Rod Sandberg knows what national playoff football is all about. In his 10 years as head coach of Whitworth football, Sandberg has guided the Pirates to two Northwest Conference titles and four NCAA Division III playoff appearances (2015, ’18, ’23 and ’24), entrenching himself in the record books along the way. With the first-ever 12-team NCAA Division I College Football Playoff underway, we’ve asked Sandberg to share a few insights.
Q. Who’s your pick to win this year’s D-I national championship and why?
A. Ohio State because they are great on both sides of the ball, playing very physical and have a chip on their shoulder.
Q. Which program in the D-I playoff field is most comparable to Whitworth’s football program?
A. Notre Dame – great academics, faith-based (Catholic) and high character. I really like their poise and the integrity of their head coach. They do not have a lot of players “transfer/portal out” – but attend and stay there because they want a Notre Dame degree. It is a smaller campus than some of the big state schools.
Q. What’s been your favorite experience in the D-III playoffs during your time at Whitworth?
A. This year flying on a charter plane back to Chicago where I am from and getting to play the No. 1 team in the country and experience playing the best – that is what competitors live for. Plus, our players experienced deep-dish pizza and Chicago-style hot dogs for the first time. It was such a great journey we got to experience together.
Q. What are your goals for Whitworth football in 2025?
A. This is an interesting question because we do not have “winning” as a program goal. We always have the goal of “being the best we can be,” and then it is understood or an unwritten expectation that IF we do the work, we will have a “chance” to compete for an NWC championship and play in meaningful games in November. However, we do not talk about winning; we talk about doing things right and focusing on the process.
Q. How does Whitworth’s football program differ from other programs?
A. We talk during the recruiting process to prospective student-athletes about the fact that we are very DISTINCTIVE. What makes us different is that our program’s mission is to be LIFE-CHANGING. Not win games. We want playing football at Whitworth to be one of the greatest experiences of a young man’s life. That means we care about who he is as a man more than as an athlete. At the center of that is growing our players as men and in their character and faith. We are intentional in creating opportunities for them to grow in their faith and get out of their comfort zone, where growth really occurs, in living out what they believe.
Worth a Look 