Bruce Wasem will guide the UVa-Wise football team for the ninth time in 2010. The long time coach has posted a 43-44 overall record in his first nine seasons. Over his tenure, Wasem has lead the Cavaliers to a Mid-South East Championship, three consecutive eight win seasons, and in 2006 his team was named NAIA Champions of Character. Individually, the coach was named coach of the year in the Mid-South Conference in 2006. That season, the Cavs' posted an 8-3 record finishing the season ranked 24^th in the nation. That year, UVa-Wise was ranked as high as 16^th in the nation.

The Cavaliers have posted a 30-14 record under Wasem over the combined 2007-10 campaigns, finishing ranked in the final NAIA Poll three of the four seasons.

The Cavs had their best year of 9-2 under the veteran coach and claimed the program's first Mid-South East Division title in 2007.  UVa-Wise finished the year 14th in the NAIA's final ratings with a high mark of seventh.

The longtime Cavaliers' coach has been one of the architects of the football program.  The head coach is in his 20th-year with the program and is the only person to have seen every game the team has played.  Wasem has seen UVa-Wise go from not owning a single football in March of 1991 to today when its facilities are arguably the best of any small college in the nation.

 Wasem has helped see the program from its inception, through two NAIA playoff runs and the building of Beaty-Richmond Field at Carl Smith Stadium complex.

Wasem joined his long-time mentor Bill Ramseyer, the founding head coach of Highland Cavalier football, in the early spring of 1991 to start the program.  He was the team's Defensive Coordinator for the first 11 years where he helped UVa-Wise reach the national playoffs in 1995 and achieve an undefeated season and another playoff berth in 1996.

 Upon Ramseyer's retirement in 2002, Wasem assumed the head coaching duties and helped initiate the Cavs' transition into the nationally-recognized Mid-South Conference.

 Before coming to the Cavs, Wasem coached under Ramseyer at Wilmington College of Ohio for 17 years, serving as the Defensive Coordinator as well as the Head Baseball Coach for six years and Director of Intramurals.

The head coach has served as the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Chair for the NAIA. Previously, he served on the Assistant Coaches Committee for two different terms as well as working on the AFCA's football rules committee. Recently, Wasem was selected as the second ever Vice President of the NAIA Football Coaches Association.

On the UVa-Wise campus, Wasem is a teacher and advisor in the physical education major.  He also chairs the Student Publication Committee.

 The Ohio native played college football for Bluffton College and later obtained his M.A. from Ohio State University.

Matt Barbour will remain with the Cavaliers as a student assistant this season. Barbour holds several receiving records at the school, most notably most receiving yards in a career. The Naruna, Virginia native will pass on his skills to this year's wide receivers. 

Barbour is currently finishing his degree in sport management.

After a year's absence Brandon Qualls will return to UVa-Wise as an assistant in 2010.  Last season, Qualls served as a graduate assistant at Delta State University where he coached linebackers.  While at Delta State, he coached Lardester Hicks-Green who was a first team NCAA Division II All American.

This season, Qualls will be coaching the offensive line.  In his previous stint with the Cavs, Qualls was in charge of directing the running backs from 2006-2008.  Over his tenure, he has coached NAIA All American Rashad Morgan and UVa-Wise's only 1,000 yard rusher and receiver Hakeem Abdul-Saboor.

Qualls graduated from UVa-Wise in 2008 with a degree in Health and Physical Education.  He is currently pursuing a masters degree in education at Ashford University.

Cindi Smoot will return for her second season as the equipment manager in 2010.

Prior to accepting the equipment manger position, Cindi worked as the student equipment manager over the 2007 and 2008 seasons. This season, Smoot will add  the responsibility of overseeing a student work staff of three in game day video filming.  Over her tenure, Cindi has been known for her tireless work ethic and devotion to the Highland Cavalier Football Team. 

She is a graduate of Strasburg High School and recently earned a business degree from UVa-Wise. 

For the second consecutive season Mike Owens will be a member of the UVa-Wise staff.  The former UVa-Wise wide receiver will direct kickers and punters in 2010. 

Owens was a star on the gridiron for the Cavs' during his playing days and still holds two school records for the longest receiving touchdown and yards per catch average for a career.  The former wide out was elected into the UVa-Wise Hall of Fame in 2005 for his on field accolades.

The Clincho, Virginia native is no stranger to the coaching ranks.  He served as an assistant to long time Haysi coach James Colly for nine seasons aiding Haysi to a 70-24 record.  Previous to being an assistant at the high school level, Owens was an assistant coach at UVa-Wise from 1997-1999.

Ownens earned a bachelor of science in Accounting and business administration from UVa-Wise and a degree in bank management from the University of Virginia.

