Kevin Reece Wilson (born October 23, 1961) is an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

coach and former player who currently serves as the head coach at the

University of Tulsa The University of Tulsa (TU) is a private research university in Tulsa, Oklahoma. It has a historic affiliation with the Presbyterian Church and the campus architectural style is predominantly Collegiate Gothic. The school traces its origin to ...

. He will continue to serve as the

offensive coordinator An offensive coordinator is a member of the coaching staff of an American football or Canadian football team who is in charge of the team's offense. Generally, along with the defensive coordinator and the special teams coordinator, this coach re ...

Ohio State University The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best publ ...

through the 2022 season. Wilson served as head coach at

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universit ...

from 2011 to 2016 and was the offensive coordinator at the

University of Oklahoma The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two Territories became the state of Oklahom ...

from 2002 to 2010.

Playing career

Wilson played

offensive line In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line, while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line. A numbe ...

and

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, p ...

at Maiden High School. He was all-conference for two seasons and for his senior season was named to the ''

Charlotte Observer ''The Charlotte Observer'' is an American English-language newspaper serving Charlotte, North Carolina, and its metro area. The Observer was founded in 1886. As of 2020, it has the second-largest circulation of any newspaper in the Carolinas. I ...

'' All-Piedmont team. He went on to play

center Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentrici ...

and

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison ...

for the

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the multi-campus public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the NC School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referred to as the UNC Sy ...

Tar Heels Tar Heel is a nickname applied to the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is also the nickname of the University of North Carolina athletic teams, students, alumni, and fans. The origins of the Tar Heel nickname trace back to North Carolina's promi ...

as a walk-on. After two seasons as a walk-on he earned a scholarship. He earned a degree in Education in 1984, and then became a

graduate assistant A graduate assistant serves in a support role at a university, usually while completing post-graduate education. The assistant typically helps professors with instructional responsibilities as teaching assistants or with academic research respons ...

for three years while working on a master's degree in Physical Education. While at North Carolina Randy Walker was a Tar Heels assistant. When Walker left Northwestern to become head coach at

Miami University Miami University (informally Miami of Ohio or simply Miami) is a public research university in Oxford, Ohio. The university was founded in 1809, making it the second-oldest university in Ohio (behind Ohio University, founded in 1804) and the 10 ...

in 1990, Wilson became his assistant there.

Coaching career

North Carolina

After playing for the North Carolina Tar Heels, he spent three seasons (1984–1986) as a graduate assistant coach while he worked on his master's degree. In 1987, he became the

offensive line coach In American football, a position coach is a team official in charge of coaching a specific position group. Position coaches have more specialized duties than the head coach, assistant coach, and the offensive and defensive coordinators. Common ...

Winston-Salem State University Winston-Salem State University (WSSU) is a historically black public university in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina. History Winston-Salem State University was founded as Slater Industrial Academy o ...

. Wilson was the

for the 1988 season for the

North Carolina A&T Aggies The North Carolina A&T Aggies are the athletic teams that represent North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University in Greensboro, North Carolina, United States. The Aggies compete in NCAA Division I and are members of the Colonial At ...

Foard High School

In 1989, he became the head coach and athletic director of Fred T. Foard High School, near his hometown and alma mater

Maiden, North Carolina Maiden is a town in Catawba and Lincoln counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina. The population was 3,310 at the 2010 census. Maiden was the first public high school in the state with an observatory and is currently home to an Apple iCloud Da ...

, where the Tigers went 0–10. " ilsonwas dealt a very ugly hand. There was very little talent and probably less commitment." Considering the environment in which Wilson was raised, it's no surprise he grew frustrated quickly that so many players at Fred T. Foard didn't share his passion for football.

Miami

Following one year coaching on the high school level, Wilson returned to college coaching for the

RedHawks in 1990, under head coach Randy Walker, and coached there as offensive line coach, quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator until 1998.

Northwestern

When Walker moved to

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

Wilson went with him, serving as the offensive coordinator, quarterbacks coach, and assistant head coach, from 1999 to 2001. Wilson's power-spread offense led the Wildcats to a Big Ten Conference co-championship in 2000 and led conference in rushing for the first time in 54 years.

