Hanover College Men's Football

Matt Theobald returns to his alma mater, as he was announced as the head coach of the Hanover College football program prior to the start of the 2016 season. The 2025 campaign will be his 10th at the helm for the Panthers.  In his first season at Hanover, Theobald guided the Panthers to their most wins in the past three seasons, going 4-6. The Panthers also recorded a 4-4 mark in the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference, giving the team its first conference winning percentage of .500 or better since 2013. The Blue and Red finished in a tie for fifth in the HCAC, improving two spots from the team’s projected finish in the coaches’ preseason poll. Following his initial season with the squad, Theobald once again guided HC to a 4-6 overall and 4-4 HCAC mark in 2017. Despite the similar record, the Blue and Red did see improvements in most statistical categories in Year Two, with 10 players receiving recognition from the HCAC. Kyle Treber, who was one of the nation's top tacklers, was tabbed Rookie of the Year, while Treber's defensive companion, Zach Dauer, joined him on the first team.  Theobald carried the success into the 2018 season, guiding the program to a 7-4 record, 7-1 HCAC,l and a share of the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference title. The Blue and Red earned an NCAA Division III Tournament birth for the first time in the past 15 years. The 2019 campaign saw Theobald guide the Panthers to their second consecutive NCAA Division III Tournament birth as they claimed the HCAC title outright. They finished the regular season at 9-2 overall while posting a perfect 7-0 HCAC mark, the best record by any Panther team since the development of the HCAC. He also saw 18 Panthers claim All-HCAC honors including the Offensive Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year accolades. Theobald and his staff also landed the Conference Coach of the Year honor for the second consecutive season.  In 2021, the Panthers made the most of their spring season (Covid-19 forced the fall season to be canceled) as they captured their third consecutive HCAC title posting a perfect 4-0 mark in conference play. The success saw 17 student-athletes claim All-HCAC honors with nine being named First-Team.  Under Theobald the 2021 fall campaign saw the Blue and Red post a 5-5 overall record and a 4-3 record in HCAC play. He landed 15 student-athletes on the HCAC All-Conference list including eight First Team selections. He also saw Kyle Treber win the prestige Bill Griffin Mental Attitude Award presented by the Hanover College Athletic Department.  In 2022, the Panthers posted a 5-2 mark in HCAC action including a 24-3 victory over Franklin to win the 92nd playing of the Victory Bell. Theobald landed 10 All-Conference honorees including four First Team members as well as one All-Region nominee. The 2023 season saw Hanover post a seven win season including victors of the 93rd Victory Bell Game over Franklin. He landed 16 on the All-Conference list and saw Brody Luker named Academic All-District.  The 2024 season came with a program first as Hanover won the inaugural Opendorse Forever Lawn Bowl Championship under the guidance of Theobald. The Panthers posted an 8-3 overall record and a 5-1 mark in HCAC action, including the victory of the 94th Victory Bell Game. Hanover landed 17 honorees on the All-Conference list, including seven First Team honorees.  Before taking over at Hanover, Theobald spent 13 seasons at Franklin. While he was with the Grizzlies, Theobald guided one of the nation’s top-ranked offenses from 2013-2015. He also spent time as the team’s defensive coordinator before his run with the offensive unit. During his tenure at Franklin, he helped produce three HCAC defensive and three HCAC offensive Most Valuable Player award recipients. A 1996 Hanover graduate, Theobald was a four-year letterman with the Panthers’ football squad as a defensive back. He helped the program earn back-to-back Indiana Collegiate Athletic Conference titles in 1994 and 1995. He also started in the secondary for the team’s NCAA Division III playoff debut in 1995. After earning a political science degree, Theobald served on Hanover’s coaching staff as a receivers coach, defensive backs coach, and special teams coordinator from 1996-2000. Theobald left the Panthers to help ignite a successful run at Waynesburg (Pa.) from 2000-2003. He served as the Yellow Jackets’ special teams coordinator, defensive backs coach and recruiting coordinator.

Sam Smith joined the Panther football coaching staff in 2021 working primarily with the offensive line.   Prior to joining the Hanover staff, Smith coached at East Central University where he served as a graduate assistant overseeing primarily the offensive line.   The Hanover alum also spent a short stint at Oak Hills High School in Cincinnati where he coached the o-line and worked as the Run Game Coordinator.     He competed as a four-year member of the Panther football team earning first team All-HCAC accolades.   Smith graduated from Hanover College in 2020 with a bachelor’s degree in communication.  

Andrew Danford joined the Hanover coaching staff in the summer of 2022. Prior to arriving at Hanover, Danford spent the last three seasons at Walsh University, North Canton, OH, as part of the Cavaliers staff. He served as the Defensive Quality Control Coach his first season before being named the Defensive Line Coach and recruiting the Akron/Canton & Cleveland, OH areas. Danford spent a year coaching at Oberlin College, where he was a Defensive Line coach and film coordinator while recruiting in the Midwest area. Before that, he worked at Carroll University for two years, where he was the Defensive Live coach, equipment manager and specialized in recruiting in Wisconsin. He earned his Master's degree in Higher Education while he was a coach with the Pioneers.  Prior to becoming a coach at Carroll, Danford served six years in the United States Army from 2010 through 2016 as an Infantryman. He was deployed twice overseas to Iraq with the 1st Cavalry Division and Afghanistan with the 101st Airborne Division. Danford was an assistant coach with the defensive line for two seasons at his alma mater, Baldwin Wallace University before he enlisted in the Army. He played for four years at BW, earning his Bachelor's degree in Middle Childhood Education with a minor in Coaching. He graduated from Louisville High School, OH where he was a letterwinner in football and track & field.