Todd Graham

College coach infobox


Name = Todd Graham
| Caption =
DateOfBirth = birth date and age|1964|12|5
Birthplace = Mesquite, TX
DateOfDeath =
Sport = Football
College = Tulsa
Conference = C-USA
Title = Head Coach
Contract = $1,100,000
CurrentRecord = 14–4
OverallRecord = 21–10
BowlRecord = 1–1
Awards =
Championships =
CFbDWID = 4160
Player = Y
Years = 1983-1986
Team = East Central
Position = DB
Coach = Y
CoachYears = 1988-1990
1991-1993
1994
1995-2000
2001
2002
2003-2005
2006
2007-"present"
CoachTeams = Poteet HS (Assistant)
East Central (DC)
Carl Albert HS
Allen HS
West Virginia (LBs coach)
West Virginia (Co-DC)
Tulsa (DC)
Rice
Tulsa
FootballHOF =

Todd Graham (born December 5, 1964 in Mesquite, Texas) is the head football coach at the University of Tulsa. He was previously the head coach at Rice University in Houston, Texas.

Playing career

Graham was an all-state defensive back at North Mesquite High School, from which he graduated in 1983. He then went on to play at East Central University in Ada, Oklahoma, where he was a two-time All-NAIA defensive back. After graduation from East Central, Graham had a brief stint with the St. Louis Cardinals of the NFL.

Coaching career

Graham began his coaching career in 1988 as an assistant at Poteet High School in his hometown of Mesquite. He later held head coaching positions at Carl Albert High School in Midwest City, Oklahoma, and Allen High School in Allen, Texas before becoming linebackers coach under Rich Rodriguez at West Virginia University in 2001. [ [http://www.gtrnews.com/greater-tulsa-reporter/1646/head-football-coach-todd-graham-happy-to-be-at-tu Head Football Coach Todd Graham Happy to be at TU] ] The following season Graham was assigned to defensive co-coordinator.

In 2003, he was hired by Steve Kragthorpe as the defensive coordinator at Tulsa, where he helped guide the Golden Hurricane to two bowl games in three seasons. Graham built one of the best defensive units in Conference USA and the nation before leaving the position following his third year at Tulsa for his first head coaching stint.

Rice

Graham was hired as the head coach at Rice on January 1, 2006, following the resignation of long-time coach Ken Hatfield after the Owls had finished 1-11 in 2005. At Rice, Graham raised $5.5 million for renovating Rice Stadium and replacing the dated AstroTurf with FieldTurf. He hired former University of Texas quarterback Major Applewhite as his offensive coordinator, [ [http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=2284752 Applewhite named offensive coordinator at Rice] ] replacing the triple option offense Hatfield had been running with a more balanced attack. Behind quarterback Chase Clement and All-American receiver Jarett Dillard, Rice pulled off the biggest turnaround of the 2006 season, finishing 7-5 and earning an invitation to the New Orleans Bowl, the school's first bowl game since 1960. Graham was named Conference USA Coach of the Year, and was rewarded by the Rice administration with the offer of a significant pay raise and contract extension. [ [http://the.ricethresher.org/sports/2007/01/12/graham_contract_extension Graham strikes deal in contract extension] ] Graham left Rice to accept the head coaching position at the University of Tulsa. This controverisal move did not sit well with many in the Rice community.On November 24, 2007, when Tulsa played Rice at Rice Stadium, the Rice University Marching Owl Band presented a halftime show named "Todd Graham's Inferno" [ [http://mob.rice.edu/history/scripts/2007/Nov24_Tulsa.shtml Todd Graham's Inferno] ] (based on Dante's "The Divine Comedy") which implied that Graham had entered a special circle of Hell when he abandoned Rice for Tulsa. The use of the word "douchebag" in reference to Graham resulted in a formal protest to Conference USA by Tulsa's athletic department. Chuck Throckmorton, the marching band's director, later apologized for the show. [ [http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=3129832 Rice band's 'Todd Graham's Inferno' not a hit with Tulsa] ,] [ [http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/5335557.html Rice band director apologizes for Graham routine] ]

Tulsa

When the Tulsa head coaching position was vacant following the 2002 season, Todd Graham sent in his application. But it was not until five years later that Graham would take over the reins as the Golden Hurricane head coach. After serving three years as Tulsa defensive coordinator and one year as Rice head coach, Graham was introduced as Tulsa's new head football coach on January 12, 2007. [ [http://www.kxmc.com/t/football/85284.asp Graham leaving Rice for Tulsa job] ] He is the 27^th head football coach in Golden Hurricane history.For his offensive coordinators, Graham turned to his good friend Gus Malzahn, then offensive coordinator at the University of Arkansas, [ [http://www.kait8.com/global/story.asp?s=5941114&ClientType=Printable Gus Malzahn Leaves Arkansas] ] as well as then WVU tight ends coach Herb Hand. [ [http://westvirginia.scout.com/2/609200.html Hand Leaves West Virginia For Tulsa] ] He also hired former Tulsa quarterback and Tulsa Union HS coach Bill Blankenship as wide receivers coach.

With an annual salary of $1,100,000 Graham is the second-highest-paid football coach in the Conference USA, behind SMU's June Jones.

Record

CFB Yearly Record Subhead
name = Rice Owls
startyear = 2006
conf = Conference USA
endyear = singleCFB Yearly Record Entry
championship =
year = 2006
name = Rice
overall = 7–6
conference = 6–2
confstanding = 2nd (West)
bowlname = New Orleans
bowloutcome = L
bcsbowl =
ranking = —
ranking2 = —CFB Yearly Record Subtotal
name = Rice
overall = 7–6
confrecord = 6–2CFB Yearly Record Subhead
name = Tulsa Golden Hurricane
startyear = 2007
conf = Conference USA
endyear = CFB Yearly Record Entry
championship = division
year = 2007
name = Tulsa
overall = 10–4
conference = 6–3
confstanding = 1st (West)
bowlname = GMAC
bowloutcome = W
bcsbowl =
ranking = —
ranking2 = —CFB Yearly Record Entry
championship =
year = 2008
name = Tulsa
overall = 4–0
conference = 1–0
confstanding = T–1st (West)
bowlname =
bowloutcome =
bcsbowl =
ranking = —
ranking2 = —CFB Yearly Record Subtotal
name = Tulsa
overall = 14–4
confrecord = 7–3CFB Yearly Record End
overall = 21–10
bcs = no
poll = two
polltype =

References

External links

* [http://tulsahurricane.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/graham_todd00.html Official team biography]