Jerry Ericksen returned to the Knights prior to the start of the 2022-23 season and serves as interim head coach for the men’s and women’s teams. He previously spent 15 years guiding the Carleton men’s squad, taking over the program prior to the start of the 2007-08 season and maintaining that role until he retired after leading the Knights to a third-place finish at the 2021 MIAC Championships last October. That was the program's best showing at the conference tournament since the Knights rejoined the league for the 1983-84 season.
He came back to campus will guide both programs for the near future following the resignation of Matt Stangl, who had been guiding both Carleton golf programs since Ericksen’s retirement.
Ericksen is no stranger to the MIAC or Northfield golf scenes. In addition to 15 seasons at Carleton, he previously assisted both the men’s and women’s golf teams at St. Olaf College off and on for 15 years, including the first women’s team in college history. His men’s team at St. Olaf captured the 1967 Midwest Conference championship and the 1978 and 1982 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference crowns. Under his guidance, the Ole women’s program won the inaugural MIAC Championships in 1988.
In addition to his work at the collegiate level, Ericksen has instructed several individuals, including Megan Stier, the 1997 and 1998 Minnesota State Class A girl’s champion from Belle Plaine (Minn.) High School.
A retired professor of psychology and statistics, Ericksen was a member of the St. Olaf community for nearly 40 years. A native of Chicago and a 1953 graduate of the University of North Dakota, he earned his master’s degree in statistics and a PhD in psychology from the University of Minnesota.
