Lamar Football
Coaching Staff
Brian Mayper
Associate Head Coach - Special Teams/Wide Receivers
When Ray Woodard was announced as Lamar's head football coach, the first hire he made to his staff was associate head coach Brian Mayper.
Mayper, who held the same position for Woodard at Navarro College in 2007, has 18 years of coaching experience and has extensive recruiting ties throughout Texas with particular strengths in the Greater Houston area - including Sugar Land, Katy, Alief and Fort Bend.
Charged with handling wide receivers and special teams at Lamar, both groups had outstanding performances in 2010. Kick returner Octavious Logan established the single-season school record with 661 return yards.
Junior wideouts J.J. Hayes and Marcus Jackson also littered the Lamar record books with their efforts. Hayes finished the year with 52 catches for 745 yards and six touchdowns, with all three marks ranking among the top 10 single season marks in LU history. Jackson added 41 catches for 727 yards, and his eight touchdown grabs is the second-best effort at Lamar.
Mayper was also the special teams coordinator at Navarro where the Bulldogs went 9-3 and claimed a 24-21 win over Georgia Military in the Pilgrim's Pride Bowl to finish the 2007 season ranked fourth in the NJCAA national poll.
Navarro ranked third nationally in total offense (444.6 ypg), fourth in rushing offense (250.5 ypg) and 16th in passing offense (194.2 ypg), while scoring a school-record 428 points (35.7 ppg) in 2007.
Mayper spent two seasons as the offensive coordinator and special teams coordinator at Frisco (Texas) High School when he helped lead the Raccoons to the district and bi-district championships in 2006.
From 1996-2005, Mayper was the co-offensive coordinator and special teams coordinator at Howard Payne University in Brownwood, Texas. During his nine seasons, he recruited six All-America selections and coached five of them personally, while turning out an average of seven all-conference selections each year.
Mayper coached some of the top offensive players in HPU history, including the school's all-time leading passer (Adam King), top running back (Richard Green), place kicker (Drew McMaster) and return specialist (Tyrone Brown), in addition to the No. 2 all-time receiver Walter Hays, who has spent time playing arena football.
The Yellow Jackets ranked first in the nation among Division III teams in punt returns in 1997 and fifth nationally in kickoff returns in 2002. Adam King led the nation in total offense in 2002 and 2004 as HPU was rated fifth and third in the country, respectively.
Prior to his stint at HPU, Mayper coached wide receivers and special teams at Southern Arkansas University in Magnolia, Ark., from 1994-96.
Mayper received his bachelor's degree in kinesiology and mathematics from Sam Houston State University in 1994 and his master's of education in kinesiology from Southern Arkansas in 1995. He was a wide receiver and punter at Sam Houston before a knee injury cut short his career, leading to a position as a student assistant under retired Bearkat coach Ron Randleman.
Mayper was a three-sport letterwinner in football, soccer and track at Elsik High School in Houston, where he graduated in 1989.
He and his wife Theresa have been married for 15 years and have two daughters, Myka and Mia.
Craig McGallion
Assistant Coach - Co-Defensive Coordinator/Linebackers
Former University of Houston standout and long-time defensive coordinator at Silsbee High School Craig McGallion joined Ray Woodard's initial staff at Lamar on June 16, 2008, as an assistant coach.
McGallion comes to Lamar after serving on the Silsbee staff under his brother Bobby for 10 years, where the Tigers made the playoffs six times. In the last few years McGallion coached former standouts William Morrisey and Ahmad Jones, a pair of first-team all-state defensive linemen who signed with Texas A&M and Oklahoma State, respectively.
"I have known Craig for my entire coaching career and he comes from a great coaching family," Woodard said. "He will bring his strong abilities as a coach and recruiter to our program."
McGallion spent three seasons as the head coach at Barbers Hill from 1995-98 following a two year stint at Woodville from 1993-94. He led Woodville to the playoffs in his first season with a 6-4-1 mark.
From 1989-93 he spent time in the Cy-Fair Independent School District at both Cy-Fair HS and Cy-Creek HS. He mentored future NFL Pro Bowl selection Sam Adams, who played at Texas A&M, along with Shane Rink, who started at Texas, while at Cy-Creek.
McGallion was a three-year letterman and two-year starter at nose guard at the University of Houston. He received his bachelor's degree in Education from UH in 1984.
McGallion graduated from Silsbee HS in 1979. He was an all-state selection at linebacker who was also a member of the 1977 Tiger team that reached the state semifinals. He also played in the 1979 Texas High School All-Star Game.
He has been married to his wife Gayle since 1983 and the couple has a son, Lance, who will be a Cardinal football manager beginning this fall, and a daughter, Lacey, who attends Lamar Institute of Technology.
Todd Whitten
Offensive Coordinator
Todd Whitten, who brings 11 years of head coaching experience at the college level, is in his first season as offensive coordinator for the Lamar University football program.
