Casey Woods, who has spent the past four seasons as offensive coordinator and football chief of staff at Southern Methodist University, will join Missouri State University as the program's 23rd head football coach, the university announced Friday (Dec. 19).

The announcement came after formal approval of Woods' five-year contract by the university's Board of Governors early Friday. He will be formally introduced at a news conference on the Springfield campus in early January.

Though this will be his first head coaching appointment, Woods has played a pivotal role in leading his previous teams to five league championships across four different conferences - Conference USA, SEC, Sun Belt and American - in two decades of major college coaching experience.

He has also coached in two national championship games, including a 2010 BCS championship team at Auburn. His full coaching resume includes previous stops at his alma mater, Tennessee (2008), Auburn (2009-11 and 2013-15), Arkansas State (2012), UAB (2016-19) and Missouri (2020-21) before his recent tenure under coach Rhett Lashlee at SMU.

"It is the honor of my lifetime to have the opportunity to be the head football coach of the Missouri State Bears," said Woods. "Lauren and I, and our five kids - Waverly, Sawyer, Adaline, Amelia and Savannah - are eager to get to work pouring into our team, staff, university, the city of Springfield and all those invested in Missouri State football.

"We will hit the ground running as we seek to capitalize off the current momentum, alignment and success to bring a championship to Springfield. It takes us all to win. It takes us all to recruit. It takes us all to create an environment where players feel at home. Let's get to work. Go Bears!"

Missouri State Director of Athletics Patrick Ransdell noted his new head coach brings a wealth of experience to Springfield and a brand of football Bears fans will enjoy.

"We are thrilled to welcome Casey Woods as our next head football coach," Ransdell said. "Casey is an absolute winner. He is going to continue our upward trajectory with an unwavering commitment to developing student-athletes on and off the field. His ability to develop offensive talent and recruit top-level talent will make him an ideal fit for Missouri State. I look forward to the Springfield community getting to know Casey, Lauren and the entire Woods family in the coming months.

University President Richard Williams echoed Ransdell's enthusiasm for MO State's new head coach.

"As Missouri State continues its transition and growth at the FBS level, it was critical to identify a leader who understands the demands of this moment," said Williams. "Coach Casey Woods is exactly that leader. His energy, experience, and commitment to excellence position our football program for sustained success.

"Bear Nation will quickly see the passion Casey has for this program and this community. His approach to leadership, recruiting, and player development aligns with the values of Missouri State University, and we look forward to the excitement and momentum he will bring to our campus and fans."

Woods joined the Mustangs coaching staff in December 2021 as offensive coordinator and tight ends coach and has been part of 37 wins in just four seasons. SMU is currently 8-4 heading into a January 2 Holiday Bowl matchup against Arizona with the Mustangs currently ranking 11th nationally in passing offense (283.5), 27th in scoring offense (32.9) and 27th in pass completion percentage (.664).

He was a standout student-athlete at Tennessee, playing in 41 games from 2003-07 as a wide receiver and holder. The Mississippi native was named a team captain as a senior in 2007 and earned SEC All-Academic Team laurels four times. During his five seasons as a player in Knoxville, the Vols went 44-20 with three 10-win seasons.

Woods earned his undergraduate degree from Tennessee in 2006, and went on to earn his graduate degree from UT in 2008. He and his wife Lauren have five children - Waverly Grace, Sawyer Davis, Adaline Leigh, Amelia Ann and Savannah Claire.

Missouri State's new head coach replaces Ryan Beard who resigned a week ago to accept the head coaching position at Coastal Carolina. Since then, offensive coordinator Nick Petrino has served as the Bears' interim head coach while guiding the Bears in Thursday's Xbox Bowl game in Frisco, Texas. Beard was 19-16 in three seasons with the Bears.

Fans are encouraged to check MissouriStateBears.com and follow @MoStateFootball and @MissouriStBears for updates on the pending news conference after the holidays.

In 2024, SMU's sensational run gave the program back-to-back 11-win seasons for the first time in program history and saw SMU climb to No. 7 in the Coaches Poll and No. 8 in the AP Poll. SMU went on to a No. 12 final ranking and CFP appearance. Despite the step up to the Big East, the Mustangs continued to produce on offense at an elite level, averaging 36.5 points a game with 511 points scored on the season.

Woods also played a pivotal role for the Mustangs in 2023, crafting an offensive game plan that led SMU to an 11-3 record while capturing its first American Conference championship. The Mustangs ranked 22nd in the final AP poll, while the offense broke school records for total yards (6,368) and first downs (334) while producing the second-most points (542) in club history. The Mustangs ranked 8th nationally in scoring offense (38.7) and red zone offense (.931) while allowing just 16 sacks.

In his first season as coordinator at SMU (2022), Woods led the Mustangs to a 7-6 ledger with an offense that ranked 14th in the nation in total offense (472.8), 12th in scoring offense (37.2) and seventh in both red zone offense and passing offense (316.7). offense to an average of 37.2 points per game, fifth in a season for the program, as SMU scored 63 touchdowns in thirteen games.

Prior to his time in Dallas, Woods helped Missouri to back-to-back bowl appearances in 2020 and 2021. Off the field, his recruiting classes set back-to-back program highs, with the class of 2022 finishing No. 10 nationally. He served as tight ends coach and recruiting coordinator for the SEC Tigers.

Woods spent three seasons at UAB (2017-19) as tight ends coach, run game coordinator and recruiting coordinator, joining the program when it was reestablished in 2016. Woods helped the Blazers set 21 school records in 2018, including total points (418), total yards (5,680), rushing yards (2,818), total touchdowns (53) and rushing touchdowns (32). UAB posted an 11-3 record and a Conference USA title in 2018, and went to three straight bowl games during Woods' tenure.

He spent the 2013-15 and 2009-11 seasons with current SMU coach Rhett Lashlee at Auburn, and the 2012 season at Arkansas State.

During his three seasons as the Auburn director of player development (2013-15) and three seasons as offensive quality control (2009-11), he was part of the 2010 National Championship team that finished 14-0 and won the BCS Championship Game, as well as the 2013 team which also reached the BCS title game. He helped Auburn with two SEC Championships and was part of three straight top-10 national recruiting classes in his player development role.

As wide receivers coach at Arkansas State, Woods led the unit and served as recruiting coordinator. In his season in Jonesboro, the Red Wolves won the Sun Belt Championship and went 10-3 with a victory over No. 25 Kent State in the GoDaddy.com Bowl.