STARKVILLE — The Mississippi State football program has lost another assistant coach from its football staff.
New Texas football coach Charlie Strong announced Wednesday that former MSU offensive coordinator Les Koenning has joined his coaching staff as wide receivers coach.
Multiple sources close to the MSU football program confirmed to The Dispatch that Koenning was going to Texas. On Tuesday night, multiple media outlets reported Koenning was going to Texas. Horns247, the 247Sports.com affiliate for Texas, reported Koenning was expected to inform some MSU players of the move Wednesday. A source close to the program confirmed to The Dispatch that Koenning informed personnel at MSU late Tuesday night he was going to Texas.
“I have known Charlie for a long time and am thoroughly, thoroughly impressed with the way he coaches football,” Koenning said in a Texas press release. “I’m just happy to be a part of this because he is a very successful coach, and being able to help him at The University of Texas was really exciting for me.”
Koenning, a Houston native, played at Texas and began his coaching career in Austin as a graduate assistant with the Longhorns in 1981.
In four years at MSU, Koenning’s offense nearly doubled the average number of points scored (15.2 points per game in 2008 to 29.5 in 2012). The last three seasons marked the highest combined three-year offensive output in school history (14,825 yards), breaking almost every offensive school record.
In 2012, Koenning led the MSU passing attack to four school records — passing yardage, completion percentage, completions, and touchdowns — en route to a school record for points (383).
Koenning, 54, spent the past 16 years as an offensive coordinator, starting at Duke in 1998 before stops at Houston (1999), TCU (2000), Alabama (2001-03), Texas A&M (2003-2007), and South Alabama (2008). The last time Koenning was a position coach was 1997, when he was an assistant with the NFL’s Miami Dolphins.
Texas named Strong, the former head coach at Louisville, to replace Mack Brown 11 days ago. Strong brought offensive coordinator Shawn Watson with him from Louisville. Koenning will join a staff that includes Southern California running backs coach Tommie Robinson, Oklahoma State offensive line coach and running game coordinator Joe Wickline, and Texas tight end coach Bruce Chambers.
With Koenning and strength coach Matt Balis having left the program in the offseason, only three members of head coach Dan Mullen’s initial staff in 2009 remain: tight ends coach Scott Sallach, offensive line coach John Hevesy, and safeties coach Tony Hughes. On Tuesday, Mullen hired Ohio State associate director for football strength and conditioning Rick Court as the team’s new strength and conditioning coach.
Court is in his 13th year working strength and conditioning. He spent two seasons with the Buckeyes under coach Urban Meyer. Court spent the 2011-12 season as football strength and conditioning coach at San Diego State. Court, who has four years experience running a strength and conditioning department, helped the Aztecs to an 8-5 record and a berth in the New Orleans Bowl in 2011.
Prior to working at SDSU, Court spent two years as the director of football strength and conditioning at Toledo (2009-10) under current Illinois coach Tim Beckman. During his final season at Toledo, the Rockets went 8-5 and played in the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl.
Follow Matt Stevens on Twitter @matthewcstevens.
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