Oklahoma

After spending 19 seasons under the tutelage of his mentor Walker (four as a player at North Carolina, three as a graduate assistant there, nine as a coach at Miami, and three as a coach at Northwestern), Wilson left his long-time mentor to become the running game coordinator and the offensive line coach at

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

in 2002. Wilson caught Stoops' attention after Wilson adopted "Leach-style" passing offense that was then morphed into the spread run game. In December 2005, Wilson was named the

for the Sooners prior to the 2006 season, replacing

Chuck Long Charles Franklin Long Jr. (born February 18, 1963) is a former American football player and coach who is the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the Dallas Renegades of the XFL. He played quarterback in college at Iowa for Hayden Fry ...

who left to become the head coach at

San Diego State San Diego State University (SDSU) is a public research university in San Diego, California. Founded in 1897 as San Diego Normal School, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CSU) system ...

. Oklahoma named James Patton to replace Wilson as offensive line coach, Patton served under Wilson at both Northwestern and Miami, and Wilson recommended Patton to Sooners' head coach

Bob Stoops Robert Anthony Stoops (born September 9, 1960) is an American football coach. He was the head football coach at the University of Oklahoma from 1999 through the 2016 season, and on an interim basis during the 2021 Alamo Bowl. He led the Oklahoma ...

. In 2008, Wilson won the

Broyles Award The Broyles Award is an annual award given to honor the best assistant coach in college football. First awarded in 1996, it was named after former University of Arkansas men's athletic director Frank Broyles. The award is presented in Little R ...

, which is given to the top assistant in college football annually. He was also named the "FootballScoop Offensive Coordinator of the Year".

Indiana

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

athletic director Fred Glass announced the dismissal of

Bill Lynch Bill Lynch (born June 12, 1954) is a former American football coach. He was most recently the head football coach at DePauw University, a position he held in 2004 and re-assumed in December 2012 until his retirement after the 2019 season. Lynch ...

and the rest of the coaching staff on November 28, 2010, following a third straight season with only one conference victory. Glass announced the hiring of Wilson on December 7, giving Wilson his first collegiate head coaching position. Just thirteen days later Wilson hired

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...

defensive coordinator Doug Mallory and

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the southwe ...

linebackers coach Mike Ekeler (also LBs) as co-defensive coordinators. Mallory, the son of former Indiana head coach

Bill Mallory William Guy Mallory (May 30, 1935 – May 25, 2018) was an American football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at Miami University (1969–1973), the University of Colorado at Boulder (1974–1978), Northern Illinois Universi ...

, was Indiana's defensive backs coach from 1994–1996. Wilson also hired Rod Smith from

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

and Kevin Johns from Northwestern to be co-offensive coordinators. Wilson took over a Hoosiers team that had finished 10th or 11th in the

Big Ten The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

in each of the previous three seasons and had not been to a bowl since losing to

Oklahoma State Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New ...

in the 2007 Insight Bowl. Under Wilson's first year, the Hoosiers had a 1–11 record. In his second year, Indiana improved to 4-8 on the year with Wilson's team exhibiting an explosive offense, going from 80th nationally in pass offense to 19th and leading the Big Ten with 311.2 yards per game, in spite of losing the starting quarterback

Tre Roberson Trerein "Tre" E. Roberson (born October 22, 1992) is a professional gridiron football defensive back for the Calgary Stampeders of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He was signed by the Minnesota Vikings as an undrafted free agent following the ...

in the season's second game. In 2015, Indiana finished the regular season with a 6-6 record and showed a much more competitive level of play in the Big Ten. Indiana received an invitation to play in the

Pinstripe Bowl The Pinstripe Bowl is a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) college football bowl game that is held at Yankee Stadium in The Bronx, New York City. First played in 2010, the game is organized ...

, their first bowl game since 2007. After the season ended, Wilson signed a 6-year, $15.3 million contract extension that ran through 2021. Wilson resigned from Indiana on December 1, 2016, after multiple internal investigations into mistreatment of players.

Ohio State

Ohio State The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...

announced January 10, 2017 that Wilson had been hired as the offensive coordinator and

tight ends The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Like ...

coach under head coach

Urban Meyer Urban Frank Meyer III (born July 10, 1964) is a college football TV commentator and former American football coach. He spent most of his coaching career at the collegiate level, having served as the head coach of the Bowling Green Falcons fro ...

