Less than 8 hours after former coach Adam Dorrel was introduced as the new head football coach at Abilene Christian University, Northwest Missouri State moved quickly to promote Defensive Coordinator Rich Wright to the top position with the two-time Division Two national champion Bearcats.
Wright, a 1996 graduate of Northwest, was introduced as the new Bearcat coach at a Monday afternoon press conference at the J.W. Student Union on the campus in Maryville:
Wright, a native of Hamilton, New York, has been with the Bearcat coaching staff since 2004, including as Defensive Coordinator and assistant head coach for the past six seasons. Northwest Missouri State, under Wright’s teaching, has led the country in total defense for the past three seasons, allowing just 240.9 yards per game in an unbeaten 2016 season.
In addition to his 12 years at Northwest, Wright has coaching experience at Dakota State (1997), Central Methodist (1998), William Penn (1999), and St. Ambrose (2000-2003).
Wright and his wife Sarah, who is also a Northwest alum, have two daughters, Grace and Katie.
