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Matt Walker has resigned as head football coach at UW-River Falls to accept the head coaching position at Drake University, the athletics departments at both schools announced. Walker departs the Falcons following a 15-year tenure that transformed the program from a conference afterthought into a Division III national champion.
Drake Athletics Director Brian Hardin made the hire official February 22, calling Walker a coach who "inherited a program routinely at the bottom of its conference and turned it into one of the best programs in the country."
Walker's exit comes at UW-River Falls’ peak. In 2025, he guided the Falcons to their first WIAC Championship since 1998, their first NCAA Playoff appearance since 1996, and ultimately the first national title in school history. D3football.com named him its Coach of the Year and he won the WIAC Coach of the Year award following the season, capping a run in which his teams went 44-13 since 2021 and averaged 42.4 points per game over the last five seasons.
UWRF Athletics Director Crystal Lanning acknowledged both the loss and the legacy Walker leaves behind.
"Over the past 15 years, he worked tirelessly to improve all areas of the program including the team culture, academic performance, and on-field competitiveness," Lanning said. "He created a culture of pride and excellence within the team, and reengaged generations of Falcon alumni. I truly wish Coach Walker and his family all the best as he pursues a new professional opportunity. He will be greatly missed by the UWRF and River Falls community."
Walker, who took over the program in 2011, spent years building the foundation before the Falcons broke through with nine wins in 2021. By 2023, UWRF was ranked nationally throughout the entire season, climbing as high as No. 4 in Division III. The 2025 championship run represented the culmination of everything that had been carefully constructed over more than a decade.
For Walker, leaving was not easy.
"I'm not sure there are words to properly explain how much I love River Falls and how much I appreciate everything it has given me and my family," Walker said. "I've given everything I had to UWRF and feel good about leaving it in a better place than we found it. None of this could have happened without great administrative leadership, my incredible coaching staff, and obviously our student-athletes. We have truly created a family here."
Walker takes his culture-building track record to Drake, where he steps into the FCS Pioneer Football League, a conference he knows well. Walker previously served as an offensive assistant at PFL member Butler University in 2010. He expressed particular empathy for the Bulldogs' players, who are navigating yet another coaching transition.
"My heart goes out to these players having to go through another coaching change," Walker said. "It's not the journey anyone signs up for but I'm determined to make this transition smooth for them, get to know them, roll up our sleeves together and get on a mission to win another conference title."
During his time at UWRF, Walker mentored more than 140 All-WIAC selections, 13 All-Region honorees, six All-Americans, and 2025 Gagliardi Trophy winner Kaleb Blaha, recipient of the top Division III individual honor. Five Falcons also earned the WIAC's highest academic honor, the Max Sparger Scholar-Athlete Award, under his watch.
The praise for Walker extends well beyond the college football world. Boston Celtics President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens, who has known Walker for three decades, pointed to something beyond the wins and losses.
"What struck me in visiting him this year at River Falls was not their offense, their defense, or the talent they assembled, but more the genuine love in the room between players, coaches, and staff," Stevens said. "Matt created an incredible culture built on respect, hard work, fearlessness, love of the game, and being a great teammate."
New York Giants General Manager Joe Schoen, who was both a teammate and played under Walker as a coach, offered a simple take on the hire.
"Nobody is surprised he's a national champion," Schoen said. "Even in college, it was obvious he was destined to be a great football coach. Any program that gets Matt Walker as their head coach is getting an absolute difference-maker."
Walker named Jake Wissing, who spent all 15 years alongside him on staff at UWRF, as the man to carry the program forward in River Falls.
"There will always be a piece of my heart there," Walker said, "and I cannot wait to be their biggest fan."
Drake will formally introduce Walker at a press conference on Sunday, March 1, with his availability beginning at 12:30 p.m. in the Paul Morrison Room before he addresses Bulldog fans at the Drake men's basketball game that afternoon.
