University of Sioux Falls head football coach Kalen DeBoer has been named the 2008 American Football Coaches Association NAIA Coach of the Year, announced Tuesday at the annual AFCA convention, held in Nashville, Tenn.

DeBoer led the 2008 Sioux Falls Cougars to a 14-0 record, the Great Plains Athletic Conference title and the NAIA national championship to earn NAIA National Coach of the Year honors for the second time.

"It's truly an honor to be recognized by the AFCA after a very memorable season for our football program," DeBoer said. "The credit definitely goes out to all of our players and the coaching staff for their hard work and dedication throughout the year. I was privileged to be around a group of guys who were committed to achieving our ultimate goal, which was winning a national title. This belongs to them."

The title is the second for DeBoer in four seasons as head coach. USF has reached the NAIA final three times since DeBoer took over the program in 2005. He has a four-year career record of 52-3 (.945). DeBoer previously earned AFCA National Coach of the Year honors in 2006.

Coach DeBoer joins Utah's Kyle Whittingham, Richmond's Mike London, Northwest Missouri State's Mel Tjeerdsma and Mount Union's Larry Kehres as the 2008 AFCA National Coach of the Year winners.

The winners are selected by a vote of the Active AFCA members (coaches at four-year schools) in the Association's five divisions. The AFCA has named a Coach of the Year since 1935. The AFCA Coach of the Year award is the oldest and most prestigious of all the Coach of the Year awards and is the only one chosen exclusively by the coaches themselves.

DeBoer joins an exclusive group of two-time Coach the year winners. Coaches who have been two-time national winners are Chuck Martin, Brian Kelly, Jim Tressel, Paul Johnson, Bill Edwards, Dave Maurer, John McKay, Rocky Hager, Erk Russell, Mike Van Diest, Carroll (Mont.) (2003, 2007), Darrell Royal, Texas (1963, 1970), Harold "Tubby" Raymond, Delaware (1971-72), Joe Glenn, Northern Colorado (1996-97) and Jim Butterfield, Ithaca (1988, 1991).