CHARLESTON, W.Va. – The University of Charleston today announced the hiring of Pat Kirkland as the new Golden Eagles football coach.
“We are extremely pleased to have Coach Kirkland join the UC family and lead our football program,” says UC president Ed Welch. “He understands the importance of our student-athletes being competitive on the football field, as well as in the classroom.”
Kirkland replaces Tony DeMeo who retired in February after six years at UC. He inherits a football team that finished 6-5 in 2010 and ranked No. 10 nationally in rushing yards per game (213.1).
A native of Akron, Ohio, Kirkland has served on the coaching staff at West Virginia University for the past five seasons, most recently as the recruiting operations coordinator. During his tenure with the Mountaineers, he also coached the tight ends, fullbacks, defensive secondary and outside linebackers. WVU compiled a 49-16 overall record with a 25-10 conference mark, winning Big East Conference championships in 2007 and 2010, and bowl games in 2006 (Gator), 2007 (Fiesta) and 2008 (Meineke Car Care).
Before his stop in Morgantown, Kirkland coached at Glenville State from 2000-06. He held the title of defensive coordinator and secondary coach from 2001-06. In his last year the Pioneers ranked first in the West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WVIAC) and eighth nationally in total defense and held opponents to under 15 points per game.
“Coach Kirkland has excelled as an NCAA Division I coach over the past five years, but he also has extensive experience coaching in the WVIAC, which will benefit our student athletes,” says UC Director of Athletic Tom Nozica. “He will help us continue our recent history of winning at UC.”
Kirkland also spent two years as the secondary coach at Muskingum College (1998-99). He had four all-conference players in the secondary over the two-year stint. He received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in education from Muskingum College. He and his wife, Sarah, had their first child, Sadie, this past summer.
