Kurt Charles Keeler is an American football coach and former player. He is the head football coach at Sam Houston State University, a position he had held since 2014. Previously, Keeler was the head coach at his alma mater, the University of Delaware, from 2002 to 2012, and at Rowan University from 1993 to 2001.
The Sam Houston Bearkats are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Sam Houston State University, located in Huntsville, Texas. Sam Houston's colors are orange and white. Sam Houston sports teams participate in NCAA Division I in Conference USA (CUSA), having joined that conference on July 1, 2023 after spending 34 years in the Southland Conference and two years in the Western Athletic Conference (WAC). SHSU's primary rival is Stephen F. Austin (SFA) and tensions between the two schools can run high before major sporting events that pit one against the other.
The Sam Houston State Bearkats baseball team is a varsity intercollegiate athletic team of Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, Texas, United States. The team is currently a member of Conference USA, an athletic conference in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The team plays its home games at Don Sanders Stadium.
The Sam Houston Bearkats football program is the intercollegiate American football team for Sam Houston State University located in the U.S. state of Texas. The team competes in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) as a member of the Conference USA. Sam Houston's first football team was fielded in 1912. The team plays its home games at the 12,593-seat Bowers Stadium in Huntsville, Texas. On January 23, 2014, K. C. Keeler was named the 15th head coach in Sam Houston program history.
The Sam Houston Bearkats men's basketball team, represents Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, Texas, United States. The Bearkats were one of four programs, all from Texas, that left the Southland Conference on July 1, 2021 to join the Western Athletic Conference (WAC). Sam Houston had previously been a member of the Southland Conference since the 1987–88 season. The Bearkats have played home games at Johnson Coliseum, a 5,529 seat indoor arena, since 1976, when it was then called University Coliseum. On July 1, 2023 the Bearkats joined Conference USA.
The 2011 Sam Houston State Bearkats football team represented Sam Houston State University in the 2011 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Bearkats were led by second year head coach Willie Fritz and played their home games at Bowers Stadium. They are a member of the Southland Conference. They finished the season 14–1, 7–0 in Southland play to win the conference championship. They received the conference's automatic bid into the FCS Playoffs where they advanced to the National Championship Game before falling to North Dakota State 6–17.
Willie Fritz is an American football coach and former player. He is the head football coach at the University of Houston. Fritz served as the head football coach at University of Central Missouri from 1997 to 2009, Sam Houston State University from 2010 to 2013, Georgia Southern University from 2014 to 2015, and Tulane University from 2016 to 2023. From 1993 to 1996, he was the head football coach at Blinn College, a junior college in Brenham, Texas, where he led his teams to consecutive NJCAA National Football Championships, in 1995 and 1996.
The 2012 Central Arkansas Bears football team represented the University of Central Arkansas in the 2012 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Bears were led by 13th year head coach Clint Conque and played their home games at Estes Stadium. They were a member of the Southland Conference. They finished the season 9–3, 6–1 in Southland play to share the conference championship with Sam Houston State. Due to their victory over Sam Houston State, the Bears received the Southland's automatic bid into the FCS Playoffs where they lost in the second round to Georgia Southern.
The 2013 Sam Houston State Bearkats football team represented Sam Houston State University in the 2013 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Bearkats were led by fourth-year head coach Willie Fritz and played their home games at Bowers Stadium. They were a member of the Southland Conference.
The Sam Houston Bearkats softball team represents Sam Houston State University in NCAA Division I college softball. The team participates in Conference USA. The Bearkats are currently led by head coach Garrett Valis. The team plays its home games at the Bearkat Softball Complex located on the university's campus.
The Sam Houston Bearkats women's basketball team is the women's basketball team that represents Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, Texas. The Bearkats are members of Conference USA. Sam Houston joined the Western Athletic Conference on July 1, 2021 after playing the previous 34 seasons in the Southland Conference, the Bearkats played in the WAC until the conclusion of the 2023 season. The Bearkats are currently coached by Ravon Justice.
The 2013 Houston Baptist Huskies football team represented Houston Baptist University—now known as Houston Christian University—as an independent in the 2013 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Huskies, playing the program's first season, were led by first-year head coach Vic Shealy and compiled a record of 3–4. However, they were not considered a FCS team for scheduling purposes until 2014. They played three home games at Crusader Stadium and one home game at BBVA Compass Stadium. This was an exhibition season for the Huskies. The season did not count against the players academic eligibility, but they also were not eligible for the FCS playoffs. They played a mixed schedule of schools from the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), NCAA Division II, and the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA).
The 2014 Sam Houston State Bearkats football team represented Sam Houston State University in the 2014 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Bearkats were led by first-year head coach K. C. Keeler and played their home games at Bowers Stadium. They are a member of the Southland Conference. They finished the season 11–5, 7–1 in Southland play to finish in a share of the Southland Conference title. They received the Southland's automatic bid to the FCS Playoffs where they defeated Southeastern Louisiana, Jacksonville State, and Villanova to advance to the Semifinals where they lost to North Dakota State. But, along the way they lost to eventual D-2 Champion CSU-Pueblo.
The 2015 Sam Houston State Bearkats football team represented Sam Houston State University in the 2015 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Bearkats were led by second-year head coach K. C. Keeler and played their home games at Bowers Stadium. They were a member of the Southland Conference. They finished the season 11–4 overall and 7–2 in Southland play to finish in a tie for second place. They received an at-large bid to the FCS Playoffs where they defeated Southern Utah, McNeese State, and Colgate to advance to the Semifinals, where they lost to Jacksonville State. The 2015 season marked the Bearkats' 100th season of football.
The 2016 Houston Baptist Huskies football team represented Houston Baptist University—now known as Houston Christian University—as a member of the Southland Conference during the 2016 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by fourth-year head coach Vic Shealy the Huskies compiled an overall record of 4–7 with a mark of 4–5 in conference play, placing seventh in the Southland. Houston Baptist played home games at Husky Stadium in Houston.
The 2017 Sam Houston State Bearkats football team represented Sam Houston State University in the 2017 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Bearkats were led by fourth-year head coach K. C. Keeler and played their home games at Bowers Stadium. They were a member of the Southland Conference. They finished the season 12–2, 8–1 in Southland play to finish in second place. They received an at-large bid to the FCS playoffs where they defeated South Dakota in the first round and Kennesaw State in the quarterfinals before losing in the semifinals to North Dakota State.
The 2018 Houston Baptist Huskies football team represented Houston Baptist University—now known as Houston Christian University—as a member of the Southland Conference during the 2018 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by sixth-year head coach Vic Shealy the Huskies compiled an overall record of 1–10 with a mark of 0–9 in conference play, placing last out of 11 teams in the Southland. Houston Baptist played home games at Husky Stadium in Houston.
The 2018 Sam Houston State Bearkats football team represented Sam Houston State University in the 2018 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Bearkats were led by fifth-year head coach K. C. Keeler and played their home games at Bowers Stadium. They were a member of the Southland Conference. They finished the season 6–5, 5–4 in Southland play to finish in a four-way tie for fourth place.
The 2019 Sam Houston State Bearkats football team represented Sam Houston State University as a member of the Southland Conference during the 2019 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by sixth-year head coach K. C. Keeler, the Bearkats compiled an overall record of 7–5 with a mark of 6–3 in conference play, tying for third place in the Southland. Sam Houston State played home games at Bowers Stadium in Huntsville, Texas.
The 2020 Sam Houston State Bearkats football team represented Sam Houston State University in the 2020–21 NCAA Division I FCS football season as a member of the Southland Conference. The Bearkats were led by seventh-year head coach K. C. Keeler and played their home games at Bowers Stadium.
