Joe Jon Finley, the former tight ends coach for the Oklahoma Sooners, has secured a new position as an offensive assistant at Texas State. This move marks his transition to the Pac-12 after being dismissed from his role at Oklahoma on January 1st, following a five-year tenure.
According to a report from CBS Sports” Matt Zenitz, Finley will primarily work with the quarterbacks at Texas State, despite lacking prior coaching experience in that position. Finley, who played tight end at Oklahoma from 2004 to 2007, had a standout career, particularly in his last two seasons.
After his time in the NFL from 2008 to 2012, Finley embarked on his coaching career, initially at Oklahoma and at the high school level. His coaching journey also included stints at Baylor, Missouri, and Texas A&M. In 2020, he served as the passing game coordinator at Ole Miss before returning to Oklahoma when former head coach Lincoln Riley hired him to coach tight ends.
Finley remained with the program under new head coach Brent Venables and worked alongside offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby in 2022 and 2023. Following Lebby”s departure to become head coach at Mississippi State, Finley was promoted to co-offensive coordinator alongside Seth Littrell, who took on play-calling duties. However, that arrangement was short-lived, lasting just seven games before Littrell was let go, after which Finley was elevated to the role of play-caller.
During the final six games of the 2024 season, Finley managed the offensive plays and continued in this role under new offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle before being reassigned back to tight ends in 2025. Despite his earlier successes, Finley”s tight ends struggled in recent seasons, prompting Oklahoma to hire Jason Witten as his replacement.
As Finley embarks on this new chapter with the Bobcats, he joins a staff led by head coach G.J. Kinne. Texas State is officially joining the revamped Pac-12 this year, alongside a new wave of challenges and opportunities.
With Finley”s move, all three co-offensive coordinators from Oklahoma”s 2024 season have found new support roles or coaching positions. Littrell is now a senior offensive analyst at Tennessee, Finley is an offensive assistant at Texas State, and Kevin Johns is coaching quarterbacks at Mississippi State under Lebby.
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