Azusa Pacific University Athletics

Head coach Victor Santa Cruz is an energetic, enthusiastic leader who reshaped Azusa Pacific’s football program into an NCAA Division II destination program.

Now entering his 14^th season as Azusa Pacific’s head coach, Santa Cruz has calibrated the Cougars into a championship contender in multiple classifications, first as an NAIA program when he took over in 2006 before building one of Division II’s most consistent winning programs in Azusa Pacific’s first five years of NCAA membership.

With an overall record of 83-60, plus four Great Northwest Athletic Conference championships in the past six years and two NCAA Division II playoff appearances in the past three seasons, Santa Cruz undoubtedly understands success on the football field. Since moving to Division II and the GNAC in 2013, Azusa Pacific is 54-25 overall while winning 41 of its past 50 conference games. Eight Cougars have signed domestic professional contracts with NFL or CFL organizations, including former NFL running back Terrell Watson, and most recently, 2018 graduate Matt Orzech, a long snapper for the Baltimore Ravens.

However, what sets him apart from his coaching peers is his relentless focus on the transformation of his players into young men who understand how to achieve success throughout life after graduation. Under his guidance, Azusa Pacific has claimed six consecutive GNAC academic team championships for posting the highest team GPA in the conference. One of the greatest testaments to the leadership of Santa Cruz is the consistently high caliber of coaches who comprise his coaching staff.

For eight seasons (2011-18), NFL Hall of Famer Jackie Slater was Azusa Pacific’s offensive line coach, playing an instrumental role in the development of former walk-on tight end Luke Marquardt into an NFL-caliber offensive lineman (currently with the Detroit Lions). He also mentored 2014 graduate Cody Clay, who signed an NFL free agent contract with the Atlanta Falcons and participated in training camp with the Dallas Cowboys.
 
In addition, running backs coach Ben Buys helped develop Watson into the 2015 NFLPA Collegiate Bowl MVP, which led to spots on NFL practice squads in 2015 and 2016 before he scored a touchdown for the Philadelphia Eagles in his first NFL regular-season game on Jan. 1, 2017.

"I'm a passionate guy," said Santa Cruz. "I'm passionate about Jesus Christ, my family and Azusa Pacific. Through competition on the field and in the classroom, I want to see young men exit this program with an understanding of effective process, a sense of self, and the vision to become successful husbands, fathers, employees and employers."
 
It is a philosophy that has delivered consistent results, as evidenced by Azusa Pacific's continued success both on and off the field. Including the second year of a two-year transition period into active Division II membership, the Cougars have notched six consecutive winning seasons, including back-to-back 10-win seasons and GNAC titles in 2013 and 2014. The Cougars collected GNAC championships in 2016 and 2018 along with NCAA playoff appearances in both seasons.

The first seven years of Division II competition came on the heels of back-to-back playoff appearances which wrapped up the program's long-standing affiliation as an NAIA independent program, and Santa Cruz was recognized as the NAIA Independent Coach of the Year in 2010 and 2011.

That final round of Cougar success in the NAIA was even more rewarding due to the process it took for an independent program to get there. Santa Cruz annually clashed with some of the nation’s top programs, putting together schedules comprised primarily of top NCAA Division II, Division I FCS, and NAIA programs. As a result, the Cougars traveled throughout the country to play teams in Florida, Texas, Utah, Wisconsin, Oregon, Louisiana, Missouri, Washington, Montana, and Oklahoma. The wide range of experiences the well-traveled program collected throughout the process helped prepare the Cougars for a successful 2010 season which featured the program's first NAIA playoff appearance since 2005.
 
Now in his 19th year on the Cougar coaching staff, Santa Cruz came to Azusa Pacific in 2001, serving five seasons as an assistant before taking over as head coach in 2006. During his first three seasons, he served as the offensive coordinator, overseeing the development of the program's all-time leading passer (Luke Winslow) and the fourth-best all-time rusher (Ben Buys) at the time they graduated.
 
In 2004, Santa Cruz became the Cougar defensive coordinator and his coaching star began to shine. In his first year as the defensive coordinator, he redesigned and produced what was arguably the best defense in program history. Although the unit was not necessarily gifted with size, it had an inordinate amount of speed and ruggedness, and the 2004 Cougars allowed just 135 points in 14 games (school-record low 9.6 points a game) and registered an NAIA-leading 55 quarterback sacks. Better yet, in three NAIA playoff games, the Cougars surrendered just 17 points, holding two of the NAIA's top four offenses (No. 1 Sioux Falls and No. 4 Northwestern Oklahoma) to a combined three points. Despite losing several key figures from that squad, it was still the 2005 defense that propelled Azusa Pacific back to the NAIA playoffs for a sixth time in eight years.
 
Prior to arriving at Azusa Pacific for his first collegiate coaching assignment, Santa Cruz spent five seasons as an assistant at El Camino High School in Oceanside, Calif., coaching the linebackers. He served under longtime area coach Herb Meyer.
 
At the same time, he served as the San Diego County director of Fellowship of Christian Athletes. While with FCA, he established the infrastructure for its 1999 start-up and then raised funds for the $200,000 annual budget.
 
Santa Cruz played his collegiate ball at the University of Hawai‘i, where he was a four-year linebacker for the Warriors, tallying 139 tackles (83 solo) during his career. He redshirted the 1990 season and then played in 46 games over the next four seasons (1991-94). As a 1992 sophomore, he played on the Rainbows’ Western Athletic Conference championship team that beat Illinois in the Holiday Bowl.
 
As a collegiate coach, Santa Cruz has been credited for maintaining an atmosphere of Cougar football that impacts players’ lives beyond the field.
 
"I've come to realize that no matter what level you're at, you and your players want to win," said Santa Cruz. "I care deeply about making an impression on my players, working hard, and raising my family."
 
Santa Cruz developed and directs the Azusa Pacific Football Academic Organization and Success Strategy, which works with all transfers and freshmen in their quest for achievement in the classroom. His first season as head coach (2006), Azusa Pacific was named to the first-ever NAIA Scholar Team.
 
The son of a former U.S. Marines major, Santa Cruz lived in Hawai'i, Arizona, Japan, Orange County and San Diego, where he became a prep standout at Rancho Buena Vista High School in Vista, Calif. He was the Palomar League Defensive Player of the Year while collecting All-CIF honors as a 1989 senior.
 
Prior to his coaching career, Santa Cruz worked in sales and marketing for the Sport Supply Group.
 
Santa Cruz graduated from the University of Hawai‘i with a bachelor's degree in economics in 1995, and he completed a master's in organizational leadership from Azusa Pacific in 2010.
 
Santa Cruz, who also teaches in the university's exercise and sport science department, lives in Rancho Cucamonga with his wife Jamie and their three children, Victor, Jr. (17), Izabella (16), and Levi (13).