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Coach's Corner
Head Coach After leading UW-Oshkosh to its best conference finish in 31 years, Pat Cerroni returns for his second season as head coach of the Titans in 2008. Cerroni guided UW-Oshkosh to a 7-3 record in 2007, including a third-place 4-3 mark in the WIAC standings. The last time the Titans finished that high in the conference rankings was 1976. The seven-win total was just the sixth in the 113-year history of the school’s football program. Cerroni has directed UW-Oshkosh’s defense since 2000, with his units ranking second in the WIAC in total defense in each of the past five seasons. Last year, the Titans ranked 17th in the NCAA Division III in scoring defense (15.0) and 52nd in total defense (297.5). UW-Oshkosh led the WIAC in pass defense, red zone defense and third down defense a year ago. Cerroni earned the title of head coach last December after serving in an interim role in 2007. Before being named UW-Oshkosh’s 23rd head coach, Cerroni’s defensive coordinator position included the supervision and guidance of all recruiting and football summer camp activities. "We have earned respect within the conference the past eight seasons," Cerroni said. "Now, we have the opportunity to build on that respect and take the program to the next level of contending for a conference championship." Cerroni, 42, came to UW-Oshkosh in 2000 after three seasons as the head football coach at Menomonee Falls High School. In 1997, Cerroni guided the Indians to a 7-4 record and an upset of defending state champion Arrowhead High School in the first round of the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association (WIAA) Division 1 Playoffs. Prior to his head coaching stint at Menomonee Falls High School, Cerroni was as an assistant football coach at Arrowhead and Waukesha Catholic Memorial high schools. During his four seasons at Waukesha Catholic Memorial High School, Cerroni helped the Crusaders to Wisconsin Independent Schools Athletic Association (WISAA) Division 1 state titles in 1993 and 1996. Cerroni is a 1992 graduate of Carroll College (Wis.), where he was a member of the school’s 1988 football team that shared the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) title with Augustana College (Ill.). The Johnson Creek native earned his master’s degree from UW-Oshkosh in 2004. Cerroni and his wife, Tammy, are the parents of two children, daughter, Kali, and son, Kyle. Assistant Coach • Wide Receivers John Dinse is in his seventh season as a member of the UW-Oshkosh coaching staff, including his second as a full-time assistant. This fall, he coaches the wide receivers after serving as a defensive assistant the past five years. Since arriving on the UW-Oshkosh campus in 2002, Dinse has coordinated the Titans’ recruiting efforts. His list of successful recruits includes over 20 Wisconsin Football Coaches’ Association (WFCA) All-Star Game performers. Prior to his tenure at UW-Oshkosh, Dinse served as an assistant football coach at his alma mater Oakfield High School for two years. In 2006, Dinse worked a six-week internship in the scouting department for the National Football League’s Buffalo Bills. Dinse graduated from UW-Oshkosh with a bachelor’s degree in journalism in 2005. He is currently working towards his master’s degree in Educational Leadership at UW-Oshkosh. Dinse, who lives in Oshkosh with his wife, Paula, also directs the marketing and promotional efforts for the UW-Oshkosh athletics department. He is a member of the UW-Oshkosh Alumni Association Board of Directors and an active participant in the WFCA and the American Football Coaches Association. Assistant Coach • Offensive Coordinator Craig Smith begins his first season with the UW-Oshkosh coaching staff after being named the Titans’ offensive coordinator last spring. Smith comes to UW-Oshkosh from Quincy University (Ill.), where he served two successful seasons as the Hawks’ offensive coordinator in 2006 and 2007. Smith helped coach Quincy University to a pair of 6-5 records, with the 2006 outcome resulting in the school’s first winning season since 1994. Last fall, Smith directed an offensive attack that averaged 374.6 yards per game to rank 18th in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics. Previously, Smith was the passing game coordinator at UW-Platteville for the 2004 and 2005 seasons and the head football coach at Southwestern High School for the 2002 and 2003 campaigns. In 2002, Smith led Southwestern High School to the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association Division 5 Playoffs. He also was an assistant coach at Southwestern High School in 2001. Smith attended UW-Platteville, where earned a bachelor’s degree in public relations in 2002 and a master’s degree in secondary and adult education in 2004. The Clinton (Iowa) High School graduate was a two-time letter winner in football for the Pioneers in 1999 and 2000. Smith resides in Oshkosh, where he also works as an advisor in UW-Oshkosh’s Department of Career Services. Assistant Coach • Linebackers After spending the last two seasons as a part-time assistant coach, Craig Stenbroten continues his association with UW-Oshkosh by instructing the linebackers in a full-time capacity this fall. Prior to this season, Stenbroten worked with a UW-Oshkosh defensive unit that ranked among the finest in the country. In 2007, UW-Oshkosh ranked 17th in the NCAA Division III in scoring defense and 52nd in total defense. Last year’s squad also led the WIAC in pass defense, red zone defense and third down defense. Stenbroten graduated with a bachelor’s degree in history from UW-Oshkosh in 2006. He was a three-time football letter winner at linebacker for the Titans from 2002-05. In 2005, Stenbroten totaled 11 tackles to help UW-Oshkosh to a 7-3 record and a third-place finish in the WIAC standings. Along with coaching the linebackers, Stenbroten helps head coach Pat Cerroni with the weekly defensive game plan. Stenbroten will also help direct the activities in the new Russ Young Football Complex. The Monticello High School graduate lives in Oshkosh. Stenbroten’s brother, Eric, played football for the Titans from 2004-07. Assistant Coach • Offensive Line Mentoring UW-Oshkosh’s offensive line and serving as the Titans’ run game coordinator is Luke Venne. Venne is in his seventh season as an assistant coach at UW-Oshkosh, including his third in a full-time capacity. Last season, Venne tutored an offensive line that helped UW-Oshkosh rank 38th in the NCAA Division III in rushing offense, 58th in total offense and 79th in scoring. In 2006, UW-Oshkosh ranked 30th in the NCAA Division III in rushing offense, 50th in total offense and 74th in scoring. Venne was a four-time football letter winner at UW-Oshkosh, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in history in 2004. He appeared in 35 football games for UW-Oshkosh from 1998-2001, including 27 as one of the Titans’ starting offensive tackles. In addition to his coaching duties, Venne assists with all aspects of the football team’s strength and conditioning program. He also helps the management staff at all home UW-Oshkosh sporting events. Venne, a graduate of Oconomowoc High School, lives in Oshkosh with his wife, Brooke, and daughter, Allicyn. Assistant Coaches • Defensive Backs Assistant Coaches • Tight Ends Assistant Coaches • Linebackers Assistant Coaches • Defensive Line Assistant Coaches • Running Backs Assistant Coach • Offensive Line Video Staff Equipment Staff Strength & Conditioning Staff
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