MANHATTAN, Kan. – A 19-year coaching veteran who has presided over explosive offenses during his eight seasons as a coordinator, Sean Gleeson has been hired as Kansas State’s offensive coordinator, head coach Collin Klein announced Monday.
Gleeson comes to Manhattan from Missouri where he spent the last two seasons working with the Tiger quarterbacks.
“My family and I are beyond grateful to join Coach Klein in this new era of K-State football,” Gleeson said. “I’ve always admired this program from afar, and I am especially aware of the toughness and discipline required to wear purple. I cannot wait to foster those same ideals in our players and help continue winning ways in Manhattan.”
This will be Gleeson’s second tour of duty in the Big 12 as he was the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Oklahoma State in 2019 before taking the same position at Rutgers.
“Sean is one of the smartest football coaches I have been around,” said Klein. “Hard working, competitive, and very high character are all traits he possesses. He will be a tremendous teammate and bring new perspective to our offensive staff room.”
Last season, Gleeson helped Missouri produce an 8-5 record while working with two different quarterbacks throughout the season due to injury. Those players, Beau Pribula and true freshman Matt Zollers, combined to throw for 2,444 yards and 15 touchdowns. The year prior, Missouri went 10-3, which included a win over Iowa in the Music City Bowl. The Tigers finished the 2024 season ranked fifth nationally in fewest passes intercepted (5), 10th in red zone offense (92.0%) and 16th in third down conversions (46.4%).
Gleeson went to Missouri after spending one year as a senior offensive analyst at Northwestern. It was his fourth year in the Big Ten as he spent the three previous seasons as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Rutgers. A 2020 candidate for the Broyles Award – which is given annually to the top assistant coach in the nation – Gleeson mentored two NFL draft picks in wide receiver Bo Melton (Seattle) and running back Isaiah Pacheco (Kansas City), the latter of which was on Super Bowl winning teams in 2022 and 2023.
Under Gleeson control, Rutgers finished as the fourth-most improved team in the nation by scoring 13.4 more points per game in 2020 than the year prior to his arrival. Despite the fact that the Scarlet Knights played in three fewer games due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Rutgers scored 81 more points than in 2019, which was the sixth-best improvement in the nation. Additionally, RU was the most improved in the Big Ten in total offensive touchdowns (plus-9) in only 10 games. During his time guiding the offense, four players earned All-Big Ten honors.
Gleeson spent the 2019 campaign at Oklahoma State, helping the Cowboys to an 8-5 record – including a pair of ranked wins – and an appearance in the Texas Bowl. Under his tutelage, the Cowboy offense ranked 17th nationally in rushing offense (229.6 yards per game), 21st in total offense (453.9 yards per game) and 35th in scoring offense (32.5 points per game).
He helped guide running back Chuba Hubbard, a Consensus All-American who led the nation in rushing yards (2,094) and all-purpose yards (179.54 yards per game), while he was third in rushing touchdowns (21) and eighth in scoring (9.8). Hubbard, the 2019 Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year, eventually went on to be selected in the fourth round of the 2021 NFL Draft by Carolina.
Prior to his time at the Power 4 level, Gleeson spent six seasons at Princeton as the running backs coach (2013-15), special teams coordinator (2016) and offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach (2017-18). Engineering one of the most explosive offenses in the FCS, he helped the Tigers to an unblemished 10-0 campaign in 2018. Under Gleeson, Princeton finished that season first in the FCS in scoring offense (47.0 points per game) and second in total offense (536.8 yards per game).
Gleeson’s unit wasn’t only one of the best in the FCS during his time as offensive coordinator. In fact, over the 2017 and 2018 seasons, Princeton ranked fourth in the country among all FBS and FCS teams by averaging 42.6 points per game, while the Tigers ranked sixth with 509.9 yards per game.
In Gleeson’s six years on staff, Princeton won three Ivy League championships and averaged 36.9 points per game, which marked the program’s highest output over a six-year stretch in program history.
Gleeson began his coaching career at Delbarton School in Morristown, New Jersey, where he coached football, baseball and bowling from 2007 through 2010. His first job at the collegiate ranks came in 2011 and 2012 when he was the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Fairleigh Dickinson.
A native of Glen Ridge, New Jersey, Gleeson played quarterback at Williams College, a Division III program in Williamstown, Massachusetts. He was the highest-rated passer in the New England Small College Athletic Conference in 2005 with a rating of 163.6, and a year later he led the Ephs to an 8-0 mark. Gleeson received the Farley Award in 2006, which is presented to the member of the football team who demonstrates superior qualities of dedication, loyalty and sacrifice for the betterment of the team. He also played first base for the baseball team at Williams.
Gleeson obtained his undergraduate degree in English from Williams College in 2007. He and his wife, Lauren, have three children, Eamon, Patrick and William.
THE SEAN GLEESON FILE
Hometown: Glen Ridge, N.J.
College: Williams College – Bachelor’s degrees in English (2007)
Family: Wife: Lauren; Children: Eamon, Patrick, William
Playing Career: Williams (quarterback)
SEAN GLEESON’S COACHING CAREER
2007-10, Delbarton School (Assistant Coach)
2011-12, Fairleigh Dickinson (Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks)
2013-15, Princeton (Running Backs)
2016, Princeton (Running Backs/Special Teams Coordinator)
2017-18, Princeton (Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks)
2019, Oklahoma State (Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks)
2020-22, Rutgers (Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks)
2023, Northwestern (Senior Offensive Analyst)
2024, Missouri (Offensive Analyst/Quarterbacks)