# Western Connecticut Wolves football

The Western Connecticut Wolves football (often stylized as WestConn) team represents Western Connecticut State University in college football at the NCAA Division III level. The Wolves are members of the Landmark Conference, fielding its team in the Landmark Conference since 2025. The Wolves play their home games at the WAC in Danbury, Connecticut. The team was previously known as the Western Connecticut Colonials and Western Connecticut Indians.
Their head coach is Joe Loth, who took over the position for the 2012 season.

## History

Western Connecticut State College, now known as Western Connecticut State University, established its college football team in 1969, initially named the Western Connecticut Indians. The team's first head coach was Jim Krayeske, who guided them to a 2–2–1 record during their debut season in the Freedom Football League. In recognition of his contributions, Krayeske was inducted into the WestConn Hall of Fame in 2013. The team held their inaugural home game on October 25, 1969, at Osborne Street Field, where they faced New Haven.

## Conference affiliations

* NAIA Independent (1970–1976)
* New England Football Conference (1979–1985)
* Division III Independent (1986–1991)
* Freedom Football Conference (1992–2003)
* New Jersey Athletic Conference (2004–2012)
* Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (2013–present)

## Championships
### Conference championships

Western Connecticut claims 4 conference titles, the most recent of which came in 2023.
| Year | Conference | Overall Record | Conference Record | Coach |
| 1985† | New England Football Conference | 10–2 | 8–1 | Paul Pasqualoni |
| 1999 | Freedom Football Conference | 10–1 | 6–0 | John Cervino |
| 2001† | Freedom Football Conference | 8–2 | 5–1 | Bob Surace |
| 2023† | Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference | 10–2 | 8–1 | Joe Loth |
† Co-champions

## Postseason games
### NCAA Division III playoff games

The Wolves have made four appearances in the NCAA Division III playoffs, with a combined record of 1–4.
| Year | Round | Opponent | Result |
| 1985 | First Round | Montclair State | L, 0–28 |
| 1999 | Second Round | Montclair State | L, 24–32 |
| 2001 | First Round Second Round | Westfield State Rowan | W, 8–7 L, 14–43 |
| 2023 | First Round | Johns Hopkins | L, 20–62 |

### Bowl games

Western Connecticut has participated in nine bowl games, and has a record of 2–2.
| Season | Coach | Bowl | Opponent | Result |
| 2000 | Bob Surace | ECAC Bowl | Nichols | W 63–10 |
| 2013 | Joe Loth | ECAC Bowl | Salve Regina | W 48–35 |
| 2014 | Joe Loth | ECAC Bowl | St. John Fisher | L 14–28 |
| 2019 | Joe Loth | New England Bowl | WPI | L 6–35 |

## List of head coaches
### Key

Key to symbols in coaches list :
| General | General | Overall | Overall | Conference | Conference | Postseason | Postseason |
| No. | Order of coaches | GC | Games coached | CW | Conference wins | PW | Postseason wins |
| DC | Division championships | OW | Overall wins | CL | Conference losses | PL | Postseason losses |
| CC | Conference championships | OL | Overall losses | CT | Conference ties | PT | Postseason ties |
| NC | National championships | OT | Overall ties | C% | Conference winning percentage | | |
| † | Elected to the College Football Hall of Fame | O% | Overall winning percentage | | | | |

### Coaches

List of head football coaches showing season(s) coached, overall records, conference records, postseason records, championships and selected awards :
| No. | Name | Season(s) | GC | OW | OL | OT | O% | CW | CL | CT | C% | PW | PL | PT | DC | CC | NC | Awards |
| 1 | Jim Krayeske | 1969 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0.500 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 2 | Nick Cutulle | 1970–1971 | 8 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 0.125 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 1 | – | – |
| 3 | Dave Rice | 1972–1974 | 26 | 9 | 17 | 0 | 0.346 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 4 | Bill Sferro | 1975–1976 | 16 | 6 | 10 | 0 | 0.375 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 5 | Carl Paight | 1977–1979 | 26 | 3 | 23 | 0 | 0.115 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 0.111 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 6 | Steve Golden | 1980–1981 | 18 | 1 | 16 | 1 | 0.083 | 1 | 15 | 1 | 0.088 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 7 | Paul Pasqualoni | 1982–1986 | 51 | 34 | 17 | 0 | 0.667 | 24 | 12 | 0 | 0.667 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | 1 | – | – |
| 8 | Chris Rippon | 1987–1989 | 30 | 6 | 23 | 1 | 0.217 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 9 | Ken Brasington | 1990–1991 | 20 | 4 | 16 | 0 | 0.200 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 10 | John Cervino | 1992–1999 | 81 | 39 | 41 | 1 | 0.488 | 22 | 26 | 0 | 0.458 | 1 | 1 | 0 | – | – | – | – |
| 11 | Bob Surace | 2000–2001 | 21 | 18 | 3 | 0 | 0.857 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 0.833 | 2 | 1 | 0 | – | 1 | – | – |
| 12 | John Burrell | 2002–2011 | 100 | 37 | 63 | 0 | 0.370 | 20 | 54 | 0 | 0.270 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 13 | Joe Loth | 2012–present | 101 | 61 | 40 | 0 | 0.604 | 48 | 32 | 0 | 0.600 | 1 | 2 | 0 | – | – | – | – |

