Kalen DeBoer wins AP Coach of the Year honor after leading Washington to CFP
Kalen DeBoer was named The Associated Press Coach of the Year on Tuesday following an outstanding Year 2 at the helm of Washington’s football program.
DeBoer received 30 of the 52 first-place votes and had 113 points overall from AP Top 25 poll voters. He was one point shy of doubling up on the second-place finisher — Florida State’s Mike Norvell (57 points). Missouri’s Eli Drinkwitz (38) and Arizona’s Jedd Fisch (28) were the only other coaches to receive multiple first-place votes. He becomes the first Washington coach to ever be named the coach of the year by the AP and just the third Pac-12 coach to win the award in the last 25 years.
“It’s all about the people around me. This is a team award,” DeBoer told the AP. “When you win, I tell the players this, you win football games, you’re going to get recognized and more awards are going to get shared. I’m fortunate enough to kind of be the figurehead of our team and receive these cool awards. Just really blessed.”
Washington’s second-year head coach is also a finalist for the Dodd Trophy. He was named the Pac-12 Coach of the Year and won the Home Depot Coach of the Year award during ESPN’s postseason awards show.
After an 11-2 season in 2022, DeBoer has led the Huskies to a 13-0 record, a Pac-12 title, and a berth in the College Football Playoff — the Pac-12’s first Playoff selection since 2016.
This season, UW went 5-0 against teams that were ranked at the time of the meeting. Through his first two years with the program, DeBoer is 9-0 against ranked opponents and he’s 14-0 in home games.
Washington is preparing to face No. 3 Texas in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 1. A win will send the Huskies to the College Football Playoff National Championship.