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| Joe Loth has compiled a career collegiate coaching record of 133-109, entirely in Division III. WestConn athletics photo |
Western Connecticut State athletic director Lori Mazza has announced the resignation of Joe Loth from the position of head football coach. Loth, who guided the Wolves to a Massachusetts State College Athletic Conference (MASCAC) title and the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament in 2023 and the ECAC Asa S. Bushnell Bowl crown last fall, is stepping down to become head coach at Division II Southern Connecticut.
"Leaving WestConn is one of the hardest career moves I have ever had to make," said Loth. "I can't put into words how much I have enjoyed my time here. I want to thank all of the players I have had the fortune to coach, but also everyone across campus. I know the program will be in great hands."
WestConn, which plays its first season as a football affiliate member in the Landmark Conference in 2025, will announce a plan for the future leadership of its football program in the coming weeks. Kevin Jones, the team's defensive coordinator and a 35-year veteran coach at all levels, will be the primary contact until the transition plan is put in place in the next several days.
"We would like to thank Joe Loth for all he gave to WestConn football over the last 13 years," said Mazza. "We are proud of all the exciting moments and impressive accolades that his teams have given the university, including incredible success the last two seasons. Coach Loth has left WestConn football well-prepared to take on new challenges in the Landmark Conference next fall. We wish him the best of luck in his future endeavors."
Loth was hired in 2012, inheriting a program that finished the previous season on a 21-game losing streak. Since his initial season, Loth did not have another losing season and in 2018 became the program's all-time winningest head coach.
Loth arrived at WestConn as head coach in 2012 and by 2018 has become the all-time winningest coach in program history. His Wolves compiled a 72-40 record (.643) and were .500 or better in each of the last 12 seasons. WestConn played in four bowl games, winning the ECAC titles in 2013 and 2024, and went 7-1 in the MASCAC in 2023 to capture the conference championship for the first time.
Loth was named the 2023 MASCAC Coach of the Year, as the Wolves represented the league in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2001. That squad averaged over 43 ppg in regular season play and scored 20 points in the first half against No. 7-ranked Johns Hopkins in the NCAA Tournament. Last fall, WestConn went 9-2, its highest win total since 2000, and won the ECAC Bushnell Bowl in dominant fashion, 45-14, over Alfred.
"We wish Coach Loth nothing but success wherever life takes him," said Western Connecticut interim president Manohar Singh. "Coach Loth's teams always represented the university well and the success of the Wolves under his watch was a great chapter in the long and storied history of WestConn athletic success."