Kevin Doherty enters his sixth season as head football coach at Lakeland.
In the 2011 season, Doherty led the Muskies to 4-6 overall record, including a 4-3 mark in Northern Athletics Conference play. Nine players received All-NAC recognition, including four first team selections. Senior safety Tony Faller represented Lakeland at the All-American Bowl in Minneapolis, Minn.
Doherty led the Muskies to the school's second-ever appearance in the NCAA Division III playoffs in 2009 and he was named the league's co-head coach of the year after his second conference championship with the Muskies. Lakeland placed a league high 16 players on the all-conference list, including five first team selections.
In his first season as head coach, the Muskies finished 6-4 overall and notched a 6-1 Illini-Badger Football Conference record to share the league championship with Concordia University (Wis.). The conference title marked the third time in the last four years that the Muskies had either won or earned a share of the top spot. Doherty’s guidance of the Muskies led the rookie head coach to be named the 2007 co-IBFC Coach of the Year.
Since taking the reigns at Lakeland, Doherty has been a part of the AFCA Division III Football Council and will begin his second season on the NCAA Divison III Regional Ranking Committee.
A veteran offensive coordinator, Doherty joined the Muskies with a wealth of coaching experience in the IBFC, as he helped guide both Aurora University and MacMurray College to the NCAA Division III Playoffs
A native of the Chicago suburbs, Doherty spent five seasons as offensive coordinator for Aurora, where he graduated in 1995. In 2004, he helped lead the Spartans to a co-IBFC title with Lakeland and Concordia, Wis., and the Spartans represented the IBFC in the NCAA Division III Playoffs.
In addition to his on-field duties at Aurora, Doherty, who has a master's degree in public administration from the University of Illinois-Springfield, served as recruiting coordinator for Aurora's football team and was liaison between Aurora's athletic and admissions departments.
Doherty was also offensive coordinator at MacMurray College for two seasons, a stint that included an IBFC title and playoff trip in 2001. He also spent time as a graduate assistant and receivers coach at the University of Dubuque, Iowa, from 1995-97, then served in numerous roles as a position coach at Capital University, Ohio, from 1997-99.
He and his wife, Amber, have a 9-year-old son, Colin.
