Hall of Fame
Not many people in SOU history have had such a lengthy impact as the one Jeff Olson had with the Raiders. As a football player, assistant and head coach, he spent 24 years with SOU. His time with the Raiders started as a player in 1980 and 1981, when he served as a starting defensive back at SOU and as a senior in 1981 earned All-Conference honors. From 1983 to 1995, Olson served as an assistant coach for the Raiders before becoming head coach in 1996 and holding that position through the 2004 season.
As head coach, Olson owned the second-most wins in the football program's history as of induction, finishing his career with a 50-36 record. His winning percentage of .581 ranked as the best in program history. He was also responsible for two of the program's first three national playoff appearances and led the 2001 and 2002 squads to the NAIA Quarterfinals. During his nine years as head coach, Olson led the Raiders to five straight winning seasons, including a program-record No. 2 spot in the NAIA national rankings. Olson coached 20 NAIA All-Americans, 28 Northwest All-Stars, four NAIA Players of the Week and four players that appeared in NFL training camps.
