Joe Matheson joined the Drake football coaching staff as Offensive Coordinator in Feburary 2026.
At his last stop, Matheson was instrumental UW-River Falls earning its first NCAA Division III National Championship in program history. He served as the Falcons’ Offensive Coordinator from 2020-26, leading the “Top Gun Offense” unit. While with the Falcons, Matheson’s group led all levels of college football in total offense, first downs, and total plays during the 2025 season and ranked second among all NCAA schools in total offense from 2021-25.
Matheson built the fastest tempo system in NCAA football from 2021-25 with 19.7 seconds per play and over 87 plays per game over that span. The Falcons set over 30 school records including scoring, total offense, first downs, passing yards, completions, total passing touchdowns, completions in a game, first downs in a game, and points in a game.
Joe coached four NCAA Division III All-Americans including Gagliardi Trophy recipient Kaleb Blaha, who won the DIII equivalent of the Heisman Trophy and broke LSU star Joe Burrow’s season total offense record. Blaha was the first Manning Award finalist, given to the best quarterback in the country, to come from the Division III ranks.
Matheson also led recruiting efforts that resulted in not only the Falcons’ national title but the school’s first ever bowl victories and a 44-13 record from 2021-25. Prior to that stretch, UWRF had not been .500 or better in over 20 years.
Matheson earned individual accolades as a coach including the 2025 WIAC Assistant Coach of the Year, was member of the 2025 D3Football.com National Coaching Staff of the Year, and was a finalist for the 2025 FootballScoop Coordinator of the Year. Previously, Coach Matheson also included on the 2022 Our Coaching Network 30 Under 30 Coaches List, was a member of the 2021 National Coaching Staff of the Year, and part of the 2021 NCAA/NFL Leadership Academy.
Before being elevated to a coordinator, Matheson served as Wide Receivers Coach and Pass Game Coordinator for the Falcons. He was also the Tight Ends Coach at Southwest Minnesota State University from 2016-18 and was an Offensive Student Assistant at the University of Minnesota from 2012-16.
He earned his B.A. in Marketing from the University of Minnesota and MBA from Southwest Minnesota State.
Matheson originally hails from Green Bay, Wisconsin. He and his wife, Angela, now live in Des Moines.
