TULSA, Okla. ––University of Tulsa first-year head football coach Kevin Wilson announced the appointment of Adrian Mayes as running backs coach for the Golden Hurricane.

Mayes’ appointment fills the seventh coaching position on Wilson’s first staff.

Mayes comes to Tulsa following four seasons (2019-22) on the North Texas coaching staff, where he coached tight ends. Before that, Mayes spent three seasons at Texas State (2016-18). He coached the offensive line in 2016 before moving over to tight ends coach for his final two seasons. Mayes also served as the recruiting coordinator for the Bobcats.

In 2018, Mayes coached Pro Football Focus First-Team All-American Keenen Brown, who caught a team-best 51 passes for 577 yards and five scores. Brown, who was also named to the Sun Belt’s first team, had 17 more receptions than the team’s second leading receiver. A year earlier, Mayes coached second-team all-conference tight end Gabe Schrade.

Before his stint at Texas State, Mayes was the director of football recruiting at Houston in 2015. The previous year, he was an offensive graduate assistant at Ohio State in 2014 when the Buckeyes won the first College Football Playoff Championship with victories over Alabama and Oregon.

Mayes began his coaching career as a graduate assistant coach at Rice for three years (2011-13). He spent his first season coaching on the offensive line and his final two seasons assisting with the defensive line for the Owls. Mayes was a part of Rice’s 2013 Conference USA Championship as well as two bowl games, the 2012 Armed Forces Bowl and 2013 Liberty Bowl.

His coaching experience also includes completing an internship with the New York Jets while working with the running backs in the spring and summer of 2013. Mayes also served as a coaching intern with the Los Angeles Chargers working with the tight end position during the teams’ 2019 and 2022 training camp.

Mayes played his collegiate career at Kansas, where he developed into a standout offensive guard and was named the Jayhawks’ Offensive Lineman of the Year as a senior. He initially joined the Jayhawks as a walk-on before being named a two-time honorable mention all-Big 12 and second-team all-academic selection. Mayes played on three bowl championship teams, including the 2005 Fort Worth Bowl, 2008 Orange Bowl and 2008 Insight Bowl.

Mayes earned his bachelor’s degree in business management leadership and a master’s degree in sports administration at Kansas. He also served a graduate assistant on the strength and conditioning staff.

He and his wife, Amy, have a son, Aiden.