Hastings College has named Matt Rahn ’05, head coach of the College of DuPage football team, its Outstanding Alumni Coach award recipient for 2024.
Rahn will receive his award in conjunction with the Athletic Hall of Fame induction during Hastings College Homecoming on Saturday, October 26. The celebration begins with a social hour at 5:00 p.m. in Kiewit Gymnasium (715 E. 7th Street, Hastings) on campus, followed by a banquet at 5:30 p.m. Tickets are $40 per person and may be purchased online at hastings.edu/homecoming, or by contacting the Hastings College alumni office at 402.461.7363 or alumni@hastings.edu.
The Outstanding Alumni Coach of the Year award was established by the Hastings College Alumni Association in 2004 and is presented to Hastings College graduates who have shown exceptional achievement in an athletic coaching profession.
Rahn has been head coach of the College of DuPage football team since 2021. The College of DuPage is located in Glen Ellyn, Illinois. Under his leadership, the Chaparrals won the NJCAA Division III championship in 2021, 2022 and 2023. Rahn was named NJCAA Coach of the Year in 2021 and 2022, and his 33-5 overall record to date rates as the best three-year period in terms of victories in the last 28 years of DuPage football.
He previously spent seven seasons as an associate head coach for the Chaps, and served in a variety of roles over the years, including offensive coordinator, co-defensive coordinator and as the program’s director of operations.
Rahn started two seasons (2000-01) for the Chaparrals and went on to play at Hastings College, where he graduated with a degree in sociology in 2005.
He played 13 seasons professionally of arena football (CIFL, IFL, UIF, AFL and CIF) and was an Ambassador to American Football in Brazil during his off-seasons from arena league play in 2010-12. He appeared in three professional arena championship games and helped his Sioux City Bandits win the 2015 Champions Indoor Football title.
He is an example of how football can change one’s life. After never starting a game before the College of DuPage, Rahn went on to use football as a motivating factor to excel academically and eventually secure a scholarship and earn his degree.
Matthew Sr., Sarah and their son Matthew reside in Lombard, Illinois.
