By: Nolan Alexander
KENNESAW, Ga. – Kennesaw State assistant football coach Tim Glanton has announced his retirement, effective at the end of May. The running backs and special teams coach has been on head coach Brian Bohannon's staff since 2013 as an inaugural member.
"I want to thank Coach Bohannon for the opportunity. When he took this job, I was ready for a change and needed one. He threw me a lifeline and I got rejuvenated," said Glanton. "I appreciate him for giving me an opportunity to finish here with an unbelievable ride in what all we have accomplished. He and this staff have formed a brotherhood. I appreciate and love them."
The rushing attack has ranked in the top three of the FCS in each of the last five seasons, including leading the nation in rushing yards per game in 2017 and 2019. The Owls set the program's all-time record with 352.9 yards per game on the ground in 2018, good for second in the nation among all NCAA Division I FBS and FCS team.
Kennesaw State posted the No. 7 scoring offense in the country in 2019 at 37.9 points per game and the top rushing attack in the nation at 342.4 yards per contest. The Owls set the school record for rushing touchdowns in a season with 58 as KSU recorded its third straight 11-win season and made a third straight appearance in the FCS Playoffs where it knocked off No. 11 Wofford in the opening round.
"Coach Glanton has been a close friend of mine and everyone on this staff for many years and has played a key role in the rise of Kennesaw State football," Bohannon said. "Coach Glanton came to us in 2013 with a history of building programs at the high school level, and I knew that success, combined with who he is as a person and knowledge of the game, would pay dividends to starting football at KSU.
"Needless to say, the proof is in the results. Coach Glanton helped establish our Gold Standard in how we operate. His units have been the best in the nation, and he has helped numerous young men grow into outstanding members of their communities. We all know it here, but I think those outside the program got a look at his impact with the outpouring of messages after he told our team. Our staff will miss him, and I want to thank him for his dedication and efforts for Kennesaw State football."
The special teams unit has flourished under Glanton, converting 399-of-409 (.976) point after attempts during the program's first six seasons, while hitting 59-of-80 field goal attempts. Kennesaw State has also run four kickoffs back for touchdowns in the last four seasons, including two 100-yard returns by Isaac Foster in 2018. Notably, in the spring 2021 season, KSU was ninth nationally with three blocked kicks, and produced a scoop and score on the punt return team.
A freshman All-American, two-time All-Big South selection and 2017 Big South Special Teams Player of the Year Justin Thompson was the definition of efficient in his kicking during the 2018 campaign. Of the nine placekickers in the FCS who made more than 50 PAT's, Thompson was one of three kickers to convert 100 percent of his attempts.
On kickoff returns, KSU led the country averaging 34.09 yards per return, one of two teams in all of Division I to average over 30 yards per return. Freshman returner Isaac Foster was named the 2018 Big South Special Teams Player of the Year after accounting for 237 yards and two touchdowns on kick returns.
In the spring 2021 season, kicker Nathan Robertson was named to the All-Big South Conference first-team special teams after a perfect 19-19 on PAT's and was 5-7 on field goal attempts. Long snapper Jacob Potter, and Foster were named to the second team. Offensively, Foster and Kyle Glover earned spots on the second team as well.
Under Glanton's tutelage in 2016, then-senior running back Chaston Bennett compiled a record-breaking season, earning first-team All-Big South honors while scoring a league-best 14 touchdowns. The big-play threat averaged 11.8 yards per carry, 24.2 yards per catch and led the team with a 127.6 average in all-purpose yards.
In 2015, the Owls became just the second team in Big South history with 300 rushing yards and 300 passing yards in a single game.
"We've recruited some exceptional talent here, especially in the slot back room," said Glanton. "I really didn't know the power of influence I had on a lot of people. It's been powerful to hear the feedback of what people thought about me."
He joined Brian Bohannon's staff in 2013 after a seven-year head coaching career at South Paulding High School in Douglasville, Ga. Similar to his time at KSU as a startup, he took over a startup program at South Paulding in 2006 and led the Spartans to a 29-33 mark in seven years, including 6-4 records in his final three seasons. He also coached 30 players that earned college scholarships, including current Owls assistant coach, Chandler Burks.
Prior to his tenure at South Paulding, Glanton assumed the reins of a struggling East Paulding High School program in 2003 that was just 2-38 in the previous four seasons. The best season of his three-year tenure came in 2004 when Glanton guided the Raiders to a 6-4 mark -- the program's first winning season in 10 years. The team's turnaround helped earn Glanton 7-AAAA Coach of the Year honors.
Glanton's 23 years as a high school football coach also included time at Villa Rica (2002-03; offensive coordinator), Paulding County (2001-02; offensive coordinator), Brooks County (1998-2001; head coach) and Tift County (1995-98; assistant coach).
Glanton played collegiately at West Georgia College (now UWG) from 1985-90 where Bohannon was a graduate assistant coach. He joined the program as a walk-on wide receiver before earning a scholarship. Glanton earned a bachelor's in recreation management in 1989 and health and physical education in 1990.
"I think back to when Coach Bohannon first hired me, even before we had athletes on campus, we were housed at the top of Fifth Third Bank," Glanton said. "To go from those days, to the win against Gardner-Webb, the first conference championship, the first time we played Jacksonville State in the second round of the playoffs, the game at Truist Park, and all the great memories, they will always be with me."
