Joe Kreinsen joins the Holy Cross football staff as the team’s offensive line coach and run game coordinator ahead of the 2026 season.
Prior to arriving at Holy Cross, Kreinsen spent two seasons (2024-25) at Merrimack College as the offensive run game coordinator and offensive line coach. Under his hands-on leadership, Kreinsen’s units saw considerable success. In 2025, Merrimack ranked second among all FCS programs in time of possession (33:19). The Warriors also sported the 28th-best rushing attack in the FCS, good for 182.9 rushing yards per game, 4.6 yards per rush and 14 total rushing touchdowns. In the trenches, Merrimack’s offensive line allowed only 1.67 sacks per game, placing them 41st in the FCS. In 2024, Merrimack finished with the 25th-best rushing offense in the FCS, rushing for 192.5 yards per game and 4.9 yards per attempt.
At Merrimack, Kreinsen was also instrumental in the development of standout offensive lineman Cole Birdow; Birdow would go on to earn an opportunity as an undrafted free agent with the New England Patriots.
Before his stint at Merrimack, Kreinsen spent a season at Thomas More University (Ky.), aiding their transition to Division II. As the offensive line coach and run game coordinator, he helped Thomas More secure top positions in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference (GMAC) for rushing yards and sacks allowed.
Prior to Thomas More, Kreinsen was the assistant head coach and run game coordinator at Lake Erie College in 2021, and the offensive coordinator from 2021-23. Kreinsen’s offensive units produced some of the most successful seasons in school history, setting a 10-year-high benchmark in points and total yards per game while finishing first in passing yards in the GMAC and 10th in all of Division II. His innovative offensive approaches broke multiple school records and notably produced the first 1,000-yard receiver in the program’s history.
Before heading to Lake Erie College, Kreinsen served as an offensive graduate assistant at the University of Pittsburgh from 2019-2021 while simultaneously earning his Master’s of Social Work.
Kreinsen began his coaching career as an offensive graduate assistant at the University of Massachusetts in 2014. He held the position for three years while simultaneously receiving his Master’s of Science in Union Leadership. After receiving his master’s, Kreinsen stayed on at UMass and was later promoted to Assistant Director of Football Operations and NFL liaison, where he worked closely with the player development of numerous NFL prospects.
A Natick, Massachusetts native, Kreinsen was a standout high school athlete and continued his success at Westfield State, where he earned ALL-NEFC honors as a team captain and four-year starter. He received numerous academic accolades, including the DeOrmond Tuss McLaughry Award, and was inducted into the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame’s Hampshire Honor Society.
Kreinsen graduated from Westfield State University in 2014 with a Bachelor of Arts in psychology and completed his master's degree in labor studies from UMass Amherst. He is married to Roberta De Crescenzo, and the two have a son, Vincent.
Kreinsen’s Coaching Career
2026 - ?Holy Cross (Offensive Line Coach, Run Game Coordinator)
2024-25 ?Merrimack (Offensive Line Coach, Offensive Run Game Coordinator)
2023 ?Thomas More University (Offensive Line Coach, Offensive Run Game Coordinator)
2021-22 ?Lake Erie College (Run Game Coordinator, Assistant Head Coach)
2019-21 ?University of Pittsburgh (Offensive Graduate Assistant)
2014-17 ?University of Massachusetts Amherst (Offensive Graduate Assistant, Assistant Director of Football Operations, NFL Liaison)