Whitten knows the Southland Conference well, having spent the past five seasons as the head coach at Sam Houston State. Whitten compiled a 25-28 record at Sam Houston State with his best seasons being 2006 and 2007, when the Bearkats had runner-up finishes in the Southland Conference with 6-5 and 7-4 records, respectively.
During those two seasons, Whitten coached the Bearkats' first ever back-to-back 1,000-yard rushers, directed the university's all-time leader in both passing and total offense (current New York Giant quarterback Rhett Bomar) and ranked sixth in total offense in NCAA Division I FCS.
Prior to taking over the Sam Houston State program, Whitten helped usher in a new era of winning as the head coach at Division II Tarleton State. In the six seasons prior to his arrival, Tarleton managed only 21 victories. From 2000 to 2004 under Whitten, the Texans went 40-18 and won the 2001 Lone Star Conference title. In addition to making the school's first ever national playoff appearance, Tarleton State finished the 2001 season ranked 10th in the Division II final poll.
Whitten continued his success in 2002 and 2003 by winning the Lone Star North Division and ranking among the Top 20 in the Division II final polls. Under Whitten's leadership, TSU set 30 school records and produced 80 All-Lone Star Conference players. Whitten garnered Coach of the Year honors four times while leading the Texans.
In addition to spending 11 years as a head coach, Whitten has 10 years of experience as an assistant coach at the Division I level. Whitten spent time at Texas Tech, New Mexico State, Texas-El Paso, Wyoming and Sam Houston.
A native of Dallas, Whitten enjoyed a stellar playing career at Stephen F. Austin in both football and baseball. He ranks second in SFA career passing yards (6,304) and touchdown passes (60) and earned All-Gulf Star Conference honors.
A 2001 inductee into the SFA Athletics Hall of Fame, Whitten earned a bachelor's degree in education from Stephen F. Austin in 1987 and a master's in education from Texas Tech in 1990.
Whitten and his wife, Dana, have four children, Brady (25), Blaze (22), Tate (16) and Maddie (14).
Allen Johnson
Co-Defensive Coordinator/Secondary Coach
Allen Johnson, who coached the cornerbacks at the University of Texas-El Paso the past three seasons, is the newest addition to coach Ray Woodard's Lamar University staff, having coming aboard in early July as the co-defensive coordinator and secondary coach.
Johnson, who earned his bachelor's degree in health and kinesiology at Texas A&M-Commerce in 1999 and his master's degree in the same field a year later, played collegiately at Kilgore College, Central Oklahoma and A&M-Commerce. When he was at Kilgore, he played under Woodard who was then Kilgore's defensive coordinator.
After taking a break in his college career to serve in the U.S. Air Force, Johnson earned All-Lone Star Conference South Division honors and a trip to the Snow Bowl as a senior in 1998. He also competed for the A&M-Commerce track and field team and served as president of the school's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.
At UTEP, Johnson coached such star defensive backs as Cornelius Brown, Melvin Stephenson and Clarence Ward, all of whom played briefly in the National Football League.
Before coming to UTEP, Johnson spent the 2007 season as the defensive backs coach and recruiting coordinator at Midwestern State University, which fielded the top defense in the Lone Star Conference that year. In going 8-3 that season, Midwestern State led the league in scoring defense (18.6 points-per-game average), total defense (294.2 yards-per-game average) and rushing defense (93.9 yards per game).
In 2006, Johnson served as the quality control coach at Oklahoma State University, helping lead the Cowboys to seven wins and an Independence Bowl victory.
Johnson started his coaching career at Texas A&M-Commerce in 1999, and after two years there, he spent the next four seasons in the high-school coaching ranks at Gaither HS in Tampa, Fla., at Plant HS in Tampa and at Newman Smith HS in Carrollton, Texas.
Johnson doubled as the secondary coach and recruiting coordinator at Blinn College in 2005, helping the team qualify for the National Junior College Athletic Association playoffs.
Johnson, who was an all-district defensive back at Desoto High School, and his wife, Jennifer, have three daughters - Jayla, Kyra and Olivia.
Nathan Reeves
Offensive Line
Nathan Reeves is in his first full year with the Lamar football program after serving as an assistant for three years at Sam Houston State.
In Huntsville, he was responsible for the Bearkat running backs and offensive video and scouting reports.
He has worked with three All-Southland Conference selections, mentoring tight end Blake Martin in 2006, running back Chris Poullard in 2007 and fullback Matthew Powledge.
Reeves was a two-year football letterman at Hardin-Simmons, playing on NCAA Division III nationally-ranked teams in 2002 and 2003. He was a student assistant for the Cowboys in 2005, working with the quarterbacks and wide receivers.
He served as a graduate assistant at West Texas A&M in the spring of 2006 before joining the Bearkat staff.
The Orangefield product earned his bachelor of behavorial science degree from Hardin Simmons in 2005. He majored in sports fitness and leisure studies.
He received his masters in education from Sam Houston State in 2007. He is the son of Clyde and Lou Reeves.
