UW-Stevens Point athletic director Brad Duckworth announced July 2 that Greg Breitbach has been named head football coach. Breitbach returns to UWSP, where he was an assistant coach from 2003 to 2006.
"I am thrilled to bring Greg back to UWSP as our next head football coach," said Duckworth. "His experience as a head coach and familiarity with Pointers football makes him a great fit to lead the program moving forward. He has been here during a successful time and we look forward to his hard work to return UWSP football to that success."
Breitbach replaces Tom Journell, who left UW-Stevens Point in April to take the head coaching position at Carleton. The Pointers were 6-4 last season, and 29-31 over Journell's six-year stint as head coach.
The other three finalists were Kelly Bills, quarterback coach at at Weber State; Brandon Novak, co-defensive coordinator at St. John's; and Lock Haven head coach David Taynor.
Breitbach comes to UWSP after spending the last five seasons as head coach at Millersville, a Division II program in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference. In 2017, he led the Marauders to the highest win total in 10 years, then stepped down after the season to take another role on campus. His offense generated the most points per game in 11 years. Upon arrival at MU, he produced the first 1,000-yard rusher in seven seasons.
"My family and I are grateful and honored to be invited back to Stevens Point," stated Breitbach. "We are excited to be part of UWSP and the Pointer football family again. Once you're a Pointer, you're always a Pointer. UWSP football has a deep tradition of excellence in the WIAC. Our Pointers will build on that foundation and connect our past tradition with future success. We'll go to work each day and prepare the right way. We'll be invested in the program and each other. We'll give great effort, play with toughness, and be relentless in our pursuit of excellence. I look forward to leading this program and serving as UWSP's head football coach."
Prior to heading to Pennsylvania, Breitbach spent five seasons as the offensive coordinator at North Dakota and seven total years as a member of the UND staff. In 2012, his offense set the Big Sky Conference record with 660 yards of passing offense in a game against Montana. He led the UND offense to school records in single game total offense (770 yard vs. Montana), touchdown passes in a season (30) and single season passing offense (3,268 yards). In 2011, he helped North Dakota to its first DI conference championship.
He spent three seasons here at UWSP as offensive coordinator for John Miech. During his time in Stevens Point, the Pointers went 18-12 and reached a No. 12 national ranking in 2003. His offense averaged 415 yards and 30 points per game in his three seasons at UWSP. He coached seven first-team All-WIAC offensive players and two D3football.com All-Americans.
Breitbach also spent coaching stints at Lewis & Clark; his alma mater, Montana Western; and Wolf Point High School in Montana.
On the field, Breitbach was a quarterback for Montana Western in 1991 and 1992, captaining the team in 1992. He also played quarterback for two seasons at Dickinson State, leading DSU to back-to-back NDCAC conference championships.
A 1994 graduate of Montana Western, Breitbach also owns a master's degree from Portland State. Breitbach and his wife, Kara, have three children, Alaina, Jenna and Trent.