Tulsa’s Joseph Gillespie Takes Over as Defensive Coordinator for the Golden Hurricane
1/3/2019 2:18:00 PM | Football
TULSA, Okla. –– The University of Tulsa linebacker coach Joseph Gillespie will assume the position of defensive coordinator for the Golden Hurricane football team, it was announced today by head coach Philip Montgomery.
Gillespie, 47, has coached linebackers for the Hurricane the past four seasons and will take over as the coordinator of the defense from the retiring Bill Young.
"I'm excited to have Joe move into the role as defensive coordinator. More than anything, Joe was a key part in our transition over to the 3-3-5 look last season, just as was our entire defensive staff," said Montgomery. "Most of Joe's background is out of an odd-front and he was really able to provide a lot of knowledge and experience with this defensive scheme."
"Joe brings tremendous energy, great experience and a lot of excitement and enthusiasm to the position. He does a great job of communicating with our players," said Montgomery.
During Gillespie's tenure, Tulsa linebackers have been extremely productive. In his first season, 2015, Gillespie tutored two 100+ tacklers, Trent Martin and Matt Linscott, while a year later the duo ranked one-two for tackles. In each of the last two years, linebacker Cooper Edmiston totaled over 100 stops, including 106 in 2017 and 113 tackles as a junior this last season. Red-shirt freshman linebacker Zaven Collins earned USA Today Freshman All-America honors in 2018 under the tutelage of Gillespie.
Gillespie helped transition the Hurricane from a base 4-man front to a 3-3-5 alignment this past season and Tulsa's defensive numbers emphatically improved. Tulsa ended the 2018 regular season with the nation's 7th best pass defense, while allowing opponents 120+ yards less in total offense than a year earlier.
"I'm tremendously excited about the opportunity and extremely thankful to coach Montgomery for the confidence he's shown in me and our defensive staff with the direction we're headed as a defense. I'm humbled by it," said Gillespie.
"I'm also extremely thankful to coach Young. He had the opportunity to go out and get any linebacker coach he wanted, and to come in and coach with him has been an awesome experience. Coach Young really took me under his wing and has certainly been instrumental in me getting to this point. I cannot thank him enough for spending the amount of time that he'd allow me to spend with him, and break-out every piece of his knowledge as far as defense is concerned.
"He's truly one of those individuals who has forgotten more than I've ever known from a defensive standpoint. He's just a wealth of knowledge and a great legendary football coach. Those are some huge shoes to be filled with the impact that coach Young had on this University, our football program and these kids. I'm excited about the challenge," added Gillespie.
Before moving to the collegiate ranks in 2015, Gillespie served as the athletics director and head football coach at Stephenville (Texas) High School for seven years. He compiled an overall 75-29 record for a .721 winning percentage, while leading his teams to three district titles and one state championship.
Gillespie's 2012 Stephenville team compiled a 13-1 record, while winning the Class 3A state title that same year. He earned District Coach of the Year honors four times and was the Big Country Coach of the Year three seasons.
Prior to being named the Stephenville head coach, Gillespie served as an assistant coach at the school for 13 years.
Gillespie coached on the defensive side of the ball during his time as an assistant coach, coaching linebackers and defensive backs, while also spending time as defensive coordinator.
"The continuity with Joe leading our defense will be vitally important as we progress. The loss of Bill is great. He brought so much to the table for us, but I know Joe brings a lot of knowledge and experience. I trust him. He's a guy that will bring a ton of energy and enthusiasm to our defense," said Montgomery.
"I think our players will react in an extremely positive manner and be excited about us being able to, No. 1, stay in the defensive scheme we've been in, and No. 2, Joe leading that charge for us."
"We started installing parts of this defense halfway through the 2016 season, and last spring we dove all the way into it. Joe and Bill worked hand-in-hand, along with our defensive staff, in transitioning to this scheme," said Montgomery.
"I think Bill would tell you as well, that he and Joe did a really good job of bouncing ideas off of each other, working through things schematically together, and that the new defensive look really benefitted us," said Montgomery. "It fits our personnel better and allows us to do some different things defensively."
"Obviously, we're headed in the right direction with this defensive scheme. There are more elements that can we can add that will complement what we installed last year, but there's only so much you can do at one time," said Gillespie. "We have grander ideas for our defense. The thing that's fun about running an odd-front is that there are so many different looks you can get from the same personnel on the field. It can be very simple and allows your players to play fast."
A native of Stephenville, Gillespie earned his bachelor's degree in kinesiology from Angelo State University in 1994, while earning four letters as a linebacker.
He and his wife, Jodi, have three children and one grandchild.
