December 6, 2004
Release courtesy of Mark Adkins, Wartburg College sports information director

WAVERLY, IOWA . . . Wartburg College head football coach Rick Willis will add the duties of interim athletics director to his responsibilities beginning Jan. 1. He has served as assistant athletics director for the past several years.

Wartburg President Dr. Jack R. Ohle announced the appointment Monday.

"Coach Willis has taken Wartburg's football program to a new level of achievement over the past eight seasons," Ohle said. "He will continue to build on that success while utilizing his administrative skills in the interim athletics director position."

Willis assumes the position formerly held by Gary Grace, who moved into a new role last June as Wartburg’s vice president for administration. He had continued to serve as athletics director since that time.

Willis took over the Wartburg football program in 1997. His teams have won or shared the Iowa Conference title and advanced to the NCAA Division III playoffs in 1999, 2002, 2003 and 2004.

Ohle said, "Naming coach Willis as interim athletics director will give Mr. Grace the time necessary to concentrate on his new role as vice president and provide time for the college to determine how best to approach a permanent replacement for him in athletics."

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