–9 (NAIA D-II playoffs) 0–1 (NAIA playoffs) |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| Football 16 KCAC (1977–1981, 1986–1988, 1990–1991, 1993–1996, 1999, 2001) Wrestling 5 CCIW (1965–1969) | |
| Awards | |
| 11× KCAC Coach of the Year NAIA Hall of Fame (2003) Kansas Sports Hall of Fame (2005) | |
| College Football Hall of Fame Inducted in 2010 (profile) | |
Ted Kessinger (born January 15, 1941) is an American former college football coach. He served as the head football coach at Bethany College in Lindsborg, Kansas from 1976 to 2003, compiling a record of 219–57–1 for a winning percentage of .792. He is among the college football coaches with the most wins and the highest winning percentage.
Kessinger was the head coach of the first American football team to play in Sweden, and he was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 2010. His son is Kent Kessinger, the head coach at Ottawa University.
Coaching career
Assistant coaching
Before becoming a head coach, Kessinger worked as an assistant coach at Augustana College in Sioux Falls, South Dakota and the South Dakota Coyotes in Vermillion.
Bethany
Kessinger was the head football coach at Bethany College in Lindsborg, Kansas from 1976 to 2003, where he posted a record of 219–57–1. He guided Bethany to the NAIA playoffs ten times and achieved a top 25 ranking 20 times. His teams never posted a losing season during his entire coaching tenure.
In 2000, his team won the American Family Charity Bowl, defeating the Kansas Wesleyan Coyotes by a score of 20–3.
Kessinger was inducted into the NAIA Hall of Fame in 2003 as well as the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame in 2005.
Head coaching record
Football
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | NAIA | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bethany Terrible Swedes (Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference) (1976–2003) | |||||||||
| 1976 | Bethany | 6–4 | 5–3 | T–3rd | |||||
| 1977 | Bethany | 9–1 | 8–0 | 1st | |||||
| 1978 | Bethany | 10–1 | 8–0 | 1st | L NAIA Division II Quarterfinal | ||||
| 1979 | Bethany | 11–1 | 8–0 | 1st | L NAIA Division II Semifinal | ||||
| 1980 | Bethany | 9–1 | 7–1 | 1st | |||||
| 1981 | Bethany | 9–1 | 8–0 | 1st | |||||
| 1982 | Bethany | 5–5 | 5–4 | T–4th | |||||
| 1983 | Bethany | 8–2 | 7–2 | 2nd | |||||
| 1984 | Bethany | 6–4 | 5–4 | T–4th | |||||
| 1985 | Bethany | 7–2 | 7–2 | T–2nd | |||||
| 1986 | Bethany | 8–1 | 8–1 | 1st | |||||
| 1987 | Bethany | 8–2 | 8–1 | 1st | L NAIA Division II First Round | ||||
| 1988 | Bethany | 10–1 | 9–0 | 1st | L NAIA Division II Quarterfinal | ||||
| 1989 | Bethany | 8–1 | 8–1 | 2nd | |||||
| 1990 | Bethany | 8–2 | 8–1 | 1st | L NAIA Division II First Round | ||||
| 1991 | Bethany | 8–2 | 8–1 | 1st | L NAIA Division II First Round | ||||
| 1992 | Bethany | 7–1–1 | 7–1 | 2nd | |||||
| 1993 | Bethany | 9–2 | 8–0 | 1st | L NAIA Division II First Round | ||||
| 1994 | Bethany | 7–3 | 7–1 | T–1st | |||||
| 1995 | Bethany | 10–1 | 8–0 | 1st | L NAIA Division II Quarterfinal | ||||
| 1996 | Bethany | 8–2 | 8–0 | 1st | L NAIA Division II First Round | ||||
| 1997 | Bethany | 7–2 | 6–2 | 3rd | |||||
| 1998 | Bethany | 6–3 | 5–3 | 3rd | |||||
| 1999 | Bethany | 8–2 | 7–1 | T–1st | L NAIA First Round | 13 | |||
| 2000 | Bethany | 7–3 | 6–3 | T–3rd | W American Family Charity Bowl | ||||
| 2001 | Bethany | 8–1 | 8–1 | T–1st | 19 | ||||
| 2002 | Bethany | 6–3 | 6–3 | 2nd | |||||
| 2003 | Bethany | 5–4 | 5–4 | T–3rd | |||||
| Bethany: | 219–57–1 | 198–40 | |||||||
| Total: | 219–57–1 | ||||||||
| National championship Conference title Conference division title or championship game berth | |||||||||
See also
References
- The Victoria Advocate "Sweden's First Shot at Football a Success Despite 72-7 Defeat" by Stephaan Nastrom, Jun 20, 1985
- "College Football". ESPN. May 11, 2010.
- Kansas Sports Hall of Fame Kent Kessinger
- Topeka Capital-Journal "Ted Kessinger retires with 219-57-1 record" February 12, 2004
- College Football Data Warehouse Archived October 14, 2012, at the Wayback Machine Kansas Wesleyan Bowl History
- Ted Kessinger at the College Football Hall of Fame
External links
| Bethany Swedes head football coaches | |
|---|---|
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- 1941 births
- Living people
- American football centers
- American football linebackers
- Augustana (Illinois) Vikings football coaches
- Augustana (South Dakota) Vikings football coaches
- Augustana (South Dakota) Vikings football players
- Bethany Swedes football coaches
- South Dakota Coyotes football coaches
- College wrestling coaches in the United States
- College Football Hall of Fame inductees
- People from Lindsborg, Kansas
- Sportspeople from Sioux Falls, South Dakota
- Players of American football from South Dakota