Faculty

Jeff Monken, MED

U.S. Army Football Coach, National Coach of the Year
Areas of Expertise

Leadership, motivation, team building, culture building, organizational management, workplace communication, conflict management

Experience

A respected, accomplished, and winning coach at the highest level of college football, Jeff Monken is a dynamic leader who has been recognized as National Coach of the Year and taken eight teams to the postseason as a head coach at the United States Military Academy at West Point. He is a master culture builder and motivator who has made a name for himself in coaching as a leader who achieves more with less and gets the most out of the people in his organization. Coach Monken is well known for his pre-game, halftime, and post-game speeches, which have generated a following across the college football world. His teams consistently compete for championships, producing dozens of NFL players, and Jeff has mentored assistant coaches who have advanced to collegiate assistant and head coaching roles nationwide. In 2024, the Army team ranked in the top twenty-five nationally for most victories in college football since 2017, as well as most home victories in that same stretch. The 2018 and 2024 Army teams finished their seasons ranked in the Associated Press Top 25. Jeff’s teams have been bowl eligible in seven of the last eight seasons and have set school records for most wins in a season (12), most in two consecutive seasons (21), three seasons (29), and four seasons (34). He is the first coach in USMA school history to lead his team to three straight bowl games. 

Education
  • Bachelor of Science, Physical Education, Millikin University, Decatur, IL
  • Master of Education, Higher Educational Administration, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI
Publications/Awards
  • Jeff was named Southern Conference Coach of the Year in his second year as head coach at Georgia Southern University (2011). GSU won the Southern Conference in 2011 and 2012. He was named head coach at West Point in 2014, and in 2017 & 2018, Jeff was a finalist for the Bear Bryant National Coach of the Year. In 2018, he earned the Maxwell Football Club’s Coach of the Year award, along with the Vince Lombardi College Football Coach of the Year award, and was invited to deliver a keynote at the American Football Coaches Association convention. That same year and again in 2020, the Army team won the Lambert Meadowlands Trophy for being the best in the east – a trophy that Army had not won since 1958. In 2021 and 2024, Jeff was named Coach of the Year by the Eastern College Athletic Conference, Division 1 FBS. In 2024, Jeff led the team to win the American Conference Championship, was named the Conference Coach of the Year, and earned the honor of being named the Paul ‘Bear’ Bryant Group of Five National Coach of the Year.
Organizations
  • American Football Coaches Association
Personal

Jeff is a devout man of faith hailing from the State of Illinois and is happily married to his wife, BethThey are the proud parents of three daughters and enjoy vacationing together and spending time with extended family.

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