Kent State fires football coach Kenni Burns following investigation
Athletic director Randale Richmond said in a statement that offensive coordinator Mark Carney would serve as the interim coach for the upcoming season with a national search taking place at the end of the year.
'At this time, our focus will be to support our student-athletes and provide them with the best opportunity to have a positive and competitive experience,' Richmond added.
Kent State did not provide details on why Burns was fired.
Burns, who had a 1-23 record, was put on administrative leave with pay on March 27, a couple of days before the Golden Flashes began spring practices. Kent State was 0-12 last season, the fifth time in school history they had gone winless.
Before arriving at Kent State, Burns was the running backs coach at Minnesota.
Kent State opens its season on Aug. 30 against Merrimack, a Football Championship Subdivision foe.
The Golden Flashes schedule gets more difficult after that, including road games against Texas Tech (Sept. 6), Florida State (Sept. 20) and Oklahoma (Oct. 4).
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
24 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Vikings WR Jordan Addison, Tai Felton exit practice with injuries
The Vikings are already looking for help at receiver. They're currently holding their breath as to the possibility that they could be looking for more. Via Alec Lewis of receivers Jordan Addison and Tai Felton exited practice and watched from the sidelines with apparent injuries. Felton, per Lewis, apparently injured his arm. Addison "jammed something" and watched the rest of the session from the sideline. Offensive coordinator Wes Phillips said before practice that it would have a scrimmage-style intensity. Via Kevin Seifert of the practice ended up being "pretty physical." Addision will miss the first three games of the regular season due to a suspension resulting from a DUI-related offense. Jalen Nailor is week-to-week with a hand injury. The best news for the Vikings is that All-Pro receiver Justin Jefferson recently returned to practice after missing multiple weeks due to a hamstring injury.
Associated Press
27 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Minnesota's trend-bucking embrace of the pass will be tested as Drake Lindsey succeeds Max Brosmer
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Max Brosmer's short-but-stellar stay shaped Minnesota into a dangerous passing team last season, when the Gophers threw the ball more times than they ran it for the first time in 17 years. Brosmer is in the NFL now, a promising prospect playing just down the road with the Vikings who has handed the reins to the offense to redshirt freshman Drake Lindsey. Therein lies the biggest questions facing the Gophers in 2025: How quickly can Lindsey develop, and how committed will coach P.J. Fleck and offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Greg Harbaugh Jr. remain to the passing attack? With Darius Taylor returning to the backfield, a steer of the play calling back toward the program's roots wouldn't be at all surprising. The junior, who rushed for career highs of 986 yards and 10 touchdowns in 12 games last season, was fifth in the Big Ten in rushing yards per game in 2024. 'Whatever the game plan calls for, I'm going to do, and my quarterback will do as well,' Taylor said. 'I think our team is more than capable of playing in both facets of the game.' The Gophers, who open at home against Buffalo on Aug. 28, won an eighth straight bowl game to finish 8-5 last year. Taylor also caught 54 passes for 350 yards and two scores during the process, as Brosmer's prowess in his lone season after transferring from New Hampshire also gave him a boost as a receiver. 'I love catching the ball,' said Taylor, who began his high school career in Detroit as a wide receiver. 'It's exciting to get into space.' Mr. Everything There's hardly a Gophers player who's generated more hype than safety Koi Perich, who was a first team All-Big Ten selection as a freshman last season and will also add wide receiver to his existing kick returning role this year in an attempt to maximize the myriad talents of the second team preseason All-America pick. 'Why wouldn't you take one of your best players,' Fleck said, 'and find unique ways to put the ball in his hand?' Disruptive presence New defensive coordinator Danny Collins must replace six starters, including cornerback Justin Walley, a third-round NFL draft pick. But with Perich and Kerry Brown at safety, seven interceptions return from last year. And between Deven Eastern and Jalen Logan-Redding, there are 61 career starts back for the interior of the line. Then there's defensive end Anthony Smith, who's considered Minnesota's best NFL prospect for 2026 after his 11½ tackles for loss last season were the most by a Gophers player in six years. 'I think Anthony Smith can be the best one to ever play here, since we've been here on the defensive line,' said Collins, who's been on Fleck's staff for all nine seasons. 'I think the sky is the limit for him.' Pass-catching committee The Gophers are counting on depth to carry their wide receiver group with transfers Logan Loya (UCLA) and Javon Tracy (Miami of Ohio) bringing nearly 2,500 career yards between them. Loya is a sixth-year player who was a captain for the Bruins last season. Tracy was a first team all-conference pick in 2024 for the RedHawks who has two years of eligibility left. Le'Meke Brockington is the leading returning player, with redshirt freshman Jalen Smith the most likely prospect to carve out a contributing role — along with the wild card that is Perich. 