Dan Pifer was named Cornell College's 15th head football coach in December 2019.

Since the canceled 2020 season due to the pandemic, Pifer's coaching staff has brought in the four largest recruiting classes in program history.

The Rams have landed 11 all-Midwest Conference performers, three all-region selections and one all-American since Pifer's arrival. The 2023 team (6-4) achieved the program's first winning season in 10 years and placed third in the MWC at 6-3, marking Cornell's best conference finish since 2013. 

Pifer, a native of Celina, Ohio, and 1995 graduate of California University of Pennsylvania, brought 24 years of coaching experience to the Hilltop. He was responsible for winning five combined conference championships during stints at Olivet (Mich.) College from 2012-16, and Trine (Ind.) University from 2006-11.

Pifer engineered a quick and successful rebuild at Olivet College, which owned the nation’s longest losing streak with a five-year record of 2-48. Pifer, whose initial 2012 team finished 0-10 there, increased the football roster by 145 players and went on to post four consecutive winning seasons for the first time in school history.

Pifer’s 2016 Olivet team finished 9-2, went 6-0 in the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) and qualified for the NCAA playoffs. In 2015, the Comets set a school record for wins (9-1) and were co-champions of the MIAA. Olivet finished 6-4 in 2013 and 2014.

Pifer coached Olivet’s only two first team all-Americans and broke 14 school records. He raised the team’s grade point average from 2.30 to 2.98.

Prior to Olivet, Pifer had an impactful six years as offensive coordinator, recruiting coordinator and special teams coach at Trine University. The Thunder claimed undefeated MIAA titles and earned NCAA berths in 2008 (10-1), 2009 (10-2) and 2010 (11-1). Trine fashioned 20-game MIAA and home winning streaks and ranked eighth in Division III attendance in 2010.

Under Pifer’s direction, Trine landed the 2010 Gagliardi Trophy winner (D3 Heisman Trophy) and fielded the No. 1 scoring offense (46.0 ppg) in Division III that season. 

Pifer’s teams over the years have produced 61 all-conference players, three all-Americans, two academic all-Americans, seven Conference Players of the Year and two Pete Schmidt Scholar Athlete Award winners.

In 2019, Pifer was an assistant on Saline (Mich.) High School’s 8-1 conference championship and playoff team. He was director of player personnel at Division I Bowling Green State University in 2018, after spending one season as head coach at Division II Walsh (Ohio) University. Walsh won more games in 2017 (four) than the previous two seasons combined (three).

Pifer has also held assistant roles at Bellmont (Ind.) High School (2000, 2003-05), Division II Hillsdale (Mich.) College (2002), NAIA’s University (Ind.) of St. Francis (1997-99), Milford (Ohio) High School (1996) and Division II Saint Joseph’s (Ind.) College (1995). He was part of a start-up program at St. Francis, helping lead it to the 1999 NAIA playoffs.

Pifer earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from California University of Pennsylvania, where he was a four-year starter and set numerous passing records as quarterback for the Vulcans.