Kansas' Barnwell retires

KANSAS, Okla. -- Eddie Barnwell didn't officially retire as Kansas (Okla.) head football coach and athletics director until a couple of weeks ago, but he's known he was done for a while now.

In fact, Barnwell can point back to Dec. 2 as the day he officially knew.

"That's the day I bought season tickets to the Kansas City Chiefs," he said.

Barnwell, 51, is calling it quits after more than 30 years of coaching, including 18 years as a head coach, at several different schools.

He coached at Kansas the last six years, guiding the Comets to a 33-31 record in that span, including 20-12 in the last three years. Overall, Barnwell is 105-80 as a head coach, with previous stops at Warner, Okla., and Jay, Okla.

"I've had fun," Barnwell said. "I've been fortunate to make a living at something that I've never really considered a job."

Kansas has hired Steven Dale Patterson as its new head coach and athletics director. Patterson was co-defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach at Northeastern Oklahoma University in Tahlequah, Okla.

"We're lucky we got him," Barnwell said.

Barnwell's best season at Kansas came in 2012 when the Comets went 9-3 and advanced to the second round of the Oklahoma Class 2A playoffs. The Comets made the postseason in 2011 and 2013 as well.

Barnwell also served stints as an assistant coach at Jay, Broken Bow and Pryor.

"I've been fortunate to work at several outstanding schools and good football programs," he said. "I've made a lot of friends over 32 years. I've worked with some outstanding coaches. The friendships we've made continue to be a part of our lives."

Barnwell said he'll stay busy in retirement. He looks forward to going fishing in the fall, something he's never been able to do much because of football season. He'll ride his Harley-Davidson, and enjoy those Chiefs season tickets with his family. He'll also be able to watch his daughter, Kelsey, play point guard at Emporia State (Kan.) after transferring from the University of Missouri-Kansas City.

"It's a good retirement," he said. "I'm happy."