Crace Takes the Helm of Bruin Football Program

The university landed what Athletic Director Adam Puckett called the “right guy to lead this program forward” when Spencer Crace was hired as new head coach of the Bruins’ football team in February.

Crace, the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Pacific Lutheran University since 2018, arrives after helping lead the Lutes to their best season since 2014 and orchestrating one of the best offenses in the Northwest Conference in recent years. He replaces Chris Casey, who announced his retirement in January after 43 years of coaching in the Pacific Northwest – including the past 11 seasons at George Fox.

It marks a homecoming for Crace, originally from Wilsonville, Oregon. “For the longest time, this has been my dream job,” he says of the new assignment. “To be able to come back home to where I grew up and to lead a program at a university that loves Jesus and is unashamed of the gospel is a dream come true.”

Under his guidance, Pacific Lutheran’s offense averaged 27.9 points per game in 2024 and 30 per game in 2023 as the team finished third in the conference each season. In 2024, the Lutes were second in the NWC in rushing offense and put seven offensive players on All-NWC teams while going 7-3 overall and 5-2 in conference play.

In addition to his leadership on the field, Crace served as an academic success coordinator at PLU, helping the program land 16 players on the College Sports Communicators Academic All-District team over the past three years. Crace also heads a branch of the PNW football chapter of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA), serving as director since 2022.

“For the longest time, this has been my dream job. To be able to come back home to where I grew up and to lead a program at a university that loves Jesus and is unashamed of the gospel is a dream come true.”

“Spencer Crace is an incredible culture fit at George Fox University, deeply aligned with our mission to develop young men who will serve the world with passion and integrity through the sport of football,” Puckett says. “He is a natural and charismatic leader who knows the game at a high level and has been instrumental in turning around the Pacific Lutheran program in recent years. The future of Bruin football is incredibly bright, and we believe we’ve found the right guy to lead this program forward – both on and off the field – the right way.”

Prior to his time at Pacific Lutheran, Crace spent three seasons as the assistant head coach and offensive coordinator at Sumner High School (Washington), helping the Spartans compile a 32-5 record, win two league championships and make two state semifinal appearances. Crace also had stops at Stadium High School (Washington) and Horizon Christian High School (Oregon) before coaching at Sumner.

“My hope and goal for the program is that we create a brand of football that is physical, explosive and a lot of fun to watch,” Crace says. “My plan is to plaster Newberg with Blue and Gold, and my goal is that we dominate the Northwest Conference in attendance. Instead of heading to Corvallis or Eugene, Newberg is going to be the place to be on Saturday afternoons in the fall.”