| Current position | |
|---|---|
| Title | Head coach |
| Team | Texas State |
| Conference | Sun Belt |
| Record | 16–10 |
| Annual salary | $800,000[1][2] |
| Biographical details | |
| Born | (1988-12-01)December 1, 1988 (age 36) Mesquite, Texas, U.S. |
| Playing career | |
| 2007 | Texas |
| 2008–2011 | Tulsa |
| 2012 | New York Jets[a] |
| 2012 | Omaha Nighthawks |
| 2013 | San Antonio Talons[a] |
| 2013–2015 | Philadelphia Eagles[a] |
| 2015-2016 | New York Giants[a] |
| 2016 | Calgary Stampeders[a] |
| 2016 | Saskatchewan Roughriders |
| Position(s) | Quarterback |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 2017 | SMU (GA) |
| 2018 | Arkansas (OA) |
| 2019 | Philadelphia Eagles (OA) |
| 2020 | Hawaii (OC/QB) |
| 2021 | UCF (Co-OC/QB) |
| 2022 | Incarnate Word |
| 2023–present | Texas State |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 28–12 |
| Bowls | 2–0 |
| Tournaments | 2–1 |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| 1Southland (2022) | |
| Awards | |
| |
Gary Joe Kinne III (born December 1, 1988) is anAmerican football coach and former player who is currently thehead coach atTexas State University. He played as aquarterback and was signed by theNew York Jets as anundrafted free agent in 2012. He playedcollege football for theTexas Longhorns and theTulsa Golden Hurricane.
Kinne was born inMesquite, Texas, a suburb just east ofDallas, to Gary Joe Kinne and Jocelyne Karr. His father was a former standout linebacker atBaylor University and later an assistant coach atAllen High School,Kaufman High School, and was the defensive coordinator atMesquite High School. In 2003, his father accepted the head coaching job atCanton High School inEast Texas, a town about 60 miles east of Dallas. Kinne became the starting quarterback of the Eagle varsity football team as a freshman. In his first game against rivalGrand Saline High School, Kinne played well and exhibited a strong arm and good accuracy despite a 20–13 loss. It would be a rare loss as he led Canton High to its first playoff victory since 1964 and finished the year as Class AAA area finalists with an 8–4 record. He was namedAll East Texas and was namedThe Tyler Morning Telegraph's East Texas Newcomer of the year. As a sophomore, he led CHS to another good season with an 8–2 record but narrowly missed the playoffs.
In the spring of 2005, Kinne's father, who was also his coach at Canton High, was shot in the chest by the disgruntled parent of one of the players he coached. According to police reports, Jeff Doyal Robertson, the father of a player who had often complained to coaches and administrators regarding the way his son was treated, walked into the Canton Fieldhouse and shot Coach Kinne at point blank range. Robertson then fled in his pickup truck and headed east towardsTyler, Texas. Kinne Sr. was on the phone with another coach who was at another school when he was shot. Kinne Jr. was taken by police into protective custody, and then told that his father had died when in fact he had survived despite being given only a 10% chance to live.[3][4] Robertson was later apprehended in an area north of Tyler nearInterstate 20 where he had slashed his wrists in an apparentsuicide attempt. Robertson was convicted ofaggravated assault with a deadly weapon and was sentenced to 20 years in prison.[5]
After the shooting, Kinne stayed one more year at Canton High School, leading the team to its best season in school history with a 12–2 record, losing toTatum High School, the eventual state champion. After the 2005 season, Kinne's father, who had recovered from his wounds, was offered a job atBaylor University, which he accepted. Kinne then decided to move toGilmer, Texas about 70 miles to the east of Canton, to live with his mother and stepfather. The decision to move was controversial as many speculated that Kinne moved for athletic reasons, which is prohibited by the UIL, the governing body of Texas high school athletics. Kinne enrolled at Gilmer High School and became the starting quarterback, leading the Buckeyes to a 10–0 record, but was upset in the first round of the playoffs by Liberty-Eylau High School. He finished his career with 11,695 passing yards and 130touchdown passes. He also rushed for 3,327 yards with 48 touchdowns.
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | 40‡ | Commit date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G.J. Kinne QB | Gilmer, Texas | Gilmer High School | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 207 lb (94 kg) | 4.6 | Dec 28, 2006 |
Star ratings:Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 78 | ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings:Scout:38 (QB) Rivals:15 (QB), 58 (TX) ESPN:25 (QB) | ||||||
Sources:
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Kinne committed toTexas on December 28, 2006.[6] Kinne also received football scholarship offers fromBaylor,Florida,Nebraska,Oklahoma andTennessee.[7]
Kinne attended theUniversity of Texas at Austin as a redshirt freshman in 2007, but was buried in the depth chart and decided to transfer. He transferred to theUniversity of Tulsa effective May 7, 2008.[8] Kinne became the starting quarterback for the Golden Hurricane in 2009 and remained the starter throughout his career. Recruited under coachGus Malzahn, he finished his career with 9,472 yards and 81 touchdowns. In 2010 he was named C-USA Offensive Player of the Year and First-team All-C-USA as he led the team to a Conference-USA co-championship, a victory over #24 Hawaii in the2010 Hawaii Bowl and a final ranking of #24. In 2011 he led them to an 8-3 regular season record and a trip to the2011 Armed Forces Bowl which they lost in the last 11 seconds to BYU; and he was named to the C-USA second team.
