Chris Ash Names Jerry Kill Offensive Coordinator
Dec 19 | Football
PISCATAWAY, N.J. - Rutgers head football coach Chris Ash named Jerry Kill offensive coordinator, it was announced today. Kill, who will also coach the quarterbacks, spent five seasons as head coach at Minnesota, earning Big Ten Coach of the Year honors in 2014.
"I am excited to welcome Jerry and his family to Rutgers," said Ash. "Jerry brings years of experience and tremendous leadership to our offense. He is a veteran Big Ten coach and a proven winner. Our players and coaches will benefit from his wealth of knowledge."
Kill stepped away from coaching briefly, serving as Associate Athletics Director for Administration at Kansas State since May. In his role, Kill was the chief administrator for the K-State football program.
A three-time national coach of the year honoree with over 30 years of experience, Kill recorded winning seasons in 15 of his 22 years as a college head coach. He most recently coached at Minnesota, from 2011-2015, where he guided the Gophers to three bowl games in four and a half seasons, including the Buffalo Wild Wings Citrus Bowl in 2014. It marked the first Jan. 1 bowl game for Minnesota since 1962. For his efforts, Kill was voted the Big Ten's Hayes-Schembechler Coach of the Year by the conference's coaches and the Dave McClain Coach of the Year by the media who cover the Big Ten.
Under Kill's direction, Minnesota won eight games in both 2013 and 2014, which marked only the fifth time since 1906 that Minnesota won eight games in consecutive seasons. The 2014 offense ranked 12th nationally in passing yards per completion (14.52), 28th in rushing offense (215.5), 29th in sacks allowed (1.62) and 32nd in red zone offense (.878). Kill coached the Big Ten tight end of the year in Maxx Williams and the Big Ten punter of the year in Peter Mortell. In total, five Gophers were named All-Big Ten First Team, the most since 2004.
During his time at Minnesota, Kill recruited eight players that were selected in the NFL Draft, including four picks in 2015, which were the most taken for a Gophers team in a single draft since 2006.
In his previous four stops as a head coach, he never left a school with a sub-.500 record, and in three of his previous four head coaching positions, he took over a team with a losing record and turned in a winning season in three years or less.
Prior to his stint at Minnesota, Kill led Northern Illinois to 23 wins and three consecutive bowl games during his tenure and also coached NIU to a berth in the Mid-American Conference Championship game in 2010.
Prior to serving as the head coach at NIU, Kill was in charge of the football program at Southern Illinois, an FCS program in Carbondale, Illinois. He spent seven years on the Saluki sideline and compiled a 55-32 record. Kill's record over his final five seasons with Southern Illinois was 50-14 and included five consecutive NCAA FCS Playoff appearances.
Kill was the head coach at Emporia (Kan.) State for two seasons in 1999-2000. He went 11-11 with the Hornets, who play at the NCAA Division II level. Prior to Emporia State, Kill was the head coach at NCAA Division II member Saginaw Valley State from 1994-1998. He compiled a 38-14 record with the Cardinals. Overall, he holds a record of 156-102 as a collegiate head coach.
Kill served as defensive coordinator and offensive coordinator in two different stops at Pittsburg (Kan.) State University. He helped lead the Gorillas to three NAIA playoff appearances as the defensive coordinator from 1985-87. Kill returned to Pitt State as the offensive coordinator from 1990-93. In that four-year span, the Gorillas advanced to the NCAA Division II Playoffs four times, reaching the championship game twice and winning the 1991 national title.
Sandwiched between his stints at Pittsburg State, Kill was the head coach at Webb City (Mo.) High School. He was 25-1 in two seasons at Webb City and won a state championship in 1989.
Kill, a 1983 graduate of Southwestern (Kan.) College, and his wife Rebecca have two daughters, Krystal and Tasha.
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