Grant Torgerson will begin his eighth season with the Wildcat Football Team, third as the Defensive Coordinator in 2025.
He joined the staff for the 2018 season when he joined the staff as the Defensive Line Graduate Assistant. In 2019 when Coach Fisk became the Head Coach, Torgerson was promoted to Assistant Football Coach/Defensive Line Coach/NFL Liaison through the 2022 season. In 2023 Torgerson was once again promoted, this time to the Defensive Coordinator position while also overseeing the Linebackers. In 2024 Torgerson became the Associate Head Coach under Coach Fisk.
Since tacking over the CWU defense, the Wildcats have seen 14 All-Conference players with eight winning special awards including the Defensive Player of the Year twice and the Academic Player of the Year under Torgerson's direction. Since taking over as academic liaison the team has averaged a 3.16 GPA.
In the 2024 season, the Wildcat defense finished first in the conference in: total defense, scoring defense, rushing defense, and passing defense. He helped guide the defense to a second overall statistical ranking in total defense in the entire NCAA Division II to go with top-20 NCAA Division II statistical rankings in passing defense (4th), scoring defense (5th), first down defense (5th), and rushing defense (17th). In the 2023 season CWU saw a first in a Cliff Harris Award winner in Tanner Volk. Brett McCalla also earned All-American honors. In that same year, the Wildcats made it to the Quarterfinal round of the NCAA Tournament for the first time since the 2009 season.
Torgerson spent seven seasons as a member of the Southern Oregon football team, five years as a player and two as an assistant coach. The Oregon City native was a four-year starter at long snapper for the Raiders. Torgerson helped the Raiders advance to back-to-back NAIA National Championship appearances earning the 2014 crown.
In 2016 he finished his bachelor’s degree in communications while serving as a student assistant coach. In 2017 Torgerson was promoted to defensive line coach where the Raiders ranked first in the NAIA with 61.5 sacks, 4.7 per game, including 35 coming from Torgerson’s defensive line unit.
Torgerson and his wife Olivia, who is currently the CWU Athletic Administrative Assistant and a former Wildcat Soccer player, reside in Ellensburg.