## Year-by-year results

| National champions | Conference champions | Bowl game berth | Playoff berth |
| Season | Year | Head Coach | Association | Division | Conference | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Postseason | Final ranking |
| Season | Year | Head Coach | Association | Division | Conference | Overall | Overall | Overall | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | | | Postseason | Final ranking |
| Season | Year | Head Coach | Association | Division | Conference | Win | Loss | Tie | Finish | Win | Loss | Tie | Postseason | Final ranking |
| Western Connecticut Indians |||||||||||||||
| 1969 | 1969 | Jim Krayeske | — | — | FFL | 2 | 2 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Western Connecticut Colonials |||||||||||||||
| 1970 | 1970 | Nick Cutulle | NAIA | Division I | Independent | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1971 | 1971 | Nick Cutulle | NAIA | Division I | Independent | 1 | 5 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1972 | 1972 | Dave Rice | NAIA | Division I | Independent | 1 | 7 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1973 | 1973 | Dave Rice | NAIA | Division I | Independent | 4 | 5 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1974 | 1974 | Dave Rice | NAIA | Division I | Independent | 4 | 5 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1975 | 1975 | Bill Sferro | NAIA | Division I | Independent | 2 | 6 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1976 | 1976 | Bill Sferro | NAIA | Division I | Independent | 4 | 4 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1977 | 1977 | Carl Paight | NCAA | Division III | — | 2 | 7 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1978 | 1978 | Carl Paight | NCAA | Division III | — | 0 | 8 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1979 | 1979 | Carl Paight | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 1 | 8 | 0 | 10th | 1 | 8 | 0 | — | — |
| 1980 | 1980 | Steve Golden | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 0 | 8 | 1 | 10th | 0 | 8 | 1 | — | — |
| 1981 | 1981 | Steve Golden | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 1 | 8 | 0 | 9th | 1 | 7 | 0 | — | — |
| 1982 | 1982 | Paul Pasqualoni | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 2 | 7 | 0 | T–8th | 2 | 7 | 0 | — | — |
| 1983 | 1983 | Paul Pasqualoni | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 7 | 3 | 0 | 4th | 6 | 3 | 0 | — | — |
| 1984 | 1984 | Paul Pasqualoni | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 9 | 1 | 0 | 2nd | 8 | 1 | 0 | — | — |
| 1985 | 1985 | Paul Pasqualoni | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 10 | 2 | 0 | T–1st | 8 | 1 | 0 | L NCAA Division III First Round | — |
| 1986 | 1986 | Paul Pasqualoni | NCAA | Division III | Independent | 6 | 4 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1987 | 1987 | Chris Rippon | NCAA | Division III | Independent | 1 | 8 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1988 | 1988 | Chris Rippon | NCAA | Division III | Independent | 3 | 7 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1989 | 1989 | Chris Rippon | NCAA | Division III | Independent | 2 | 8 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1990 | 1990 | Ken Brasington | NCAA | Division III | Independent | 3 | 7 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1991 | 1991 | Ken Brasington | NCAA | Division III | Independent | 1 | 9 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1992 | 1992 | John Cervino | NCAA | Division III | FFC | 2 | 8 | 0 | T–6th | 2 | 4 | 0 | — | — |