. In the 2017 season, Wilson assisted the Buckeyes to a 12-2 season which included a Big Ten Championship victory over

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

and a win over the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in C ...

in the

Cotton Bowl Classic The Cotton Bowl Classic (also known as the Cotton Bowl) is an American college football bowl game that has been held annually in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex since January 1, 1937. The game was originally played at its namesake stadium i ...

. In the 2018 season, Wilson worked as Co-Offensive Coordinator with Ryan Day. Wilson would be a part of 13-1 season with another Big Ten Championship Win, this time over Northwestern, and a Rose Bowl victory against

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

. Wilson worked as Co-Offensive Coordinator with

Mike Yurcich Mike Yurcich (born November 5, 1975) is an American football coach who currently serves as offensive coordinator at Penn State. He was the offensive coordinator at University of Texas Austin in 2020 prior to Penn State. He was the passing game co ...

under their new Head Coach, Ryan Day. The Buckeyes finished the season 13-1, with another Big Ten Championship victory over Wisconsin and a trip to the

College Football Playoff The College Football Playoff (CFP) is an annual postseason knockout invitational tournament to determine a national champion for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), the highest level ...

Tulsa

The

announced on December 5, 2022, that Wilson would be the next head football coach for the Golden Hurricane, but would remain with Ohio State through the end of their College Football Playoff run.

Wilson's offensive statistics

University of Oklahoma Wilson's 2008 up-tempo and no-huddle Oklahoma offense resulted in the Sooners scoring at least 60 points in every one of their last 5 conference games and a 65-21 victory over undefeated Texas Tech. The Sooners' quarterback, Sam Bradford, finished the 2008 season with 4720 passing yards and 50 passing touchdowns. It was after the 2008 season that Wilson received the Broyles Award as the top assistant coach of the year. Wilson's offenses featured a then-NCAA record 716 points during the 2008 season which now ranks as No. 3 in FBS history. During Wilson's tenure at Oklahoma, the Sooners won six Big 12 Championships and played in 3 National Championships. Indiana University In Wilson's last 5 seasons as head coach for the Indiana Hoosiers, his offense led the Big Ten Conference in passing yards per game (226.7 yards), was second in total yards per game (459.3 yards), third in points per game (31.4 points), and fourth in rushing yards per game (192.7 yards). Ohio State University Since Wilson joined the Ohio State Buckeyes in 2017, they have averaged 523.8 yards per game (third in the nation), had more than 500 yards of total offense 27 times and over 600 yards nine times, scored 234 touchdowns (second in the nation), completed 138 touchdown passes (best in the nation), set six Big Ten Conference Offensive Records in the 2018 season (535.6 yards per game, 5,100 passing yards, 51 touchdown passes, 1131 total plays). Wilson's offense produced back-to-back

Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy (usually known colloquially as the Heisman Trophy or The Heisman) is awarded annually to the most outstanding player in college football. Winners epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and hard ...

finalists (

Dwayne Haskins Dwayne Haskins Jr. (May 3, 1997 – April 9, 2022) was an American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for three seasons. He played college football at Ohio State, where he set the Big Ten Conference records fo ...

and

Justin Fields Justin Skyler Fields (born March 5, 1999) is an American football quarterback for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL). Following a stint with Georgia, he played college football at Ohio State, where he twice won Graham–Ge ...

), the first 2,000-yard rusher in school history ( J. K. Dobbins), and the fifth 1,000-yard receiver in school history (

Parris Campbell Parris John Campbell Jr. (born July 16, 1997) is an American football wide receiver for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Ohio State and was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the seco ...

Head coaching record

* Did not coach bowl game

References

External links

Ohio State profile

Indiana profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, Kevin 1961 births Living people American football centers American football offensive guards Indiana Hoosiers football coaches Miami RedHawks football coaches North Carolina A&T Aggies football coaches North Carolina Tar Heels football players Northwestern Wildcats football coaches Ohio State Buckeyes football coaches Oklahoma Sooners football coaches Tulsa Golden Hurricane football coaches Winston-Salem State Rams football coaches High school football coaches in North Carolina People from Lumberton, North Carolina Coaches of American football from North Carolina Players of American football from North Carolina