Brad Wright Position: Head Coach Alma Mater: Texas State, 1981

Throughout his playing and coaching career at Texas State, it seems that Brad Wright has helped change the course of the school's football history.

As a player, he capped off his collegiate career in 1980 helping Texas State win its first outright conference championship in 17 years.

After returning to his alma mater as an assistant head coach in 2004, Wright helped lead the Bobcats to a Southland Conference co-championship and Texas State's first NCAA Division I FCS playoff berth in 2005.

Then, in his second season as a head coach in 2008, he led Texas State to its first outright Southland Conference championship and first outright conference title since 1982. Texas State also played in the FCS Playoffs for a second time in four years last season.

As he enters his third season as head coach, Wright looks to continuing that history-changing trend by transforming Texas State's football program into a consistent winner.

Wright launched his collegiate head coaching career at his alma mater in the spring of 2007. In his first season, the Bobcats featured an high-powered offensive attack that ranked 18th nationally in total offense and produced a 2,000-yard passer, 1,000-yard rusher and a 1,000-yard receiver in the same season for the first time in school history.

After the season ended, Wright put his troops through a rigorous conditioning program and spring practice to help develop some more consistent and physical play.

Those efforts paid off last fall when the Bobcats posted an 8-5 overall record and won their first outright Southland Conference championship in 2008. The season also featured the school's first non-conference road win since 2001 and the Bobcats clinched the league title with their first overtime win since 2005 with a 48-45 victory at Sam Houston State in the final regular season game. The victory at Sam Houston State also set a school record for most road wins as a NCAA Division I school with five.

Texas State's offense was even more powerful in its second year under Wright as the Bobcats boasted the nation's seventh-best scoring offense and eighth best overall total offense with averages of 36.4 points and 453.23 yards per game. Texas State also tied for 10th in red-zone offensive efficiency and featured a 2,000-yard passer, 1,000-yard runner and a 1,000-yard receiver for the second straight year.

Junior quarterback Bradley George became the first Texas State quarterback in school history to throw for 2,000 yards in two consecutive seasons as he threw for 2,660 yards and 26 touchdowns in 2008. His favorite target was senior wide receiver Cameron Luke, who broke his own school records with 73 receptions for 1,268 yards. Luke also tied a school record for the most touchdowns scored in a season with 17 and became the only receiver in the history of the Southland Conference to catch 10 TD passes in back-to-back seasons. Not to be outdone, sophomore running back Karrington Bush also ran for 1,065 yards in a three-man rotation and ranked second nationally averaging 7.8 yards per carry.

A key to the championship run was the improved play on defense and special teams. The Bobcats ranked 17th in red-zone defense and ranked second among Southland Conference teams in forcing 24 turnovers. Texas State also led the league with 15 interceptions.

Individually, Luke was named a Third-Team All-American and one of the Top 50 FCS players in the nation by collegesportingnews.com. In addition, senior center Jeff Bowen, senior kicker Andrew Ireland and Bush received Honorable Mention All-America honors.

Luke, Bowen, Bush and fullback Blake Burton were chosen All-Southland Conference First-Team, while offensive lineman D.J. Hall, Ireland, defensive end Donavan King and defensive back Morris Crosby attained All-SLC Second-Team honors. Bush also was named an All-SLC Second-Team return specialist as well.

Defensive end Travis Houston was named to the FCS Athletic Directors Association's Academic All-Star Team and joined Burton, quarterback Bradley George and defensive back Will Thompson on the SLC All-Academic Team.

In Wright's first season as head coach, senior punter Chris MacDonald earned All-America First-Team honors, while Luke was an All-Southland Conference First-Team selection after catching 60 passes for 1,035 yards. Bush was named the SLC Freshman of the Year and an All-SLC Second-Team selection as a running back. In addition, Crawford May was an All-SLC Second-Team choice.

Nick Clark was named Texas State's first-ever Draddy Award Finalist, National Football Foundation National Scholar-Athlete and a CoSIDA/ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America Second-Team selection.

The Bobcats have been active in the community too, taking part in campus projects such as Bobcat Build and serving mentorships at area elementary schools.

Wright's association with winning at Texas State dates back to the late 1970s when he originally walked on to the Bobcat football program as a wide receiver before starting one season at running back and then, moving to the defensive side of the ball under Bobcat coaches Bill Miller and Jim Wacker. He was a two-year starter at free safety for Texas State and was a defensive leader on the 1980 Lone Star Conference championship team.

His coaching career began as a student assistant coach for Wacker's 1981 NCAA Division II national championship team. After working two seasons at Louisiana-Lafayette, Wright enjoyed a highly successful tenure as a high school coach in Texas.

Prior to joining the Texas State staff, Wright spent the previous four seasons as the director of athletics and head football coach at New Braunfels' Canyon High School. He helped turn around a struggling Cougar football program. After a pair of one-win seasons, Canyon went 7-2 in 2002 and advanced to the state quarterfinals with an 11-2 record in 2003.

Wright also was the head coach at East Bernard, where his squad was an area finalist in 1999, and at Karnes City where the team posted back-to-back third-place district finishes. He was named head coach at Karnes City after serving as an assistant coach at El Campo for five years. There, he helped lead the program to three district titles. His high school coaching career also includes stops as an assistant coach at Klein Oak and Pearland.

Wright returned to Texas State as an assistant head coach, running back coach and special teams coordinator in 2004. During that span, the Pearsall native played a significant role in the resurgence of Texas State's football program.

Prior to Wright returning to his alma mater, the Bobcats suffered through 15 losing seasons in the 19 years of playing football as a member of the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision. But, since his return, Texas State posted a 38-35 record, won two SLC championships and played in the NCAA Division I FCS Playoffs in 2005 and 2008.

In 2005, Wright's corps of running backs ranked 15th nationally in rushing offense with 228.43 yards per game among NCAA FCS teams. In 2006, Stan Zwinggi ranked third among Southland Conference runners with 735 yards. His special teams unit included three All-Southland Conference First-Team punters in Corey Elolf in 2004 and 2005, as well as Chris McDonald in 2006, and 2005 All-SLC First-Team kicker Stan Jones.

Wright earned his bachelor's degree in physical education from Texas State in 1981. He is married to the former Kim Pesek, a 1996 Texas State alum, and they have a daughter, Paige.