Photos: Pictured top to bottom are Jason Hescock, Drew Nystrom, Stephen Thomas

NEWARK, Del. -- University of Delaware head coach K.C. Keeler announced Tuesday one promotion and two additions to the Blue Hen football coaching staff.

Jason Hescock, who served the last three years as a graduate assistant coach, has been promoted to assistant linebackers coach while Drew Nystrom and Stephen Thomas have been added to the staff as graduate assistant coaches. Nystrom will work closely with coordinator Jim Hofher and the offense while Thomas will work with coordinator Nick Rapone and the Blue Hen defense.

Hescock, who will assist linebackers coach Ben Albert with the Blue Hen defense, begins his fourth season with the UD staff and takes over the position vacated by Dyran Peake, who accepted an assistant coaching position at Massachusetts earlier this year. Nystrom and Thomas replace Hescock and Jared Ambrose, who accepted an assistant position at Towson earlier this year.

A native of Vernon, Conn., Hescock earned his bachelor’s degree in exercise science and education from Southern Connecticut State University in 2006 and his master’s degree in higher education administration with a concentration in sports administration from Delaware this past May.

Hescock attended Rockville High School where he competed in football, wrestling, and baseball and helped lead the baseball team to the 2000 state title. He was a four-year letterwinner in wrestling and served as captain of the football team. He began his college career at NCAA Division I FCS Canisius where he played linebacker, tight end, and fullback for three seasons before transferring to Southern Connecticut State.

He did not play football at SCSU but served two seasons as a student assistant coach. He helped lead SCSU to a two-year record of 16-5 for head coach Rich Cavanaugh, including an 8-3 mark in 2005 when the team advanced to the NCAA Division II playoffs.

A native of Crystal Lake, Ill. (Prairie Ridge HS), Nystrom earned his degree in biology with honors from Bowling Green (Ohio) University in December, 2007 and served as a tight ends and offensive line assistant coach at Wabash College this past fall.

He earned four letters as an offensive tackle at NCAA Division I Bowling Green from 2003-07 and led the team to a five-year mark of 38-24 which included three Mid-American Conference titles and trips to the Motor City Bowl in 2003 and to the GMAC Bowl in 2004 and 2008. He started 34 career games and earned second team All-MAC honors as a senior in 2007 for head coach Gregg Brandon.

Nystrom also was named to the 2005 ESPN The Magazine/CoSIDA Academic All-District team, was named to the MAC All-Academic first team in 2007, was inducted into the National Football Foundation Hampshire Honor Society in 2008, and was a finalist for the Bowling Green Senior Scholar-Athlete of the Year in 2008. He also earned Bowling Green’s Top Offensive Lineman Award as a senior in 2007.

Nystrom, who will pursue a master’s degree in higher education administration at Delaware, began his coaching career at Wabash College in Crawfordsville, Ind. this past fall and helped lead the team to a 10-2 record and an undefeated North Coast Athletic Conference title for head coach Erik Raeburn.

The Little Giants, who were ranked as high as No. 2 nationally at one point during the season, advanced to the second round of the NCAA Division III playoffs. Five of Nystrom’s players earned All-NCAC honors.

Thomas, a native of Brooklyn, N.Y. (Brooklyn Tech), earned his degree in chemical engineering from the University at Buffalo in 2006 and his master’s degree in sports administration and management from SUNY-Cortland in May.

Thomas was a standout defensive back for head coach Jim Hofher at NCAA Division I Buffalo and earned three letters as a safety in 2003-05 and was named special teams captain as a senior in 2005.

He began his coaching career at Cortland where he served as assistant defensive secondary coach in both 2007 and 2008 and helped mentor three All-New Jersey Athletic Conference all-stars.

The Red Dragons went 11-2 this past season under head coach Dan MacNeill, going unbeaten on the way to the NJAC title and advancing to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division III playoffs. In 2007, Cortland went 8-3 and captured the ECAC Northeast championship.