In January 2012, Kinne was named MVP of theNFLPA Collegiate Bowl.[9]
Kinne signed with theNew York Jets as anundrafted free agent on April 28, 2012.[10] He was waived by the team on June 28.[11]
Kinne joined the roster of theOmaha Nighthawks of theUnited Football League for their 2012 season. TheUnited Football League folded later that year.[12]
Kinne signed with theSan Antonio Talons of theArena Football League in December 2012.[13]
On February 28, 2013, Kinne signed with thePhiladelphia Eagles,[14] and he was released on August 30, 2013. On October 22, 2013, Kinne was re-signed to the Eagles practice squad because of injuries to both of its top quarterbacks,Michael Vick andNick Foles.[15][16] Kinne was signed to a futures contract with the Eagles in January 2014. He was released on August 30, but signed to the practice squad the next day. Kinne signed a futures contract with the Eagles on December 30, 2014.[17] He converted to wide receiver in May 2015.[18] On Sunday, August 30, 2015, Kinne was again waived by the Eagles.
On September 9, 2015, Kinne was signed by theNew York Giants and was placed on the practice squad.[19] On September 16, 2015, he was released by the Giants.[20] On September 30, 2015, he was re-signed to the Giants' practice squad.[21] On January 4, 2016, Kinne signed a reserve/future contract with the Giants.[22] On May 5, 2016, the Giants waived Kinne.[23]
Kinne signed with theCalgary Stampeders of theCanadian Football League (CFL) on June 13, 2016.[24] Less than a week later, on June 19, 2016, Kinne was released by the team.[25]
Kinney signed with theSaskatchewan Roughriders (CFL) on June 24, 2016.[26] Kinne made his CFL debut in the final game of the2016 CFL season, completing 4 of 11 pass attempts for 24 yards.[27] Kinne announced his retirement from professional football on May 9, 2017.[28]
Kinne is from theGus Malzahn coaching tree. In 2017, Kinne was hired as an assistant coach withSMU under coachChad Morris. When Morris joined theUniversity of Arkansas before SMU played in theFrisco Bowl, new head coachSonny Dykes chose to have Kinne serve as offensive coordinator and play caller for the bowl game.[29][30] Kinne eventually followed Morris to Arkansas in 2018 as an offensive analyst.
On February 25, 2019, Kinne was named an offensive assistant coach for thePhiladelphia Eagles, working with special projects.[31]
On January 31, 2020, it was announced that Kinne was leaving the Eagles to become the offensive coordinator for theUniversity of Hawaii under head coachTodd Graham.[32]
Kinne joined the staff atUCF as their co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach in 2021, having previously played and been mentored byGus Malzahn at Tulsa. After an injury to starting quarterbackDillon Gabriel early in the season, Kinne helped coach and mentor true freshmanMikey Keene. UCF went 9-4, winning the Gasparilla Bowl againstFlorida and having one of the nation's top offenses in the country.[33]
On December 21, 2021, Kinne was announced as the new head football coach at theUniversity of the Incarnate Word (UIW).[34] In his first year as a head coach, he led his team to aSouthland Conference championship. UIW was the No. 7 national ranking team, and a seed in the FCS Playoffs. The Cardinals reached the semifinals of the 2022 FCS Playoffs and went 12-2 overall. They ranked No. 1 in all of NCAA Division I – FBS and FCS – with 51.5 points and 581.2 yards per game. The team's defense ranked first in FCS in tackles for loss, ninth in sacks, and 38th in scoring defense. Kinne was a finalist for theEddie Robinson Award in 2022, which is presented to the nation's top coach. QuarterbackLindsey Scott Jr. was the 2022Walter Payton Award winner under Kinne. Scott amassed 71 TDs (60 passing, 11 rushing), 4,686 yards of passing, and 712 rushes.[35]
Texas State University hired Kinne on December 2, 2022, to replaceJake Spavital. Kinne took over following the conclusion of Incarnate Word's season.[36] Texas State re-signed Kinne on November 22, 2024 with a new seven-year contract.[37]
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | Coaches# | AP/STATS° | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Incarnate Word Cardinals(Southland Conference)(2022) | |||||||||
| 2022 | Incarnate Word | 12–2 | 5–1 | T–1st | LNCAA Division I Semifinal | 3 | 3 | ||
| Incarnate Word: | 12–2 | 5–1 | |||||||
| Texas State Bobcats(Sun Belt Conference)(2023–present) | |||||||||
| 2023 | Texas State | 8–5 | 4–4 | T–2nd(West) | WFirst Responder | ||||
| 2024 | Texas State | 8–5 | 5–3 | T–2nd(West) | WFirst Responder | ||||
| Texas State: | 16–10 | 9–7 | |||||||
| Total: | 28–12 | ||||||||
| National championship Conference title Conference division title or championship game berth | |||||||||
| |||||||||