Frank Discussions with Kalen DeBoer

Dean Frank Hodge was joined by Husky Football coach Kalen DeBoer for the latest installment of his series Frank Discussions, in which Hodge sits down with leaders from all walks of life for in-depth conversations. In this episode, held on the Microsoft campus on July 12, 2023, Hodge and DeBoer discuss team culture, preparing for game day, the importance of communication and the impact of emerging technologies.

Kalen DeBoer

Head Football Coach

Success has come consistently and quickly at every stop in the career of Washington football coach Kalen DeBoer. On Nov. 29, 2021, DeBoer took his next step, when he was named the 30th head football coach in UW history. His first season was an undisputed success.

DeBoer, 48, came to Montlake from Fresno State, where during the 2021 season, he led the Bulldogs to a 9-3 regular-season record in his second year in charge.

In his first year at UW, he led the Huskies to a, 11-2 overall record, including a 3-0 mark against ranked teams, and a win over Texas in the Valero Alamo Bowl. His Huskies swept its three Northwest rivals, finished in a tie for second in the Pac-12, and he was named Pac-12 Co-Coach of the Year. He was also the Associated Press Pac-12 Coach of the Year and, at the 88th annual Seattle Sports Star of the Year Awards in Feb., 2023, earned the inaugural Seattle Sports Leader of the Year Award.

Not only were 11 wins in 2022 three more than any first-year head coach in UW history had ever compiled, DeBoer was the first UW football coach ever to win a bowl game in his first season.

Over his eight seasons as a head football coach (through 2022), DeBoer has compiled a 90-11 (.882) record. During his 26 years in coaching, he has consistently prospered at multiple levels and in different roles, helping to build and revitalize programs while establishing a diverse network of contacts, in both coaching and recruiting, across the country.

A South Dakota native, DeBoer received his B.A.from University of Sioux Falls, during which time he was 4-year letterman wide receiver (1993-96) and earned All-America in 1996. DeBoer and his wife have two children.