CLARKSVILLE, TN – Austin Peay State Univerity’s new head football coach Jeff Coach Faris was welcomed to Clarksville on Monday at F&M Bank Arena.

Faris, a Tennessean with a dozen years of Division I coaching experience at the FBS level, has been named the 22nd head football coach at Austin Peay.

Austin Peay introduced its 22nd head football coach Jeff Faris at an Introductory Press Conference at F&M Bank Arena in Clarksville, Tennessee. Faris was joined on stage by Austin Peay President Dr. Michael Licari, Vice President and Director of Athletics Gerald Harrison, and host Brian Rives. Photos by Robert Smith | APSU Athletics
Austin Peay introduced its 22nd head football coach Jeff Faris at an Introductory Press Conference at F&M Bank Arena in Clarksville, Tennessee. Faris was joined on stage by Austin Peay President Dr. Michael Licari, Vice President and Director of Athletics Gerald Harrison, and host Brian Rives. Photos by Robert Smith | APSU Athletics
Austin Peay introduced its 22nd head football coach Jeff Faris at an Introductory Press Conference at F&M Bank Arena in Clarksville, Tennessee. Faris was joined on stage by Austin Peay President Dr. Michael Licari, Vice President and Director of Athletics Gerald Harrison, and host Brian Rives. Photos by Robert Smith | APSU Athletics
Austin Peay introduced its 22nd head football coach Jeff Faris at an Introductory Press Conference at F&M Bank Arena in Clarksville, Tennessee. Faris was joined on stage by Austin Peay President Dr. Michael Licari, Vice President and Director of Athletics Gerald Harrison, and host Brian Rives. Photos by Robert Smith | APSU Athletics
Austin Peay introduced its 22nd head football coach Jeff Faris at an Introductory Press Conference at F&M Bank Arena in Clarksville, Tennessee. Faris was joined on stage by Austin Peay President Dr. Michael Licari, Vice President and Director of Athletics Gerald Harrison, and host Brian Rives. Photos by Robert Smith | APSU Athletics

“I could not be more excited to welcome Jeff, Natalie, and the entire Faris Family back home to the State of Tennessee, specifically to Clarksville and Montgomery County,” said Athletics Director Gerald Harrison said. “Jeff is a brilliant offensive mind and a tireless recruiter. He will be an impactful member of our community and has an infectious personality that will galvanize our student-athletes, our fans, and all of Stacheville.

“Coach Faris is committed to the tenets of the ‘Total Gov Concept’ and I am confident that he will be a great steward of Clarksville’s Hometown Team!”

A native of Knoxville, Tennessee, Faris spent the past two seasons as the tight ends coach for head coach Chip Kelly at UCLA. Before his time in Los Angeles, he was on head coach David Cutcliffe’s coaching staff at Duke, where he was named the 2018 American Football Coaches Association’s Assistant Coach of the Year. By the end of his 10 seasons in Durham, North Carolina, Faris had become the Blue Devils’ co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, according to APSU Athletics.

Faris helped return the Blue Devils to national prominence as they reached six bowl games and won the 2015 Pinstripe Bowl, the 2017 Quick Lane Bowl, and the 2018 Independence Bowl. At UCLA, Faris helped guide the Bruins to the 2022 Sun Bowl and the 2023 LA Bowl.