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| Jon Drach compiled a 31-22 record at Wilkes, including a 5-6 mark this past season. Wilkes athletics photo |
Jon Drach has been named the 35th coach of the Union College football program, athletic director Jim McLaughlin announced Friday.
Drach (pronounced DRACK) is the third head coach in three seasons at Union. Jeff Behrman coached Union for four seasons, including 2022, before moving to John Carroll. He was replaced by Jon Poppe in January 2023, who came from the Ivy League and returned there after one season, which saw the newly renamed Garnet Chargers advance to the second round of the playoffs.
Drach brings nearly two decades of Division III experience to Union. He recently completed his sixth year as head coach at Wilkes, where he turned the Colonels from a winless team into a competitive win, finishing 31-22 in five seasons, including the COVID-shortened spring of 2021.
Associate head coach David Biever has been named interim head coach at Wilkes.
"I am very proud to announce Jon Drach as the head coach of our football program," McLaughlin said. "Jon has been an integral piece of the success of several programs and his extensive experience in recruiting and motivating Division III student-athletes, as well as the importance he places on the success of his players in the classroom and the community, made him a very attractive candidate. His familiarity with the Liberty League and understanding of the student-athletes we aim to attract will immediately benefit our football program and the College.
"On behalf of the entire Union community, we look forward to welcoming Jon, his wife Janelle, son Caleb and daughter Addy to Schenectady."
At Wilkes, Drach took over a team in 2018 that finished 0-10 the year before. He led the Colonels to four straight winning seasons before placing second in the inaugural season of Landmark Conference play, earning the program's first postseason win in 17 years in 2023. With a 32-20 overall record in five seasons, he boasts the highest winning percentage (.620) for a coach in program history and is third all-time in victories at Wilkes.
"I would like to start by thanking President David Harris, vice president of student affairs Annette Diorio, and director of athletics Jim McLaughlin for this tremendous opportunity," said Drach. "It has been a pleasure throughout the interview process getting to know them while also witnessing their passion for Union College and all of its students. Their clear vision of integration, innovation, and inclusion can be seen in all they do. My wife, Janelle, and our children and I are very excited to become part of the Union College and Schenectady communities."
In his time in Wilkes-Barre, Drach recruited and coached 41 all-conference honorees, three D3football.com All-Region selections, one Middle Atlantic Conference Offensive Player of the Year and one Landmark Conference Rookie of the Year. Wilkes also boasted 124 MAC All-Academic Team honorees in his first four seasons.
"We want to thank Jon for everything he has done for the Wilkes football program over his six years as our head coach," said Wilkes athletics director Scott Musa. "Jon led one of the biggest turnarounds in Division III when he took over, instilling a detail-oriented work ethic that led to success both on the field and in the classroom. "We want to wish Jon and the entire Drach family well as they start the next chapter of their lives at Union," Musa added.
Off the field, Drach began a four-year term on the NCAA Football Rules Committee in February, serving as one of only four NCAA head coaches on the committee alongside Kirby Smart (University of Georgia), Aaron Best (Eastern Washington) and John Wristen (Colorado State-Pueblo). He also serves on the AFCA Division III Head Coaches Committee and has presented at multiple AFCA Conventions.
Prior to Wilkes, Drach spent 12 seasons at fellow Liberty League school Hobart, helping the Statesmen to a combined 92-24 record as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach.
Drach graduated from Western Michigan in 2004 with a bachelor's degree in finance and economics. He was a three-year starting quarterback for the Broncos from 2001-03 and posted a then-program-record .670 completion percentage as a senior. That season included a career-high 391 yards against Connecticut and a program-record 94-yard touchdown pass to future NFL draft pick and Pro Bowler Greg Jennings against Central Michigan.
Drach takes over a Union program that boasts a rich tradition of success and will be welcoming just its fifth coach in the last 43 years. Since 1982, Union has a combined record of 290-130 (.690) and boasts 39 non-losing records over that span, including two Stagg Bowl appearances, eight conference championships and 13 NCAA Tournament berths.
In 2023, Union recorded the sixth 10-win season in program history and reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The Garnet Chargers finished the season ranked 20th in the AFCA Division III Coaches Poll and 21st in the D3football.com national rankings.
"Union College football will strive to improve every day," Drach added. "We will be leaders on the field, in the classroom and in the community. We will be hungry to grow and learn, while being process-driven; if we focus on the details, the outcomes will take care of themselves."