John Auer

Head Coach

Phone: (952) 446-4235
Email: auerj@crown.edu

Coach Auer begins his seventh year as the head football coach for the Crown College Storm. Coach Auer believes that through hard work in recruiting and developing Christian athletes, Crown College can become a top team in the UMAC.

Auer earned his Bachelor of Science in Physical Education and Coaching from St. Cloud State University in 1995 and went on to get his Master of Science in Sports Management there.

At St. Cloud University, Coach Auer worked as the Assistant Coach from 1993-2000. In his role as an assistant, he worked with recruiting, game planning, and practice preparation for the running game. He was also responsible for skill development, assignment teaching, and personnel decisions for the offensive line and tight ends. In his time with St. Cloud State, he coached an All-American and an Academic All-American.

Coach Auer was a defensive end on the Winona State team from 1989-1992. He attended Osseo High School where he played football, basketball, and baseball. His wife Kristen is a preschool teacher at Joyful Noise Christian Preschool in Maple Grove. He has two daughters, Kaitlyn and Kelli.

Jason Schmidt

Defensive Coordinator
Assistant Head Coach

email: schmidtj@crown.edu
phone: (952) 446-4438

Jason Schmidt enters his second year as defensive coordinator and assistant head coach of the Crown College Storm football program.  Schmidt came to Crown with coaching and playing experience from Northwestern College and more recently Dakota Wesleyan University.

Jason began his coaching career in 2000 at Northwestern College where he spent five years as outside linebacker and the defensive line coach.  In 2005, he moved on to coach at Dakota Wesleyan University before taking the position at Crown College.

Graduating from Northwestern, Schmidt had a successful playing career with the Eagles.  He was a three-time All-Conference selection and earned NAIA All-American honors in 1997.

Schmidt earned his undergraduate degree in kinesiology and his masters in adult education at the University of Phoenix.

Jake Carr

Offensive Coordinator/
Recruiting Coordinator

email: carrj@crown.edu
phone: (952) 446-4533

Jake Carr begins his first year as the offensive coordinator for the Storm.  Coach Carr came to Crown before the 2006 season as the quarterbacks coach after spending three years at Bethel University from 2003-2005.

While at Bethel, Carr spent his time coaching both the quarterbacks and the tight ends.  Previous to Bethel, Carr coached at Hillcrest Academy from 2000-2002.  During his time there he was the offensive coordinator for two years and the defensive coordinator for three years.

Carr earned his undergraduate degree in secondary life science education and is currently working towards his masters in organizational leadership.

Chris Burke

Defensive Line Coach

email: burkec@crown.edu
phone: (952) 446-4532

Chris Burke is back for his third year with the Crown College football program as the defensive line coach.  Coach Burke has had experience coaching both sides of the ball as he was responsible for the offensive line his first year at Crown.

While at Crown, Burke was a four-year starter playing both defensive end and offensive tackle.  During his playing career Burke was named to 3 all-conference teams, voted team most valuable player, and team captain.

Burke earned his undergraduate degree in history education at Crown.  He is also working on developing the athletic grounds at Crown, and resides in St. Bonifacius, Minnesota with his wife Rachelle.

Corey Jensen

Special Teams Coordinator
Defensive Back Coach

Email: jensenc1@crown.edu

Coach Jensen, who has been coaching at Crown longer than any current coach, begins his 11th year as part of the staff.  Jensen, a 1997 Crown College graduate, is the special teams coordinator and defensive back coach. 

An outstanding player while at Crown, Jensen received numerous awards and was named to the UMAC All-Conference team for three years.  Jensen still holds several different offensive and defensive records at Crown. He is also a physical education teacher in the Chaska school district.

Jensen lives with his wife, Katie, and resides in Waconia, Minnesota.

Kyle Ague

Outside Linebacker Coach

Ague enters his fourth year with the Crown College coaching staff after playing for the Storm for four seasons.  Ague will continue his role as the outside linebacker coach for the Storm.

As a player, Ague gained experience at several different positions. He was the second leading scorer on the Crown team his senior year as kicker with 45 total points including five field goals and 24 of 30 PATs. 

Ague is also an assistant men's basketball coach at Crown and resides in Watertown with his wife, Dana.

Phil McLaughlin

Tight Ends Coach/
Assistant Offensive Line

Phil McLaughlin will begin his coaching career after playing four years at Crown. 

McLaughlin was a starter on the offensive line for two and a half seasons and accumulated All-Conference honors as well as Team Captian in his final year.  He will bring his experience and leadership in coaching the Tight Ends and assisting with the Offensive Line. 

Coach McLaughlin graduated with a degree in Physical Education where he excelled in the classroom as well, receiving Academic All-Conference honors.  He resides in Eden Prairie, Minnesota.

Emmett Hill

Running Backs

Emmett Hill joins Crown College after relocating to the Twin
Cities area late last year.

His playing experience includes running back and special teams player
at Georgia Tech and wide receiver at the US Naval Academy. His most
recent coaching experience was running back coach at Williamsville East
High School in East Amherst, NY.

Hill earned his Bachelors of Science in business management from
Southern Polytechnic State University in Marietta, Ga. He now resides in
Mayer, MN with his wife Natasha and two sons, Emmett and Xavier.

Rob Ware

Wide Receivers

Assistant Coach Rob Ware begins his first season with the Storm serving as the Wide Receivers Coach. Coach Ware also serves as an assistant on the Crown College Men ’s Basketball team. Coach Ware graduated from Moorhead State with a degree in Physical Education.  He was an NCAA Division III All-American in track at St. Thomas University before moving on to Moorhead State. 

Coach Ware currently resides in Brooklyn Park, MN and works in the Minneapolis School District.

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