He played college football at Drake University, where he also held his first assistant coaching position.
[2] He is a native of Shawnee, Kansas and attended Drake University, where he played on the football team.
Later he became a graduate assistant with the USC Trojans before being named secondary coach of the Montana Grizzlies, where he was a member of the 2001 national championship team.
[4][5] On December 1, 2012, athletic director Debbie Yow announced that Doeren would be the new head coach of the Wolfpack.
[7] In his second season, they improved to 8–5 (one of the fastest turnarounds in school history), and won the 2014 St. Petersburg Bowl.