Wartburg College Athletics

A 1982 graduate, was a four-year member of the football team. He began his career as an offensive line coach and then was the defensive coordinator for the Knights. He returned as head coach from 1991 to 1995 after taking Ripon to the 1998 national semifinals.  Under Nielson, the Knights won the 1993 conference championship, made two NCAA appearances, and went 39-14. Nielson was named conference Coach of the Year in 1993, and one of his defensive linemen, Vince Penningroth, earned MVP honors in 1995. The 1993 NCAA appearance marked the first for the program in 11 years, and the team earned the first NCAA playoff win in program history in 1994. After Wartburg, Nielson went on to coach at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, University of Minnesota Duluth, Western Illinois and the University of South Dakota, experiencing continued success throughout his career. He is a three-time National Coach of the Year, and a two-time national champion head coach at the NCAA Division II level. Nielson also served as Wartburg's athletic director in 1991-96. He retired from South Dakota following the 2024 season and now serves as the director of divisional football at the American Football Coaches Association. Nielson resides in Jefferson, South Dakota, with his wife, Terri, a 1995 Wartburg graduate.