'There's not this one name that everybody knows like Daniel Jackson or Rashod Bateman or Tyler Johnson,' Fleck said, listing three former Gophers currently with NFL teams, including last season's leading receiver, Jackson. 'But collectively it has a chance to be one of our best units we've ever had here. They're very selfless.' Five spots, five new starters Three mainstays are gone from the offensive line including Aireontae Ersery, a second-round draft pick by the Houston Texans. With Greg Johnson moving from center to guard and Ashton Beers going vice versa, the Gophers will have a new starter at each position. The right side was filled out with the transfer portal: guard Marcellus Marshall (Central Florida) and tackle Dylan Ray (Kentucky). Manageable schedule Though the Gophers have road games against two of the top seven teams in the preseason AP poll, defending national champion Ohio State and defending Big Ten champion Oregon, they've got a lighter load than many of their conference peers by facing only two others among the predicted top 10 teams in the Big Ten media poll: Nebraska (home) and Iowa (road). Minnesota's nonconference slate also includes Northwestern State, which went 0-12 last season in the FCS, and California, which tied for 14th in its first year in the ACC and came in 15th in the preseason media poll. ___ Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college football: and
NBC Sports
3 hours ago
- NBC Sports
Iowa's Mark Gronowski ready for season, eager for contact as Hawkeyes hope for improved QB play
IOWA CITY, Iowa — Quarterbacks aren't supposed to get hit in practice, but Mark Gronowski wouldn't mind getting tackled a few times before the season. 'I'm a guy that loves contact,' Iowa's first-year quarterback said. 'I love getting hit to start off games. Just get the feel of it, especially to start the season off. I haven't been hit all offseason, all fall camp, as we try to protect the quarterbacks, but I'll put my body on the line when we need to.' It's probably not wise, though, for Gronowski to take too many shots. The South Dakota State transfer is the central figure in an offense that is starved for better quarterback production. 'To me, ever since Spencer got hurt in November of '22, it's been a bumpy road,' Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz said, referring to Spencer Petras. 'Nobody's fault, it's just the way it's been.' The Hawkeyes used three quarterbacks as injuries mounted last season, and they ranked 129th in passing. It's why Iowa went out and got Gronowski. 'I mean, personally, I love the pressure, because, really, you've got to look at it as more of an opportunity,' Gronowski said. 'Everyone in the community, everyone on this team, has really been looking for that QB success, has been looking for that offensive success. And we got a lot of great guys and a lot of great weapons that we have the opportunity to do that.' Gronowski threw for 10,308 yards and won 49 games in his four seasons at South Dakota State. He led the Jackrabbits to Football Championship Subdivision championships in 2022 and 2023 and won the Walter Payton Award in 2023 as the top FCS offensive player. Offensive coordinator Tim Lester calls Gronowski a 'steady Eddie.' 'It's very evident why he's won as much as he's won as you watch him go through the good and the bad, and how it never affects his mindset,' Lester said. Gronowski entered the transfer portal rather than enter the NFL draft because of a shoulder injury requiring offseason surgery. He missed spring practice to recover. 'I feel so fresh,' he said. 'The arm feels fresh. It's as good as I felt so far.' Running men Replacing running back Kaleb Johnson might be a three-man job. Johnson, a third-round draft pick of the Pittsburgh Steelers, ran for 1,537 yards last season and a program-record 21 rushing touchdowns. The top returning rushers are Kamari Moulton (473 yards) and Jaziun Patterson (309), and Terrell Washington Jr. also is in the mix. 'We can use the talents of each of them,' Lester said. 'Some of them are great route runners, some of them have unbelievable hands, some are big and can bull over people.' Middle of the defense The departures of Jay Higgins and Nick Jackson, who combined for 215 tackles, leave a hole at linebacker. Karson Sharar, Jaxon Rexroth and Jaden Harrell are first in line for the three spots. Defensive coordinator Phil Parker said he likes the depth, with Jayden Montgomery, Cam Buffington and Preston Ries also competing for playing time. Chasing history Ferentz is two wins from passing Ohio State's Woody Hayes as the Big Ten's winningest coach. Ferentz has 204 wins at Iowa heading into his 27th year. He noted that Iowa lost 18 of its first 20 games over his first two seasons. 'Yeah,' he said, 'the odds were probably against 20-plus years at that point.' The schedule The Hawkeyes open Aug. 30 against Albany of the Football Championship Subdivision, a warmup for the annual CyHawk Game at Iowa State on Sept. 6. They play four of their first six Big Ten games at home, including three straight against Penn State, Minnesota and Oregon.
