James Seth Littrell (born July 24, 1978) 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 wi ...

coach and former player. He was the

head coach A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches. In some sports, the head coach is instead called the "manager", as in asso ...

of the

North Texas Mean Green North Texas Mean Green (formerly North Texas Eagles) represents the University of North Texas (UNT) in intercollegiate athletics. The teams compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). North Texas competed in th ...

football team from 2016–2022.

Early life

Littrell was born in

Muskogee, Oklahoma Muskogee () is the thirteenth-largest city in Oklahoma and the county seat of Muskogee County. Home to Bacone College, it lies approximately southeast of Tulsa. The population of the city was 36,878 as of the 2020 census, a 6.0 percent decreas ...

, and attended Muskogee High School. He played fullback and linebacker where he rushed for 1,385 yards and 29 touchdowns his senior year. He was named first team all state as a linebacker. He finished his prep career with a total of 3,603 rushing yards and 53 TDs. He was recruited by Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Tulsa, Arkansas, Kansas State and Texas. Littrell also wrestled and won two 5A state championship at 189 lbs. Littrell attended the

University of Oklahoma , mottoeng = "For the benefit of the Citizen and the State" , type = Public research university , established = , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.7billion (2021) , pr ...

, where he played four years and was a team captain on the

Oklahoma Sooners football The Oklahoma Sooners football program is a college football team that represents the University of Oklahoma (variously "Oklahoma" or "OU"). The team is a member of the Big 12 Conference, which is in Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (for ...

team that won the 2000 national championship. He graduated in 2001 with a degree in communications. His father, Jimmy, also played fullback at OU and won two national championships in 1974 and 1975.

Coaching career

Litrell started his coaching as a graduate assistant for the Kansas Jayhawks football team for two seasons from 2002 to 2004. Under Mike Leach, he was running backs coach at

Texas Tech Texas Tech University (Texas Tech, Tech, or TTU) is a public research university in Lubbock, Texas. Established on , and called Texas Technological College until 1969, it is the main institution of the five-institution Texas Tech University Sys ...

from 2005 to 2008. From 2009 to 2011, Littrell coached the offense at

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

. Then from 2012 to 2013, Littrell was offensive coordinator and tight ends coach at

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 ...

from 2012 to 2013. From 2014 to 2015, Littrell was assistant head coach for offense and tight ends coach at

North Carolina North Carolina () is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 28th largest and List of states and territories of the United ...

under

Larry Fedora Herbert Lawrence Fedora (born September 10, 1962) is an American football coach and former player who is the former coach and general manager for the New Orleans Breakers of the United States Football League (USFL). He previously served as head c ...

. In Littrell's last season at North Carolina, the team finished 11–3 and first place in the ACC Coastal Division.

North Texas

On December 5, 2015, Littrell was named the head coach at

North Texas North Texas (also commonly called North Central Texas) is a term used primarily by residents of Dallas, Fort Worth, and surrounding areas to describe much of the north central portion of the U.S. state of Texas. Residents of the Dallas–Fort Wo ...

. UNT hired Littrell after the Mean Green finished 1-11 in 2015. School officials moved quickly to sign Littrell to an extension following the season through 2021. After his first season which saw the team finish in a bowl game and with a 5–8 record, his second season his team broke through. With great play from future NFL back Jeffrey Wilson, senior Kishawn McClain, and the future program passing leader sophomore Mason Fine, the team finished the season with a 9–5 record. This was the first 9-win season in almost 40 years for UNT and led to another contract extension. The following season Littrell led the Mean Green to a 4–0 start with wins that included a 46–23 win over rival SMU, and a surprising 44–17 win over SEC Arkansas. The team finished again with 9 wins and a third consecutive bowl appearance. Littrell is 0–5 in bowl games with the most recent game coming on December 23rd, 2021 where UNT lost to Miami (OH) 27-14 in the Frisco Football Classic. North Texas fired Littrell on December 4, 2022, following a 7–6 season in which North Texas qualified for the Frisco Bowl but lost the conference championship game to UTSA. Defensive coordinator

Phil Bennett Philip Bennett (24 October 1948 – 12 June 2022) was a Welsh rugby union player who played as a fly-half for Llanelli RFC and the Wales national rugby union team, Wales national team. He began his career in 1966, and a year later he had taken ...

took over as interim head coach for the bowl game.

Head coaching record

References

External links

North Texas profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Littrell, Seth Living people 1978 births American football quarterbacks Arizona Wildcats football coaches Indiana Hoosiers football coaches Kansas Jayhawks football coaches North Carolina Tar Heels football coaches North Texas Mean Green football coaches Oklahoma Sooners football players Texas Tech Red Raiders football coaches Sportspeople from Muskogee, Oklahoma Coaches of American football from Oklahoma Players of American football from Oklahoma