Joe Sterrett

Joe Sterrett (born 1954 or 1955) is an American retired football player and coach. Sterrett attended Lehigh University and was a football coach for the school, before eventually becoming the Dean of Athletics.

Life and career Joseph D. Sterrett was born in 1954 or 1955. In his childhood, Sterrett enjoyed sports. He attended Nether Providence High School in Wallingford, where he played football. Sterrett was named the PMC Colleges Offensive Player of the Year in 1971 and played quarterback on the All-Delco football team.

Sterrett originally intended to go to law school, but deferred his admission and went to Lehigh instead. He received his bachelor's degree in 1976, majoring in social psychology and finance, and married another graduate that year, with whom he had four children. In 1975, he was named as a Division I All American. During the 1975 Lehigh–Lafayette rivalry game, Sterrett was named the MVP. He coached Lehigh's junior varsity team in 1976 and 1977 and spent seven years as a football coach at Lehigh. One year later, in 1990, he oversaw Lehigh's entry into the newly-formed Patriot League and sat on several of the league's committees. Sterrett announced in 2024 that he would retire at the end of the year

Sterrett was named an All-American in football in 1975, the third Lehigh athlete ever to received the award. He has received the Undergraduate Merit Award in 1976, the Alfred P. Robinson Award in 1986, the University Award for Distinguished Service in 1998, the Paul J. Franz Award in 1999, and the Hillman Staff Award in 2004. In 2025, Sterrett was inducted into the Lehigh Athletics Hall of Fame.