After nearly a two month search, Florida A&M is set to announce it has hired a new head coach.
The school will hire former Buffalo offensive coordinator Alex Wood.
“I am delighted to join the Rattler family,” said Wood.
Wood emerged as a FAMU target after former Kentucky coach Joker Phillips withdrew his name from consideration.
Alcorn State offensive coordinator Willie Simmons, who was also a candidate, was hired by Prairie View. Interim head coach Corey Fuller, another candidate, was told two weeks ago that he would not be one of the remaining finalists.
Wood replaces Earl Holmes who was fired by Athletic Director Kellen Winslow Sr. on Oct. 28.
Holmes had been 6-11 at FAMU since 2013.
Winslow later resigned from his position Dec.15.
“When President Mangum tasked me with completing the search for a head coach with a proven record of developing a competitive football program, possessing high moral and ethical character, a capacity to inspire our student-athletes, and the capabilities to take the program in a new direction, one of the first coaches that came to mind was Alex Wood,” said interim Athletics Director Nelson Townsend.
Wood has more than 30 years of coaching experience at the high school, collegiate and professional levels.
He served as running backs coach at the University of Miami from 1989-93 helping the team win a pair of national championships, including a perfect 12-0 season in 1991. Wood served as head coach at James Madison from 1995-1998 and led them to an 8-4 record and the NCAA Division I-AA playoffs in his first season.
“The stars aligned perfectly for FAMU to get a coach of the caliber of Alex,” Townsend said.
[…] Wood was hired in December after a lengthy search process that saw FAMU change athletic directors in the middle of it all. His mettle will surely be tested this season, as he attempts to turnaround a program that has posted a 17-29 record over the last four years. […]