Northwest Missouri State University Director of Athletics Dr. Andy Peterson has appointed John McMenamin as the new head coach of the Bearcat football program. McMenamin, a Bearcat alum, becomes the 21st head coach in school history.
McMenamin, a native of Elkhorn, Nebraska, served as the offensive co-coordinator/pass game coordinator/wide receivers coach at Tulane University in New Orleans from December 2021 to July 2023. He helped orchestrate the biggest one-year turnaround in NCAA history as the Green Wave went from 2-10 to 10-2. Tulane scored a 2023 Cotton Bowl Classic victory over USC, 46-45. The Green Wave ranked No. 9 in the nation in team passing efficiency (160.48), No. 18 in scoring (36.0 points/game) and No. 20 in red-zone offense (86.8 scoring percentage).
Northwest will be McMenamin’s second head coaching job. He was the head coach at Wayne State College in Wayne, Nebraska, from December 2019 to December 2021. McMenamin delivered the program’s first seven-win seasons in 11 years with a 7-4 record that included victories over nationally-ranked foes in Minnesota-Duluth and Minnesota State. McMenamin helped expand the Wildcat football roster from 55 to 120 players through focused recruitment.
In his previous stint at Wayne State, McMenamin was the offensive coordinator from April 2011 to December 2014. McMenamin was the offensive coordinator at the University of Central Missouri from January 2015 to December 2019. The Mules had the No. 1-ranked total offense in NCAA Div. II football in 2019 (547.5 yards/game) and the No. 2-ranked total offense in 2017 (524.4 yards/game). He coached quarterback Brook Bolles to a pair of Harlon Hill finalist nods (8th in 2017; 6th in 2019). McMenamin served as offensive coordinator at Midland University in Fremont, Nebraska, in 2009-2010. He helped turn around a Warrior program that went 8-3 in 2010 while finishing No. 22 nationally in NAIA. McMenamin was credited with making Midland University one of the top rushing teams in NAIA football, ranking as high as 12th in 2009. He also served as an assistant coach at Nebraska-Omaha from 2006 to 2008.
McMenamin played football at Northwest from 1998 to 2002 and was a part of two national championship squads in 1998 and 1999. He was a member of four MIAA championship squads and was voted a team captain in 2002. McMenamin set 27 Northwest and MIAA passing records during his playing days. He still holds the Northwest school records for passing yards in a game (473 vs. Central Missouri) and total offense in a game (475 vs. Central Missouri). McMenamin passed for 6,225 yards on 488-of-811 attempts and 48 career touchdown tosses.
McMenamin gained his Bachelor of Science degree in geography from Northwest in 2002. He obtained his master’s degree in urban studies from the University of Nebraska at Omaha in 2008. He and his wife, Andrea, have two children, Jackson and Jessa. A formal press conference to announce McMenamin as the Bearcat head coach will be scheduled at a later date.
