J.C. McDonald is entering his third year as the offensive coordinator at Frostburg in 2020 and he will work with the quarterbacks this fall.
Last fall, Frostburg made a smooth transition to NCAA Division II by finishing in a four-way tie for second place in the MEC standings. The Bobcats finished fourth in the league in scoring offense (29.0) and seventh in total offense (327.6). FSU collected a seven-game winning streak over the middle part of the season and averaged nearly 38 points per contest during the run. Three offensive players garnered All-MEC honors, while two were named to the Don Hansen’s Super Region 1 Team.
In 2018, the Bobcats led the NJAC and finished 39th in the country in total offense (435.9) and 20th in Division III in scoring offense (40.7). The Bobcats totaled over 400 yards in offense in eight games and scored the second most points in a single season (448) in program history. Frostburg finished the regular season at 9-0 , captured the NJAC Championship for the second time in three seasons and eight players snared All-NJAC honors. Riley Hartman was named an All-American on the offensive line, while quarterback Connor Cox was named the NJAC and ECAC Offensive Player of the Year.
McDonald arrived at FSU after serving as the offensive coordinator in 2017 at West Virginia Wesleyan. The Bobcats finished with five wins and averaged over 300 yards in total offense.
For two seasons before Wesleyan, McDonald was the offensive coordinator at Sul Ross State University in Alpine, Texas. In his first season with the Lobos, McDonald guided the offense to 335.0 yards per game, while in his second season, SRSU averaged nearly 400 yards per game with 34 touchdowns.
A Cumberland, Md. native, McDonald is no stranger to Fitzgerald’s coaching philosophy as he served as the offensive coordinator at Southern Virginia during the 2012 season, Fitzgerald’s fourth year as head coach of the Knights. In ’07, McDonald was the passing game coordinator, while Fitzgerald was in his second season as the offensive coordinator.
During the 2005 and 2006 seasons, McDonald served as the offensive coordinator for the Trojans of Virginia State University. During his first season, VSU won six games and averaged over 25 points per contest.
McDonald served for five seasons on the Glenville State coaching staff in the early 2000s. He was the program’s wide receivers and quarterbacks coach during the 2000 and 2001 campaigns and he was elevated to the role of offensive coordinator from the 2002-04 seasons.
In the fall of 1999, McDonald coached the wide receivers at William Jewell College in Liberty, Missouri. He got his coaching start as the quarterbacks and wide receivers coach at Potomac State College during the 1997 season.
Under his tutelage, three players have garnered All-American awards, while in 2005 Joey Conrad became NCAA Division II’s all-time leader in passing yards and total offense. He has coached numerous WVIAC and CIAA all-conference selections through the years and he his offensive units have ranked inside the top-30 in the NCAA yearly record books three times.
McDonald earned his master’s degree in education from West Virginia University in 2002 and earned his bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Glenville State in 1998.
