Tim Lester (quarterback)
| Sport(s) | American football |
|---|---|
| Current position | |
| Title | Quarterbacks coach |
| Team | Purdue |
| Conference | Big Ten |
| Annual salary | $200,000[1] |
| Biographical details | |
| Born |
February 8, 1977 Wheaton, Illinois |
| Alma mater | Western Michigan University |
| Playing career | |
| 1996–1999 | Western Michigan |
| 2001 | Chicago Enforcers |
| Position(s) | Quarterback |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 2000 | Wheaton Warrenville South (IL) HS (OC) |
| 2001 | St. Benedict HS (OC) |
| 2002–2003 | Elmhurst (OC) |
| 2004 | Saint Joseph's |
| 2005–2006 | Western Michigan (QB) |
| 2007 | North Central (AHC/DC) |
| 2008–2012 | Elmhurst |
| 2013–2014 | Syracuse (QB/RC) |
| 2014–2015 | Syracuse (OC/QB) |
| 2016–present | Purdue (QB) |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 40–23 |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Awards | |
|
IFA Coach of the Year (2004) CCIW Coach of the Year (2012) | |
Tim Lester (born February 8, 1977) is an American football coach and former quarterback. He played professionally for the Chicago Enforcers of the XFL and played college football at Western Michigan. Lester is currently the quarterbacks coach for the Purdue Boilermakers football team.[2] He served as the head football coach at Saint Joseph's College in Rensselaer, Indiana in 2004 and at Elmhurst College from 2008 to 2012.[3]
Early life
Lester attended Wheaton Warrenville South High School in Wheaton, Illinois.[4] As a senior, Lester threw for 1,732 yards and 17 TDs with only two interceptions before succumbing to a knee injury in the playoffs. He was subsequently named second-team all-state by the Chicago Tribune.[5] In two years as a starting quarterback, he completed 60 percent of his passes for 3,632 yards and 38 TDs with just six interceptions.
College career
Lester threw for 11,299 passing yards with 87 touchdowns during his career, setting 17 school records under head coach Gary Darnell and offensive coordinator Bill Cubit. Lester finished his career ranked fourth all time in NCAA Division 1 for passing yards and sixth in touchdowns.
Following his senior season, Lester participated in the 1999 Blue-Gray Classic.[6]
In 2011, Lester was named to the Western Michigan University Athletic Hall of Fame.[7]
Professional career
Although Lester was scouted by several professional teams in college, he went undrafted in the 2000 NFL Draft.
Lester was drafted by the Chicago Enforcers in the sixth round of the 2001 XFL Draft. He played in four games, completing 40 of 76 passes for 554 yards with four touchdowns and five interceptions. After the season the league folded. Lester also spent time in the Arena Football League in 2001 with the Nashville Kats and Carolina Cobras; and the Arena Football League 2 in 2002 with the Memphis Xplorers.
Coaching career
Immediately following his playing career at WMU, Lester returned to his alma mater Wheaton Warrenville South HS as a math teacher. He also served as offensive coordinator for the varsity football team for one season.
Lester spent one season as the head coach of Division II Saint Joseph's College in 2004. Following the season he was named the 2004 Independent Football Alliance (IFA) Coach of the Year.
Lester returned to WMU to serve as quarterbacks coach from 2005 to 2006. The move reunited him with new Broncos head coach Bill Cubit. The two had previous success with Lester as quarterback and Cubit as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach from 1997 to 1999. Lester was instrumental in recruiting quarterback Tim Hiller, a All-MAC performer that surpassed several of Lester's previous school passing records. Lester voluntarily left his position following the 2006 season in order to find employment closer to his family in the Chicago area.[3] He found that at Division III North Central College, where he served as defensive coordinator for the 2007 season.
In 2008 Lester was named the head coach of the Division III Elmhurst College Bluejays. In 2012 Lester was named the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) Coach of the Year after leading the Bluejays to their first NCAA Playoff appearance in school history. The conference championship was the first for the football program since 1980. The 2012 Bluejays featured running back Scottie Williams, the Gagliardi Trophy award winner as the most outstanding player in NCAA Division III.
In 2013 Lester resigned from Elmhurst to accept an offer to be the quarterbacks coach and recruiting coordinator at Syracuse. The move reunited him with Orange head coach Scott Shafer and offensive coordinator George McDonald, all of whom had previously served on the same Western Michigan staff from 2005 to 2006. On October 6, 2014, McDonald was demoted from offensive coordinator to wide receivers coach by Shafer. Lester was promoted from quarterbacks coach to offensive coordinator and play caller.[8]
On December 28, 2015, Purdue hired Lester to become their quarterbacks coach.[9]
Head coaching record
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saint Joseph's Pumas (NCAA Division II independent) (2004) | |||||||||
| 2004 | Saint Joseph's | 7–4 | |||||||
| Saint Joseph's: | 7–4[10] | ||||||||
| Elmhurst Bluejays (College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin) (2008–2012) | |||||||||
| 2008 | Elmhurst | 7–3 | 4–3 | 4th | |||||
| 2009 | Elmhurst | 4–6 | 1–6 | 7th | |||||
| 2010 | Elmhurst | 6–4 | 3–4 | T–5th | |||||
| 2011 | Elmhurst | 6–4 | 4–3 | 4th | |||||
| 2012 | Elmhurst | 10–2 | 6–1 | T–1st | L NCAA Division III Quarterfinal | ||||
| Elmhurst: | 33–19[11] | 18–17 | |||||||
| Total: | 40–23 | ||||||||
| National championship Conference title Conference division title | |||||||||
References
- ↑ Nathan Baird (January 6, 2016). "Ohio receiver commits to Purdue". www.jconline.com. West Lafayette Journal & Courier. Retrieved January 8, 2016.
- ↑ Nolan Weidner. "Tim Lester added to Syracuse football staff as quarterbacks coach". syracuse.com. Retrieved September 10, 2013.
- 1 2 Graham, Couch (October 18, 2011). "There's still plenty of WMU in (and on) former Broncos star QB Tim Lester". mlive.com. Retrieved September 10, 2013.
- ↑ http://cuse.com/staff.aspx?staff=361
- ↑ http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1994-11-25/sports/9411250110_1_quarterback-greg-murphy-richards-quincy-woods
- ↑ http://amarillo.com/stories/121799/spo_LS0476.001.shtml
- ↑ Jared E. Smith (January 15, 2013). "Syracuse Football: Tim Lester To Be Named New QB Coach, Per Report". Nunesmagician.com. Retrieved September 10, 2013.
- ↑ http://www.syracuse.com/orangefootball/index.ssf/2014/10/syracuse_footballs_george_mcdonald_wishes_that_he_could_hate_longtime_friend_rep.html
- ↑ Chris Carlson (December 28, 2015). "Former Syracuse offensive coordinator Tim Lester lands at Purdue as QB coach". www.syracuse.com. Syracuse Media Group. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
- ↑ "Saint Joseph's College Football Guide" (PDF). Saint Joseph's College. Retrieved September 10, 2013.
- ↑ "Elmhurst College Football All-Time Coaching Records" (PDF). Elmhurst College. Retrieved September 10, 2013.