SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - Jerry Olszewski, head football coach at St. Olaf since 2008, will leave the college as he was introduced as head coach at Division II Augustana College on Wednesday morning.

Jerry Olszewski has done an outstanding job as the leader of our football program for the last five years, said St. Olaf athletic director Matt McDonald. We are grateful for his work and wish he and his family the best.

St. Olaf compiled a 32-18 record under Olszewski in five seasons, including a 22-18 mark in MIAC play. The Oles' best season under the UW-Stevens Point grad was 2011, when St. Olaf went 8-2 with a 6-2 record in league play. In that season, St. Olaf reached as high as No. 19 in the D3football.com Top 25 poll and No. 22 in the American Football Coaches Association Top 25 poll. The Oles were 7-3 and 5-3 in the MIAC in 2012.

Olszewski was the program's 12th head coach and the sixth since 1958 (Tom Porter, 1958-90, 174-116-10; Don Canfield, 1991-95, 22-27-0; Rod Grubb, 1996, 2-8-0; Paul Miller, 1997-01, 20-30-0; Chris Meidt, 2002-07, 40-20-0; Olzewski, 2008-12, 32-18-0).

Olszewski will take over an Augustana program that went 5-6 in 2012. The Vikings reached the NCAA Division II playoffs in 2010, going 11-2, before finishing 6-5 in 2011. He spent parts of eight seasons, in two stints (1993-96, 1999-02), at the Division II level as an assistant at MSU-Mankato. Before coming to St. Olaf he was the defensive coordinator at his alma mater, UW-Stevens Point, for two seasons (2006-07).

St. Olaf will begin a search for Olzsweski's replacement immediately. Until the opening is posted at jobs.stolaf.edu, interested candidates can contact the search committee chair, assistant athletic director Mike Ludwig (ludwigm@stolaf.edu) with questions.

St. Olaf offers 27 intercollegiate sports, is a NCAA Division III institution and a member of the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC). Eight different St. Olaf programs have won MIAC titles in the last five years: baseball (2009 playoffs), men's cross country (2008, 2012), men's hockey (2009), men's swimming and diving (2009, 2011), men's soccer (2011, 2011 playoffs), women's cross country (2010), women's golf (2011, 2012) and volleyball (2010).

The St. Olaf football program has collected nine straight seasons at .500 or better. Among institutions ranked in the US News and World Report's Top 55 liberal arts colleges (31 have Division III football), St. Olaf is one of four schools (Williams, Trinity, Amherst) that have such a streak. In the group of 31 Division III football institutions ranked in the top 55, St. Olaf is fourth in wins (65), seventh in winning percentage and one of eight schools that has at least 11 .500-or-better seasons since 2000.