There is almost no season like the Fall in Colorado. While the days are shorter, temperatures have moderated into a pattern of soothing predictability. But there’s also something else that makes the season something to look forward to. Fall means football and in Pueblo, there’s nothing bigger than Colorado State University football. But this coming season, Thunderwolves football will have a different look.
Arvada native Philip Vigil has been hired to run the program for the next five years, said CSU-President Timothy Mottet. Vigil, said Mottet, stood out among more than fifty candidates who had inquired about or applied for the position. CSU-Pueblo, he said, has a track record and facilities that make it one of the plum jobs in Division II football.
Vigil will be only the second football coach at the school since it reinstated football in 2007 following a several decades-long absence. He will be replacing Pueblo native John Wristen who has built one of the most consistently successful programs in Division II football. Under Wristen, the Thunderwolves won the DII national championship in 2014. Wristen will remain at the school, working in the athletic department.
While Vigil will be replacing a southern Colorado football legend, he has his own impressive resume and college football fanbase that extends well beyond Western New Mexico where he coached prior to taking the Pueblo job.
Vigil was an all-conference quarterback at Colorado Mesa University leading the team to a 10-2 record and the DII playoffs. In climbing the coaching ladder, the new Thunderwolves coach has held positions at DI Stephen F. Austin, Fort Hayes State, Colorado Mesa and Colorado School of Mines and Northwest Missouri State.
At SFA he also burnished his brand by recruiting back-to-back top 5 recruiting classes in the Southern Conference. He also signed the “#1 recruit in the nation both years, stealing them both from SEC schools,” according to a Western New Mexico University news release.
In hiring Vigil—who was not available for an interview—Mottet said he was impressed not just by the candidate but the man, especially one who will be replacing a southern Colorado and DII football luminary.
“When I talked to references,” Mottet said, “they talked to me about what he was about, his character and his capacity to do things if given the opportunity.” Mottet said he saw in Vigil someone with a head for football and a heart for players.
“This was clearly a coach who understands our type of student athlete,” said the CSU-Pueblo President. “Because of where he’s been and where he’s coached, he knows what they’re about and their needs. He is first and foremost interested in developing high quality, responsible young men.” Mottet said Vigil is tapped into the heart of turning young men into both good players and, just as important, “good citizens.” Vigil’s players, Mottet is confident, “will be successful well beyond the University.”
Mottet and CSU-Pueblo Athletic Director Paul Plinske say they worked as quickly as they could to fill their coaching vacancy, scouring the country looking for candidates at both DI and DII levels. After conversations with 51 prospects, calls to 25 “potential” applicants and sit-down interviews with five, Vigil stood alone, said Plinske.
“Coach Vigil impressed me from the start,” Plinske said. “As a native of Colorado, he has worked in some of the most successful football programs in Division II and has learned first-hand to establish a willing culture…He is the perfect fit for CSU Pueblo and the Pueblo community.”
Vigil’s apprenticeships left significant impressions on those for whom he worked. “Philip Vigil is one of the finest human beings on this planet and is a true transformational leader,” said SFA football coach, Colby Carthel.
(Vigil) has played a major role in turning several programs around. His positive attitude and tireless work ethic are contagious,” said Bill O’Boyle, assistant head coach at Kent State University.
In his two years at Western New Mexico, Vigil laid hands on a program very near flatlining. Prior to his arrival in Silver City, the school had endured generational failure. In the two years before he took over, the team sported a 1-21 record. This past season, Vigil’s Mustang team finished 6-5, topping the season off with a win over rival Eastern New Mexico in the Green Chile Bowl.
To most who call the metro area home, Pueblo is oftentimes an unknown. But the city has a rich athletic history and Mottet believes that with Vigil at the helm, along with the changes in today’s game, including the transfer portal that allows players to move more freely than ever before, Vigil will continue the program’s dominance.
“Today’s athletes are very transient. They look for opportunities that are out there,” he said. Because of that, there was an urgency to hire a new coach. “We wanted a coach who could bring talent, as well.”
