This is the time of year when some coaches are doing double duty, sort of a good problem because they have a new job, while things are going well at their old one as well.
That is the situation with new Tulsa coach Kevin Wilson, who will be doing double duty for what he hopes will be the next several weeks.
Wilson, 61, was recently named the new head coach at Tulsa. He has been the offensive coordinator for the past six seasons at Ohio State.
On New Year’s Eve, No. 4 Ohio State will face No. 1 Georgia in the Peach Bowl, host of the second College Football Playoff semifinal. The national championship game is on Jan. 9 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.
During his introductory press conference last week, Wilson outlined how he will juggle both jobs. He said he would be part of bowl preparations at Ohio State and also be at Tulsa for recruiting.
“Then it gets into that dead period, so I’ll be working through, hopefully an opportunity to play two games and two great opportunities,” he told the media. “Again, I’m standing here because of the success of our team, and I think it’s my obligation to finish up with that team and give that team a chance to chase a National Championship.”
The early signing period for Division I is from Dec. 21-23.
Coaches these days, especially newly appointed ones, have more duties than ever before.
Not only does a new coach such as Wilson have to recruit high school talent, but he also has to recruit the players on the roster so they won’t enter the transfer portal. Then the coach and his new staff also have to recruit off the transfer portal as well.
Players may enter the portal in two different windows. The first is from Dec. 5 and closes 45 days later on Jan. 18, 2023.
There is also a second portal, from May 1-15, following spring practice.
So Wilson will be extremely busy.
Even though he was the offensive coordinator, Wilson wasn’t the play caller at Ohio State. That duty is held by head coach Ryan Day, so it makes it slightly easier to juggle the jobs – only slightly.
One thing that won’t hurt recruiting is if Wilson’s situation is mentioned during the playoff game(s). That is free publicity that Tulsa should welcome.
The question is can Wilson revive a Tulsa program that went 43-53 during the eight-season reign of Philip Montgomery? The Golden Hurricane, who were 5-7 this past season, earned four bowl bids in the eight years.
There were two big years under Montgomery. In his second season, 2016, the Golden Hurricane went 10-3. Then in the COVID-shortened 2020 season, Tulsa went 6-3 overall, advancing to the American Athletic Conference championship game before losing 27-24 at Cincinnati,
Tulsa went 7-6 in 2021 and earned a 30-17 win over Old Dominion in the Myrtle Beach Bowl, before slipping to 5-7 this past season.
Wilson has an extensive resume. Before his recent six-year stint as offensive coordinator and tight ends coach at Ohio State, he spent six years as head coach at Indiana, where there were highlights, but it was a tenure that ended in controversy.
According to the Indianapolis Star, a 2015 investigation into player treatment concerning injuries contributed to Wilson’s resignation.
He had some success at Indiana, a place that had three straight losing seasons when he took over. After a 1-11 first year, he went 25-36 in the next five years, earning two bowl bids. He was known for his offensive innovation.
His Indiana teams led the Big Ten Conference in passing three times, in 2012, 2013, and 2015, while finishing second in 2016. His 2015 offense led the Big Ten in passing, total offense, and scoring.
Before Indiana, he served assistant coaching stints at Oklahoma, Northwestern, Miami (Ohio), North Carolina A&T, Winston Salem, and North Carolina.
He has 37 years of college coaching experience. With UCF, Houston, and Cincinnati heading to the Big 12, the AAC will have a different look, but it also means that teams such as Tulsa will have a better path for moving up the standings.
And it will be Wilson who will be leading the charge in what should be a hectic beginning, but one that he obviously welcomes.
