Paul Winters (born October 3, 1958) is an American college football coach and former player. He is the head football coach at

Wayne State University Wayne State University (WSU) is a public research university in Detroit, Michigan. It is Michigan's third-largest university. Founded in 1868, Wayne State consists of 13 schools and colleges offering approximately 350 programs to nearly 25,000 ...

, a position he has held since 2004. Winters played college football at the

University of Akron The University of Akron is a public research university in Akron, Ohio. It is part of the University System of Ohio. As a STEM-focused institution, it focuses on industries such as polymers, advanced materials, and engineering. It is classifie ...

as a

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback to rush the ball, to line up as a receiver to catch the ball, and block. Ther ...

from 1976 to 1979.

Biography

Playing career

Winters played

high school football High school football (french: football au lycée) is gridiron football played by high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both countries, but its popularity is declining, part ...

at St. Vincent–St. Mary High School in

Akron, Ohio Akron () is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Summit County. It is located on the western edge of the Glaciated Allegheny Plateau, about south of downtown Cleveland. As of the 2020 Census, the city prop ...

where he became a local prep star.Gerstner, Joanne C. "Division II’s Football Cinderella: Wayne State." Nytimes.com. N.p., 12 Dec. 2011. Web. 14 Sept. 2013. He continued his career at the University of Akron (1976–1979) where he played the

position. Winters finished his career seventh on the University of Akron's all-time leading rusher list with 2,613 yards. In 1989, Paul Winters was inducted into the University of Akron Sports Hall of Fame.

Coaching career

In 1982, Winters began his collegiate coaching career as 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 respo ...

as his alma mater. He worked up the coaching ranks at Akron as an offensive backs coach until 1986 when he accepted the running backs coaching position at the

University of Toledo The University of Toledo (UToledo or UT) is a public research university in Toledo, Ohio. It is the northernmost campus of the University System of Ohio. The university also operates a Health Science campus, which includes the University of ...

. He moved on to the

University of Wisconsin A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, ...

in 1990. Winters returned to Akron in 1995 as the offensive coordinator and running backs coach.

Wayne State

Winters accepted his first head coaching position on December 13, 2003, at Wayne State University. In his 10th season as head coach, Winters holds the school's overall record in wins with an overall record of 53 wins to 48 losses. Also, in 2011, Winters coached the school's single-season wins record team to 12 wins and a playoff berth. The 2011 team was the NCAA Division II runner-up after a loss to Pittsburg State in the National Championship game. After the 2011 season, Winters declined a job offer to return to the University of Akron as the head coach, instead choosing to sign an extension at Wayne State through 2016.

Honors

* NCAA Division II Coach of the Year by the American Football Coaches Association (2011) * 2008 Expert Coaches Academy participant * GLIAC Coach of the Year (2006, 2008) In 2004, Paul Winters was regarded as one of the nation's top ten African-American football coaching candidates by the Black Coaches Association. On multiple occasions Winters has been recognized for his achievements as an ethnic minority football coach.

Head coaching record

References

External links

Wayne State profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Winters, Paul 1958 births Living people American football running backs Akron Zips football coaches Akron Zips football players Toledo Rockets football coaches Wayne State Warriors football coaches Wisconsin Badgers football coaches Coaches of American football from Ohio Players of American football from Akron, Ohio African-American coaches of American football African-American players of American football 20th-century African-American sportspeople 21st-century African-American sportspeople