Dennis Wagner has been head coach of the Briar Cliff football team since 2017.
The 2019 season marked the Coach Wagner's third season at the helm. The season was highlighted by BC's first football All-Americans in Robert Robinson and Kory Woodruff. Robinson was named first-team All-American while Woodruff was deemed honorable mention. Both athletes were also recognized at Briar Cliff for their efforts with Robinson honored at BC's Co-Male Athlete of the Year and Woodruff named Male Breakthrough Athlete of the Year.
The second season under Wagner was one for the record books as the Chargers finished with a winning record for the first time in school history and shattered several program bests. The Cliff offense scored the most points ever in a season with 283 behind a team record 2,069 rushing yards and 4,361 total yards.
The 25 passing TDs by the Chargers was the most all time for Briar Cliff and the 13 rushing touchdowns was the second best mark for the program. The offense wasn't the only thing to shine under Wagner's leadership as Briar Cliff had two defensive players named First Team All-Conference in the same season for the first time with DL Omar Dyles and LB Caleb Wilson making the GPAC list.
The Charger rushing attack came to life in Wagner's first season as Noah Ylagan became the school's first-ever 1,000-yard rusher. Ylagan again reached that milestone in Wagner's second year at the helm. The Briar Cliff offense had 20 rushing TDs in Wagner's inaugural season, a season best total for the Blue and Gold.
Wagner came to Briar Cliff with experience at all levels of collegiate football, including 20-plus seasons at the NCAA Division I level. Over the years, Wagner has helped produce numerous all-conference and all-American selections and a dozen of his linemen have been drafted into the National Football League, three of which have become All-Pros. Starting his coaching career in 1980, Wagner has an impressive coaching history that has led him to be a part of 10 NCAA bowl games and the second round of the FCS playoffs in 2014. He was twice named the Omaha World Herald’s Coach of the Year (1990, 1993).
As a coach, Wagner most recently finished up his fifth year at Liberty University, where he served as associate head coach and offensive line coach. Prior to that, he spent four seasons as the head coach at Western Carolina University. Wagner also spent four seasons at the University of Nebraska, serving as the Huskers’ offensive line coach from 2004-2007. From 1997-2003, he served as the assistant head coach and offensive line coach at Fresno State University.
Prior to joining the staff at Fresno State, Wagner spent seven seasons (1989-1995) as the head coach at Wayne State College in Wayne, Nebraska. There, he turned around the Wildcat program, compiling a 44-37-1 record in seven seasons. In 2005, he was inducted into the Wayne State College Athletic Hall of Fame.
Wagner’s other coaching stops included serving as the offensive coordinator and strength and conditioning coach at St. Cloud State (1985-1988), defensive line coach and assistant strength coach at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas (1984), offensive line coach and head track and field coach at William Penn College (1983), tight ends and offensive tackles coach at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas (1981-82) and offensive line coach at Luther College (1980).
Wagner and his wife, Cyndi, have two children, Whitney and Joshua.
