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Spend a little time with second-year Northern Illinois Head Football Coach Jerry Kill and you'll undoubtedly hear him describe himself as a "hard hat, lunch pail" guy. It's a tribute to his blue-collar roots - Kill was the first member of his family to graduate from college - and to the work ethic instilled in him by his parents, Jim and Sonja, as a youngster in Cheney, Kansas. That blue-collar work ethic is also one of the qualities that made Kill, who spent seven years building the Southern Illinois program into a Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) powerhouse, a perfect fit to succeed Joe Novak as the head coach at Northern Illinois back in December 2007. In his first season at NIU, Kill instilled that hard-working mentality in the Huskies and brought a winning attitude that ultimately resulted in a trip to the 2008 Independence Bowl in Shreveport, La., and made Kill the winningest first-year head coach at Northern Illinois since Bill Mallory in 1980. The Huskies made a four-game improvement from 2007 to 2008 with four more league wins to rank among the top five teams in the Mid-American Conference in victories. Under Kill, NIU defensive end Larry English became the highest draftee in school history as he was the 16th pick in the 2009 NFL draft by the San Diego Chargers, while the Huskies continued their success in the classroom, finishing 2008-09 with a team cumulative grade point average of 2.892. For Kill, being named to the top post at Northern Illinois signified the attainment of a dream. "As a young man growing up in a small town of 2,000 people...I chased a dream," Kill said as he was introduced as the Huskies' 20th head coach on December 13, 2007. "That dream came true today. I will give you every single thing that I have. I will work endless hours and do whatever it takes to do great things and make you all even more proud of the football program." After a childhood spent working jobs on farms, in factories and at grocery stores while playing baseball, football and basketball, Kill gravitated toward coaching because "it didn't feel like work." He attended Southwestern College, a NAIA school in Winfield, Kan., where he played football, met and married his wife, Rebecca, and set out to become a high school biology teacher and coach. But a call from a man who would become one of his mentors, former TCU, Alabama and Texas A&M head coach Dennis Franchione, persuaded him to embark on a career in college football. His passion for the game, and the job, was ignited and has never waned. It is that passion that Kill believes is his greatest attribute. "I think what makes me a good coach is my passion - for the kids who play the game and respect the game," Kill said. "I like dealing with the players. I enjoy seeing young people get better everyday, and when they leave you have made them a better person." On the field, Kill's teams are characterized by discipline and toughness. It is those qualities, as well as players like current New York Giant Brandon Jacobs and Bart Scott of the Baltimore Ravens, that helped his Southern Illinois teams record a pair of victories over Football Bowl Subdivision programs, including a win at Indiana in 2006. "On the field, I want our kids to play smart," he said. "I want them to be mentally and physically tough so they can win in the fourth quarter. I believe in hard work and the harder you work, the better your chances of success. I will push them to the limit. My job is to get the best out of them. "Ultimately, if you don't have great players, you aren't going to win many games." Kill's high expectations for his student-athletes extend from the football field to the classroom, the community and beyond. "I expect our student-athletes to represent our school and our community on and off the field," Kill said. "One of the most important things to me is how they do in life after they leave. I firmly believe that what we do here and how we drive kids over the four or five years will help them down the road." One of the ways Kill and his staff "drive kids" is the Warrior Elite program. Every year, the roster is split into groups who then compete and earn points for everything from academic success to participation in community service activities to on-the-field effort and weight room benchmarks. The program is one more way that Kill and his staff teach teamwork and build leadership. They believe that football is the perfect vehicle to impart skills that have life-long benefits. "Football is such a challenge because you have to get everybody on the same page," Kill said. "Then to get everybody to execute on a given play is difficult. Most college athletes are playing for four or five years and they are very competitive, and you had better be (competitive) when you go out into the real world or you can get swallowed. Competing in athletics gives you an edge." While 2008 marked Kill's first season, and his first wins, as the coach of an NCAA FBS program, the 47-year-old has 15 years of collegiate head coaching experience and, including his six 2008 wins, 110 victories. In seven years at Southern Illinois (2001-07), he led the Salukis to the FCS playoffs in each of his last five seasons and twice earned a national coach of the year honor. He was named the Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year in 2004 following a 10-2 campaign, and won the Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year Award in 2007 while leading SIU to a 12-2 record. Southern Illinois spent 64 straight weeks in the Top 20 between 2003 and 2007 and was ranked in the Top 10 for 12 consecutive weeks in 2007. This past February, he was honored by the Chicago Metro Chapter of the National Football Foundation and College Football Hall of Fame with the NFF Courage Award, which he accepted in a ceremony at Halas Hall, home of the NFL's Chicago Bears. Kill went to SIU from Division II Emporia State in his home state of Kansas, where he spent the 1999 and 2000 seasons. Prior to that, in his first collegiate head coaching post, he led Saginaw Valley State (Mich.) to five consecutive winning seasons and a 38-14 mark from 1994-98. The Cardinals finished 9-2 and were nationally-ranked in each of his final two seasons. Kill began his collegiate coaching career at Kansas small-school powerhouse Pittsburg State, beginning in 1985 with three seasons as the defensive coordinator for the NAIA's Gorillas. After spending the 1988 and '89 campaigns as the head coach at Webb City High School and winning the 1989 state championship, he returned to PSU, this time as offensive coordinator for the then NCAA Division II team under legendary coach Chuck Boyles. He picked up another championship as the Gorillas won the title in 1991 with a 13-1-1 record and advanced to the championship game the next season. "I'm not doing things any differently than I did at Webb City High School," Kill said. "You still have to do the fundamental things; you have to block and tackle. You have to be able to run the football. But I think the real key to my success is the people that I have surrounded myself with. I have always been able to surround myself with good people that are loyal and that can recruit." Along the way, Kill has built an amazingly loyal staff, many of whom have been with him since the early days of his career. Eight of those men joined him at Northern Illinois. At no point in his career were his faith, his family - he and Rebecca have two daughters, Krystal (21) and Tasha (17), a freshman at NIU - and his friends more important than in 2005, when Kill was diagnosed with kidney cancer. The disease proved to be another opponent that Kill was able to defeat as he was treated successfully and the disease is now in remission. That experience prompted the Kills to start the Coach Kill Cancer Fund, a foundation to assist needy families undergoing cancer treatment. The Fund was the recipient of $50,000 as part of the 2007 Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year Award. He and his family also host an annual golf tournament to benefit the fund in southern Illinois. Each of his experiences, from his upbringing to his battle with cancer, has helped Kill keep the game in perspective and his focus on people. "I don't think they put your wins and losses on your tombstone, but you do get judged on how you treat people," he said. "I've learned to appreciate life. I'm a positive person. Every day I get up is a great day. It's made me a better person. Sometimes you have some tough things happen in life. It can make you better or worse. It has made me better and I'm proud to say that. The Lord has blessed me." While some who are involved in the game of college football focus only on the wins and losses, Kill sees the bigger picture. "I like the journey," he says. "Some people live for game day, but I like the journey." Coaching History
Accomplishments • Led Southern Illinois to five straight appearances in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS, formerly I-AA) playoffs, including a semifinal berth in 2007. Honors • National Football Foundation and College Football Hall of Fame Courage Award (2009) ABOUT COACH KILL Playing Experience College High School Family Birthplace Birthdate
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