| 1993 | 1993 | John Cervino | NCAA | Division III | FFC | 4 | 6 | 0 | 7th | 2 | 4 | 0 | — | — |
| 1994 | 1994 | John Cervino | NCAA | Division III | FFC | 1 | 9 | 0 | 7th | 1 | 5 | 0 | — | — |
| 1995 | 1995 | John Cervino | NCAA | Division III | FFC | 7 | 2 | 1 | 2nd | 4 | 2 | 0 | — | — |
| 1996 | 1996 | John Cervino | NCAA | Division III | FFC | 6 | 4 | 0 | T–4th | 3 | 3 | 0 | — | — |
| 1997 | 1997 | John Cervino | NCAA | Division III | FFC | 4 | 6 | 0 | T–6th | 1 | 5 | 0 | — | — |
| 1998 | 1998 | John Cervino | NCAA | Division III | FFC | 5 | 5 | 0 | T–4th | 3 | 3 | 0 | — | — |
| 1999 | 1999 | John Cervino | NCAA | Division III | FFC | 10 | 1 | 0 | 1st | 6 | 0 | 0 | L NCAA Division III Second Round | 14 |
| 2000 | 2000 | Bob Surace | NCAA | Division III | FFC | 10 | 1 | 0 | 2nd | 5 | 1 | 0 | W ECAC Northeast Bowl | 20 |
| 2001 | 2001 | Bob Surace | NCAA | Division III | FFC | 8 | 2 | 0 | T–1st | 5 | 1 | 0 | L NCAA Division III Second Round | — |
| 2002 | 2002 | John Burrell | NCAA | Division III | FFC | 7 | 3 | 0 | 3rd | 4 | 2 | 0 | — | — |
| 2003 | 2003 | John Burrell | NCAA | Division III | FFC | 6 | 4 | 0 | T–3rd | 3 | 3 | 0 | — | — |
| 2004 | 2004 | John Burrell | NCAA | Division III | NJAC | 5 | 5 | 0 | T–4th | 2 | 4 | 0 | — | — |
| 2005 | 2005 | John Burrell | NCAA | Division III | NJAC | 6 | 4 | 0 | 4th | 3 | 3 | 0 | — | — |
| 2006 | 2006 | John Burrell | NCAA | Division III | NJAC | 5 | 5 | 0 | T–5th | 2 | 5 | 0 | — | — |
| 2007 | 2007 | John Burrell | NCAA | Division III | NJAC | 4 | 6 | 0 | T–6th | 2 | 5 | 0 | — | — |
| 2008 | 2008 | John Burrell | NCAA | Division III | NJAC | 2 | 8 | 0 | 8th | 2 | 7 | 0 | — | — |
| 2009 | 2009 | John Burrell | NCAA | Division III | NJAC | 2 | 8 | 0 | T–8th | 2 | 7 | 0 | — | — |
| 2010 | 2010 | John Burrell | NCAA | Division III | NJAC | 0 | 10 | 0 | 10th | 0 | 9 | 0 | — | — |
| 2011 | 2011 | John Burrell | NCAA | Division III | NJAC | 0 | 10 | 0 | 10th | 0 | 9 | 0 | — | — |
| 2012 | 2012 | Joe Loth | NCAA | Division III | NJAC | 1 | 8 | 0 | T–8th | 1 | 7 | 0 | — | — |
| 2013 | 2013 | Joe Loth | NCAA | Division III | MASCAC | 8 | 2 | 0 | 2nd | 6 | 2 | 0 | W ECAC Northeast Bowl | — |
| 2014 | 2014 | Joe Loth | NCAA | Division III | MASCAC | 7 | 4 | 0 | 2nd | 6 | 2 | 0 | L ECAC Northeast Bowl | — |
| 2015 | 2015 | Joe Loth | NCAA | Division III | MASCAC | 5 | 5 | 0 | T–4th | 4 | 4 | 0 | — | — |
| 2016 | 2016 | Joe Loth | NCAA | Division III | MASCAC | 5 | 5 | 0 | T–3rd | 4 | 4 | 0 | — | — |
| 2017 | 2017 | Joe Loth | NCAA | Division III | MASCAC | 7 | 3 | 0 | T–3rd | 5 | 3 | 0 | — | — |
| 2018 | 2018 | Joe Loth | NCAA | Division III | MASCAC | 8 | 2 | 0 | T–2nd | 6 | 2 | 0 | — | — |
| 2019 | 2019 | Joe Loth | NCAA | Division III | MASCAC | 8 | 3 | 0 | T–2nd | 6 | 2 | 0 | L New England Bowl | — |
| Season canceled due to Covid-19 |||||||||||||||
| 2021 | 2021 | Joe Loth | NCAA | Division III | MASCAC | 5 | 5 | 0 | 5th | 4 | 4 | 0 | — | — |
| Western Connecticut Wolves |||||||||||||||
| 2022 | 2022 | Joe Loth | NCAA | Division III | MASCAC | 7 | 3 | 0 | T–2nd | 6 | 2 | 0 | — | — |
| 2023 | 2023 | Joe Loth | NCAA | Division III | MASCAC | | | | | | | | | |