Will Richard
Assistant Coach - Defensive Line
Will Richard, who grew up in Beaumont and was a two-sport athlete at West Brook HS, has returned home as an assistant coach at Lamar. He was hired on June 16, 2008.
Richard spent the 2007 season as the offensive line coach at Navarro College under current Lamar head coach Ray Woodard.
The Bulldogs ranked third nationally in total offense (444.6 ypg), fourth in rushing offense (250.5 ypg) and 16th in passing offense (194.2 ypg), while scoring a school-record 428 points (35.7 ppg) in 2007.
Offensive lineman JaMarcus Webb was named first team All-America by the NJCAA and running back Tyrone Ross ranked 13th in the nation in rushing with 1,079 yards and eighth in touchdowns with 12.
All five of his starting offensive linemen signed Division I - FBS scholarships during the February 2008 signing period.
In 2006, Richard was the assistant head coach and offensive line coach at South Lenoir High School in Deep Run, N.C. following a year at Blinn College in Brenham, Texas. While at Blinn, the Buccaneers ranked 24th in the nation in total offense with 344.8 ypg.
He also has made stops at the University of Central Oklahoma, Tarleton State University and Trinity Valley College. At TSU, he was a student coach under current Lamar offensive coordinator Todd Whitten.
He enlisted in the Marines from 1992-96 and served tours of duty in Okinawa, Japan and Cherry Point, N.C. before going into private business for two years. Richard earned his bachelor's degree from Tarleton State in 2003 and his master's from Central Oklahoma in 2005.
He played football and baseball at West Brook and was a member of the Bruins' 1991 gridiron squad that was ranked as high as No. 3 in the state.
James Brown
Running Backs Coach
Beaumont native and former University of Texas quarterback James Brown is in his second season as the running backs coach at Lamar.
He has spent the majority of the last six years playing professionally in NFL Europe and the Arena Football League after his standout career at Texas. He played for the Scottish Claymores in 2002 - the same time Woodard was the defensive coordinator - and led the Frankfurt Galaxy to the World Bowl title in 2003.
He played four years of arena football with Nashville, leading the Kats to the Arena Bowl in 2000 and 2001, a year with San Jose and a year with Georgia.
From 2003-05 he was the offensive coordinator at Hyde Park Baptist in Austin where the team reached the TAPPS state semifinals all three years.
He played for the CenTex Barracudas of the Intense Football League as a midseason replacement and led the team to a six wins in eight games and a spot in the league semifinals.
Brown was a four-year letterwinner at Texas and finished his career with 30 school records, including passing yards (7,638), total offense (8,049) and touchdown passes (53). In 1995 he became the first UT quarterback in 20 years to earn first-team All-Southwest Conference honors en route to leading the Longhorns to the final SWC championship, a 10-2-1 record, and a berth in the Sugar Bowl. He was also named SWC Offensive Player of the Year that season.
As a senior in 1996, he led the Longhorns to its first Big 12 Conference title with a win over Nebraska in the inaugural Big 12 Championship Game. He became a UT?legend in that contest on a play called "Roll Left" with a 61-yard pass to tight end Derek Lewis that led to a Priest Holmes touchdown to clinch the game.
He earned his bachelor's degree in management from Texas in 2000 and is also a licensed real estate appraiser who has run an income tax business in the Austin area.
Brown graduated from West Brook HS in Beaumont in 1993 and was a two-sport star in football and basketball. The football program went 20-0 during his two seasons as a starter, while on the basketball court he became just the second tenth grader to play on the varsity team in school history.
Patrick Resby
Graduate Assistant Coach - Secondary
Former Kansas Jayhawk Patrick Resby begins his second season as a graduate assistant coach with the Lamar football program and will be working with the defensive secondary.
Prior to joining the Lamar staff, Resby spent time with the Buffalo Bills as an undrafted free agent.
A native of Houston, Resby played safety for the Jayhawks in 2007 and 2008 after two years under Coach Woodard at Navarro College. While at Navarro, Resby was ranked as one of the top 50 junior college defensive backs in the country by Rivals.com.
During his time at Kansas, Resby helped the Jayhawks enjoy one of their most successful seasons ever. As a junior, Resby started nine games for a KU team that finished 12-1 and defeated No. 3 Virginia Tech 24-21 to win the FedEx Orange Bowl.
As a senior, Resby played in 11 games as Kansas finished 8-5 and beat Minnesota 42-21 to win the Insight Bowl.
While at Navarro, Resby earned honorable mention honors as a freshman and sophomore, recording 73 tackles each season. He added three forced fumbles, a sack and an interception as a sophomore.
Resby was an All-Greater Houston performer at Forest Brook High School as a senior, adding all-district honors at both defensive back and tight end.
Resby earned his bachelor's degree in general studies from Kansas in 2009 and is pursuing a master's in kinesiology while at Lamar. He is the son of Patrick Resby Sr. and Deidra Barrow and stepmother Angela Resby.
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