Head Coach Joe Fincham bio

Defensive Coordinator/Linebackers
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Kelly Cummings joined the Tigers' coaching staff in 2000 and has led the unit to the top spot statistically in the North Coast Athletic Conference in each of three of his five years at Wittenberg.

Cummings began his collegiate career at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M, before transferring to Eastern Kentucky University, from which he received a bachelor's degree in history in 1993. He followed his collegiate career with a free-agent tryout for the NFL.

Cummings coached four seasons at Denison before arriving in Springfield, serving as linebacker coach for one year before being named defensive coordinator prior to the 1997 season. Before working with the Big Red, Cummings was an assistant coach at Madison Central High School in Richmond, Ky.

Cummings and his wife, Kate, who is the head women's basketball coach at Ohio Dominican University, reside in Hilliard, Ohio, with their daughters, Allyson and Bailey.

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Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks
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Al Logan became Wittenberg's offensive coordinator in 2004.

Logan was a four-year letterwinner for Muskingum College in football as an offensive lineman and in wrestling, and he was team captain in both sports. As a wrestler, Logan won more than 100 matches in his career and won the Ohio Athletic Conference championship in 1981 and 1982. He was selected Outstanding Wrestler of the 1982 OAC championship meet and was a two-time All-America in the sport. He graduated from Muskingum in 1982.

Logan started his coaching career at Miami University in 1982 as an assistant wrestling coach. After earning a master's in physical education from Miami, he served as defensive backs coach and assistant track and field coach at John Carroll University in 1983-84.

From 1984-98, Logan held numerous jobs at The University of South, serving as head coach of the football, wrestling and track and field teams at various times. While there, Logan coached seven NCAA track and field qualifiers, three of whom went on to earn All-America honors, and 76 all-conference athletes. He was named Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Football Coach of the Year in 1991 and 1992, and he was defensive coordinator for teams that won conference titles in 1990 and 1992 while ranking in the top 10 nationally in total defense.

In 1998, he moved to Davidson University. In 1998, Logan implemented the spread option offense that helped Davidson to a school-record five straight winning seasons (1998-2002). He was offensive coordinator for two seasons and recruiting coordinator from 2000-03.

Logan and his wife, Patti, have two sons, Nick and Cam. They reside in Springfield.

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Defensive Backs/Recruiting Coordinator
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Scott Benzel joined the Tiger coaching staff in 2004 after two seasons as a graduate assistant coach at Robert Morris University.

Benzel, who also works as an assistant track and field coach at Wittenberg, coached defensive backs at Robert Morris in the 2002 and 2003 seasons, and he was involved in recruiting, game planning, scouting opponents and coordinating academic programs. In 2002, Robert Morris ranked first in the nation in NCAA Division I-AA in pass defense and seventh overall in total defense.

As a player, Benzel was a two-year starter at Mercyhurst College and was named Defensive MVP in 1996 as a senior. He earned a bachelor's degree from Mercyhurst and a master's from Robert Morris.

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Receivers

Mark Ewald, who will coach the receivers, joined the Tiger coaching staff in 1996, and he has become a key contributor to one of the top offensive units every year in Division III.

Ewald is in his 24th year as a football coach. Before joining the Wittenberg staff, he was an assistant coach at nearby Trotwood-Madison High School after three years as head coach at Carroll High School in Dayton. He also coached at Chaminade-Julienne High School for several years. Ewald resides in Kettering, Ohio with his wife, Diane, and three children, Nicholas, Jacklyn, and Luke David.

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Running Backs

Rob Linkhart joined the Tiger football coaching staff in 2001 coaching the defensive backs, and he moved to running backs in 2003. A 1999 Wittenberg graduate with a degree in biology, Linkhart was a three-year letterwinner at defensive back and played on three NCAC championship teams. A native of Springfield, Linkhart resides in his hometown, and he works as a teacher at Northeastern High School.

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Defensive Line

Former Wittenberg offensive lineman Aaron Shaffer joined the Tiger football coaching staff in 1999 after a stellar playing career. He coached the offensive line for three years before moving over to the defensive line in 2002.

During his playing days, Shaffer, a native of Greenville, Ohio, was a two-time first-team All-NCAC pick and was honored as a first-team All-American by Hewlett Packard and a second-team All-American by Football Gazette following his senior season. In addition, he served as team captain for the 1998 team that won an NCAC championship.

Shaffer resides in Springfield with his wife, Jessica, who is also a Wittenberg graduate, and their son, A.J. He is a seventh grade teacher at Roosevelt Middle School. In addition to working with the Wittenberg football program, Shaffer coaches reserve baseball at South High School in Springfield.

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Offensive Line

Matt Leisure joined the Tiger football coaching staff in 2002 after a stellar playing career in the Red & White. A 2002 Wittenberg graduate, Leisure was named Offensive Most Improved Player in 1999 and went on to become a three-time All-NCAC selection while playing for four NCAC championship teams. In addition, Leisure was named second-team All-America by Hewlett Packard and second-team All-North Region by Football Gazette in 2001. He resides in Springfield and works as a teacher in the Tecumseh Local School District in nearby New Carlisle.

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Tight Ends

Former Tiger gridiron standout Chris Schmidt returned to the Tiger football coaching staff in 2003, taking over the tight end position. Schmidt, a 2000 graduate of Wittenberg, also coached that position in 2001 before leaving for a coaching position at Bellefontaine High School for two years. He remains a resident of Springfield and a middle school teacher in the Bellefontaine School District.

Schmidt earned three letters during his playing days in the Red & White, and he enjoyed a breakout senior season in 1999. He started every game and caught three passes for 68 yards, good for a whopping 22.7 yards per catch.

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Kickers/Punters

Former all-conference punter Matt Gallatin returns to his alma mater in 2004 to take over coaching responsibilities for the punters and kickers. It is his first collegiate coaching assignment after coaching basketball and football at the middle school level the last three years in Sandusky, Ohio.

Gallatin, a 2001 Wittenberg graduate, was a four-year letterwinner and three-year starter for the Tigers, and he played on teams that won four consecutive North Coast Athletic Conference titles, the first class in school history to accomplish that feat. He led the conference in 2000 with a 37.6 yards per punt average.

Gallatin resides in Springfield and is employed by the Springfield City School District as a teacher.


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