(From the University of Findlay)
The University of Findlay has hired Tyler Johns as its head football coach, Director of Athletics Jim Givens announced on Friday, Dec. 19.
Coach Johns, who played for the Oilers from 2009-2012, returns to Findlay from Gardner-Webb University in Boiling Springs, North Carolina where he was most recently the interim head coach and served the last two years as the Runnin’ Bulldogs Offensive Coordinator / Offensive Line coach.
“I would like to sincerely thank (President) Dr. Katherine Fell, (Vice President) Mrs. Brandi Laurita, and especially (Director of Athletics) Jim Givens for the opportunity to lead the University of Findlay football program”, said Coach Johns. “The University of Findlay is home, and it has been instrumental in shaping who I am as a leader, educator, and mentor. I am incredibly excited to once again wear the Orange and Black and to invest in our Oilers, past, present, and future.”
He went on to compliment his former coach and Findlay’s latest head coach, Kory Allen. “Coach Allen has done an outstanding job elevating the football program and I will work tirelessly to build upon the success he has achieved while bringing a renewed energy, passion, and purpose to the lives of our student-athletes.”
A 2012 all-Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) lineman for the Oilers, Coach Johns first got into coaching immediately after college, working as an Assistant Offensive Line Coach at Iowa Western Community College. From there, he transitioned to the University of Illinois where he was a graduate assistant for two years, working on the offensive line with multiple future NFL players.
His first full-time job came in 2017 where he became the Offensive Line Coach / Recruiting Coordinator at Ohio Dominican University in Columbus, Ohio. In his time with the Panthers, ODU won a Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) conference championship and boasted one of the top offenses in the country. In that time, ODU had seven offensive lineman earn all-conference honors and had a pair of all-Americans on offense including Harlon Hill Nominee and G-MAC Player of the Year at quarterback.
In 2019 he moved on to Tiffin University where he debuted as the Run Game Coordinator / Offensive Line Coach, but eventually became the Offensive Coordinator for a program that won three G-MAC titles and went to the NCAA Division II Playoffs twice in five seasons. At Tiffin, Coach Johns led his offensive lineman to 19 all-conference awards and called plays for an offense that produced a three-time G-MAC Player of the Year at quarterback.
“We are excited to welcome back to Findlay Coach Tyler Johns and his family”, commented Director of Athletics Jim Givens. “From the beginning of this process, it was clear that Tyler carried all the attributes that we desire in a head football coach here at Findlay. He has a proven track record of developing student-athletes to be their best on and off the field and possesses a high-level knowledge of the game that makes him exactly what we require in a head coach. As an alumni of our university and former coach within our league, he also has an understanding and passion for the history and tradition of Findlay football that we believe will this a seamless transition.”
Coach Johns will be introduced officially as Findlay’s head football coach in the Gardner Football Complex on Tuesday, December 30 at 2:00 pm. Fans will be able to watch the press conference live on the Great Midwest Digital Network. Johns will later be introduced to the public at the men’s basketball game in Croy Gymnasium at 7:00 pm that evening.