Shawn Austin will enter his sixth season on the UVa-Wise staff in 2010 and once again he will direct the defensive secondary. Coach Austin's secondary has provided fans with excitement over the last two seasons. In 2008, the Cavs' set a school record with 18 interceptions. Last season, the secondary picked off 15 passes returning three for touchdowns. 

Austin is in his 21^st season of coaching. Prior to coming to UVa-Wise, Austin coached for ten seasons at Moreno Valley (California) High School and for five seasons at Victor Valley College in Victorville, California.

Austin played college football for Cal State Fullerton.  He and his wife, Roseanne, live in Big Stone Gap, Virginia and have three children, Shaniece, 19, Samantha, 11, and Shane, 9.

For the third year, Randy Ramseyer will direct the linebackers and be part of the defensive coaches for the Cavaliers.

He was an assistant for UVa-Wise for each of the program's first 14 seasons under his father, Bill Ramseyer and then under current head coach Bruce Wasem.

Ramseyer earned his bachelor's degree from Wilmington College before going on to earn his law degree from Vanderbilt University.  Ramseyer currently serves as an Assistant United States Attorney.

As a senior, Justin Qualls will be a student assistant coach helping direct the running backs while also serving as the video coordinator for the Cavs.

Qualls, a graduate of Powell Valley High School has been a student assistant since 2008.  Prior to coming to UVa-Wise, Qualls was a three year starter at Powell Valley High School where he aided the Vikings to a regional championship and state finals appearance.

Qualls currently resides in his hometown of Big Stone Gap, Virginia.  He will graduate from UVa-Wise in May with a degree in Health and Physical Education and Sport Management.

In 2010, John Kuczko will return to a familiar position as he will be coaching the defensive line. The long time coach has been with the UVa-Wise staff since 1997 and has served the football program in many capacities. 

During the 2008 and 2009 seasons, Kuzcko served as the school's defensive coordinator. As coordinator, Kuzcko saw the defense make remarkable strides in his first season. In 2008, the Cavs' were ranked 18th in the nation in sacks with 30 and 20th in the nation in opponents third down conversions, holding opponents to a 31% success rate.  The unit tied for sixth in the nation with 18 pass interceptions to go along with 13 forced fumbles. A year ago, Kuzcko's defense forced back to back shutouts in victories over Newport News Apprentice and West Virginia Tech. The defensive unit was very impressive inside Carl Smith Stadium in 2009. In five home games, the defense held opponents to 19.8 points per game.

Prior to becoming defensive coordinator, Kuzcko served as the program's defensive line coach from 1997-2007. Throughout his tenure, he has also played an integral part of the recruiting process. Along with other Cavalier coaches, he has traveled the state to meet with young men and their parents about the possibility of becoming a Cavalier.

The coach and his wife, Donna, who live in Abingdon, Virginia, have two daughters, Kelly and Shea. Kelly and her husband Shawn Good live in Christiansburg and they have two daughters, Hayse and Rinnah. Shea is married to Zach Tritt and they have a daughter, Tallinn, and live in Abingdon. 

Dewey Lusk begins his sixth season leading what has become one of the top offensive units in the NAIA.  Lusk has instilled an exciting brand of offense and play-calling to the Cavs' attack. 

The UVa-Wise offense finished fourth in the NAIA in scoring offense (41.4 ppg) while finishing second in the nation in pass efficiency (174.9) and total offense (477.5 yds./gm) in 2008.  The Cavs led the Mid-South East in scoring offense, pass efficiency and total offense that season.

Along with having the top total offense unit, Lusk saw quarter back Randy Hippeard lead the nation in total offense (339.9 yds./gm) and passing yards per game (330.6 yds./gm).

Last season, UVa-Wise once again had an outstanding offense and the individual honors continued to roll in. Wide receiver Jason Lovett was named NAIA All-American, while quarterback Brad Robbins, wide receiver Matt Barbour, and lineman Brian Pisani were named Mid-South East All Conference. As a unit, the Cavaliers found the turf of Carl Smith Stadium to be friendly; the offense produced a near 30 points per game average at home.

The offensive coordinator came to UVa-Wise after serving 14 years as an assistant coach to the now retired Emory & Henry College head coach Lou Wacker.  He was Coach Wacker's offensive coordinator and also served as the head baseball coach, where he produced more wins than any coach in school history. 

Lusk earned his bachelor's degree from Emory & Henry and master's degree from Gardner-Webb University, where he also served as an assistant coach.  The Christiansburg High School product graduated in 1981 and played under current Powell Valley head coach Phil Robbins.

Coach Lusk is married to Mily Dover of Shelby, NC and they have two children, Gil, 18, and Landi, 16.