Turner Gill announces wide receivers coach Darrell Wyatt is heading for Texas

By Matt Tait     Jan 2, 2011

After just one season in Lawrence, Kansas University football coach Turner Gill already is looking to replace one member of the coaching staff he has touted since arriving.

Sunday afternoon, KU announced that wide-receivers coach Darrell Wyatt was leaving Kansas to take the same job at the University of Texas. Wyatt, who also held the title of co-offensive coordinator at KU, also will be UT’s co-recruiting coordinator.

This marks the second time Wyatt has left KU. In 2000, he left Terry Allen’s staff to take a job at Oklahoma State, where he worked under current LSU coach Les Miles. That move was about building his resume and growing as a coach. This one seems to be more about family. Wyatt grew up in Killeen, Texas, and has strong ties to the state, which has helped him become one of the top recruiters in the area.

“Kansas is a great place and has been a special place for me,” Wyatt said in a release Sunday night. “Coach Gill and the staff are outstanding and are building something really special here. The opportunity to be close to home and get back to Texas was too much. It is a great deal for me and my family to be close to home.”

Wyatt said the decision to leave was not an easy one and was not made without a lot of contemplation.

“Turner made it very obvious that he wanted to keep me here,” Wyatt said. “He and the rest of the staff expressed how much we were wanted here, and I really appreciated that.”

Ultimately, though, the mighty Longhorns and comfort of home won out. And now Gill is searching for a receivers coach.

“We appreciate everything Darrell has done for Kansas football,” Gill said. “He is an outstanding coach. This is an opportunity for him to get closer to his family and his wife’s family. We hope the best for the entire Wyatt family.”

Wyatt, 44, has bounced around throughout his 21-year coaching career. In addition to his two stints at KU, Wyatt’s travels have taken him to: Trinity Valley, Sam Houston State, Wyoming, Baylor, Oklahoma State, Oklahoma, the Minnesota Vikings, Arizona and Southern Mississippi.

Briscoe finds the end zone

Former KU wide receiver took another step forward Sunday, scoring the first touchdown of his NFL career during the first half of Tampa Bay’s 23-13 victory against New Orleans.

Briscoe was Tampa Bay’s leading receiver on the day. He finished with 65 yards on four catches, giving him 93 yards and six receptions for the season.

The victory pushed the Buccaneers to 10-6, which put them tied with Green Bay for the sixth and final playoff spot in the NFC. The Packers won the tiebreaker, though, and the Bucs will miss the playoffs. But Briscoe’s strong finish should give him a solid start on the 2011 season.

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Written By Matt Tait

A native of Colorado, Matt moved to Lawrence in 1988 and has been in town ever since. He graduated from Lawrence High in 1996 and the University of Kansas in 2000 with a degree in Journalism. After covering KU sports for the University Daily Kansan and Rivals.com, Matt joined the World Company (and later Ogden Publications) in 2001 and has held several positions with the paper and KUsports.com in the past 20+ years. He became the Journal-World Sports Editor in 2018. Throughout his career, Matt has won several local and national awards from both the Associated Press Sports Editors and the Kansas Press Association. In 2021, he was named the Kansas Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. Matt lives in Lawrence with his wife, Allison, and two daughters, Kate and Molly. When he's not covering KU sports, he likes to spend his time playing basketball and golf, listening to and writing music and traveling the world with friends and family.