Thorne joins the Broncos in 2022 after six seasons as the head coach of North Central College, where he led the Cardinals to a 2019 Division III National Championship (first in program history), and 2021 national championship appearance. He went 65-10 over six seasons, including four College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) Championships, and a conference record of 46-4.
“I am thrilled to add Jeff Thorne to our coaching staff,” said Lester. “I have known Jeff for nearly 30 years. He is a great football coach and a man of high character. Jeff’s offenses at North Central College have put up incredible numbers during his career. Adding a championship caliber coach, like Jeff, to our staff will help us reach our goals.”
The 2019 D3football.com National Coach of the Year, Thorne coached his quarterback, Broc Rutter, to the Gagliardi Trophy (DIII Heisman), and the all-time passing yardage record in Division III (14,265 yards). Overall, Thorne coached three All-American quarterbacks at North Central, and had his QB’s named conference offensive player of the year nine times.
In 15 seasons overall at North Central as coordinator and head coach, Thorne won 12 conference championships. The last two seasons, his offense averaged over 50 points per game, ranked second in the nation each year. From 2019-21, Thorne’s Cardinals had the nation’s longest win streak of 24 games.
“I could not pass up the opportunity to join Coach Lester and his staff in Kalamazoo,” said Thorne. “I have known Tim for almost three decades and have great respect for him as a coach and person. I look forward to getting to know our student-athletes and to preparing them for great success on and off the field.”
As a student-athlete, Thorne made an impact as a quarterback at Eastern Illinois. He is 4th all-time at EIU in total offense, passing yards and completions behind only Tony Romo, Sean Payton and Jimmy Garoppolo.
