Jim Knowles (born April 16, 1965) is an American

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

coach and former player. He is currently the

defensive coordinator A defensive coordinator (DC) is a coach responsible for a gridiron football team's defense. Generally, the defensive coordinator, offensive coordinator and special teams coordinator represent the second level of a team's coaching structure, wit ...

Penn State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsyl ...

. Knowles served as the head football coach at

Cornell University Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...

from 2004 to 2009.

Career

A 1987 graduate of

, Knowles was a

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

on the Big Red football team. He was elected to Cornell's

Sphinx Head Society The Sphinx Head Society is the oldest senior honor society at Cornell University. Sphinx Head recognizes Cornell senior men and women who have demonstrated respectable strength of character on top of dedication to leadership and service at Cornel ...

during his senior year, ultimately graduating with a B.S. in Industrial and Labor Relations in 1987. Prior to receiving the head coach position, Knowles served as an assistant at Cornell,

Western Michigan University Western Michigan University (Western Michigan, Western or WMU) is a Public university, public research university in Kalamazoo, Michigan, United States. It was initially established as Western State Normal School in 1903 by Governor Aaron T. B ...

and the

University of Mississippi The University of Mississippi (Epithet, byname Ole Miss) is a Public university, public research university in University, near Oxford, Mississippi, United States, with a University of Mississippi Medical Center, medical center in Jackson, Miss ...

Cornell

From 2004 to 2009, he compiled a 26–34 record as head football coach at

Duke

On December 28, 2009, Knowles was named the defensive coordinator at Duke under head coach

David Cutcliffe David Nelson Cutcliffe (born September 16, 1954) is an American former college football coach who most recently served as the head football coach of the Duke Blue Devils. Under Cutcliffe, in 2012 the Blue Devils ended an 18-year bowl drought an ...

. Knowles had previously served as linebackers coach under Cutcliffe while he was head coach at the

(Ole Miss) in 2003.

Oklahoma State

On January 29, 2018, Knowles was hired as the defensive coordinator at

Oklahoma State Oklahoma State University (informally Oklahoma State or OSU) is a public land-grant research university in Stillwater, Oklahoma, United States. The university was established in 1890 under the legislation of the Morrill Act. Originally known ...

under head coach

Mike Gundy Michael Ray Gundy (born August 12, 1967) is an American college football coach and former player. He is the head football coach at Oklahoma State University. Gundy played college football at Oklahoma State, where he played quarterback from 1986 t ...

, and held the position through the

2021 season 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sp ...

. During Knowles' time at Oklahoma State, the Cowboys' defense saw significant statistical improvements. After regressing in areas like opponent points per play and opponent yards per play during Knowles' first season, Oklahoma State's defense improved in each of Knowles' next three seasons. For the

, Knowles' defense finished top ten in areas such as opponent points per play, opponent points per game, opponent yards per play, opponent yards per game, opponent yards per rush attempt, opponent rushing yards per game, team sack percentage, and sacks per game.

Ohio State

Ohio State Buckeyes The Ohio State Buckeyes are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Ohio State University, located in Columbus, Ohio. The athletic programs are named after the colloquial term for people from the state of Ohio and after the state tree, ...

head coach Ryan Day announced on December 7, 2021 that Knowles had accepted the defensive coordinator position for his team, effective January 2, 2022. For the 2024-2025 season, Knowles' defense ranked 1st in yards allowed, 1st in scoring defense, and 1st in red zone defense in college football. Knowles helped Ohio State win the National Championship that same season, the first in the new 12-team College Football Playoff format.

Penn State

On February 4, 2025, Knowles was officially introduced as the new defensive coordinator at Penn State, replacing previous defensive coordinator Tom Allen.

Head coaching record

References

External links

Oklahoma State profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Knowles, Jim 1965 births Living people American football defensive ends Cornell Big Red football coaches Cornell Big Red football players Ohio State Buckeyes football coaches Oklahoma State Cowboys football coaches Ole Miss Rebels football coaches Western Michigan Broncos football coaches St. Joseph's Preparatory School alumni Cornell University School of Industrial and Labor Relations alumni Players of American football from Philadelphia Coaches of American football from Pennsylvania