# Mike Van Diest

Mike Van Diest (born c. 1951 or 1952) is an American college football coach. He was the head football coach at Carroll College in Helena, Montana from 1999 to 2018, compiling a record of 203–54. Van Diest's Carroll Fighting Saints won six NAIA National Championships, four consecutively from 2002 to 2005, a fifth in 2007, and a sixth in 2010.

## Playing career

Van Diest played college football for Wyoming between 1971 and 1974. He was listed as a tight end and offensive guard throughout his career. Following his graduation in 1975, he signed with the Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL) as a linebacker.

## Coaching career

Van Diest began his coaching career in 1977 as a graduate assistant for his alma mater, Wyoming. In 1978, he was promoted to the defensive tackles coach position. In 1979, he served as the co-head coach of the junior varsity team for Wyoming. In that same year he was hired as the head strength and conditioning coach.
In 1980, Van Diest was hired as the defensive line coach for Montana. He maintained that position for six years before being hired in the same position for UMass. After only one season with UMass, he was hired as the defensive line coach for Northwestern. In 1991, he rejoined his alma mater as the defensive line coach.
In 1999, Van Diest took his first head coaching position as the head football coach for Carroll College. He maintained the position for twenty seasons and led the team to an overall record of 203–54 and six NAIA National Championships. He retired after the 2018 season.
In the spring of 2020, Van Diest came out of retirement to coach for Mary. The season was ultimately cancelled due to COVID-19 before he coached a game for the Marauders. He spent the fall of 2020 as a volunteer assistant for Helena High School. In 2021, he joined Montana State–Northern as the team's defensive coordinator—his first coordinator position of his entire career. He retired after one season.

## Head coaching record

| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | NAIA$^#$ |
| Carroll Fighting Saints (Frontier Conference) (1999–2018) |||||||
| 1999 | Carroll | 5–6 | 5–3 | 3rd | | |
| 2000 | Carroll | 10–4 | 6–2 | 1st | L NAIA Semifinal | 3 |
| 2001 | Carroll | 10–2 | 7–1 | 1st | L NAIA Semifinal | 3 |
| 2002 | Carroll | 12–2 | 7–1 | 1st | W NAIA Championship | 1 |
| 2003 | Carroll | 15–0 | 8–0 | 1st | W NAIA Championship | 1 |
| 2004 | Carroll | 12–2 | 6–2 | T–1st | W NAIA Championship | 1 |
| 2005 | Carroll | 14–0 | 8–0 | 1st | W NAIA Championship | 1 |
| 2006 | Carroll | 11–2 | 9–1 | 1st | L NAIA Quarterfinal | 5 |
| 2007 | Carroll | 15–0 | 10–0 | 1st | W NAIA Championship | 1 |
| 2008 | Carroll | 13–1 | 10–0 | 1st | L NAIA Championship | 2 |
| 2009 | Carroll | 13–1 | 8–1 | 1st | L NAIA Semifinal | 3 |
| 2010 | Carroll | 14–0 | 10–0 | 1st | W NAIA Championship | 1 |
| 2011 | Carroll | 13–2 | 9–1 | 1st | L NAIA Championship | 2 |
| 2012 | Carroll | 7–4 | 7–3 | 3rd | | 21 |
| 2013 | Carroll | 12–2 | 9–1 | 1st | L NAIA Seminfinal | 3 |
| 2014 | Carroll | 10–2 | 9–1 | 1st | L NAIA Quarterfinal | 5 |
| 2015 | Carroll | 4–6 | 4–6 | T–4th | | |
| 2016 | Carroll | 4–6 | 4–6 | T–5th | | |
| 2017 | Carroll | 4–6 | 4–6 | T–5th | | |
| 2018 | Carroll | 5–6 | 4–6 | 7th | | |
| Carroll: | Carroll: | 203–54 | 144–41 | | | |
| Total: | Total: | 203–54 | | | | |
| National championship  Conference title  Conference division title or championship game berth |||||||
| $^#$Rankings from final NAIA Coaches' Poll. |||||||