By TOMMY REZAC
St. Joseph Post
Missouri Western head football coach Tyler Fenwick is starting to piece together his coaching staff. The Griffons announced a flurry of new hires Friday and are also retaining one assistant from Matt Williamson's staff.
Patrick St. Louis, a 2008 graduate of Missouri Western, had served as offensive line coach since 2017. St. Louis was the only full-time coach retained after Williamson's dismissal on November 13.
St. Louis will stay on staff with Fenwick and will coach running backs.
"I know Coach St. Louis from his time as a player, and I know he has the respect of our team," said Fenwick in a release. "I am happy that he will be staying on staff and remaining a vitally important part of the Griffon football program."
Missouri Western athletic director Andy Carter was complimentary of the job St. Louis did holding things together during the University's 24-day search for a new head coach.
"He loves the program and is an alum," Carter said of coach St. Louis. "He's done a fantastic job for us and keeping things on the rails and moving forward and communicating with our recruits and student-athletes. At the end of the day, coach Fenwick will decide who's on staff."
Fenwick was officially introduced as the seventh Missouri Western head football coach on December 8.
Erik Johnson will join the Griffon football staff as defensive coordinator after spending the last two seasons at Southeastern Oklahoma State with Fenwick. Johnson was also Fenwick's linebackers coach each of the last two seasons.
Johnson has almost 30 years of coaching experience under his belt, with a five year-stint as defensive backs coach at Claremont College in California, and a long tenure at Occidental College, where he served as defensive coordinator from 2002-2012. He also coached at various high schools from 1991-2001.
Two more defensive assistants were announced Friday.
Eriq Moore will join the staff as the defensive backs coach.
Moore most recently served as the defensive secondary coach and special teams coordinator at Emporia State the last two seasons.
"Coach Moore has experience at a winning program in the MIAA and I've had the opportunity to match up against his defenses the last two postseasons," said Fenwick. "He will be a tremendous addition to the Griffon program."
Fenwick's Southeastern Oklahoma State teams met Emporia State in the Live United Bowl in Texarkana, Arkansas each of the last two seasons. Emporia won that game this year 48-27, but Southeastern won 37-34 in 2021.
Over the past two seasons, Moore helped lead the Hornets to a 15-6 overall record and two appearances in the postseason. Emporia's defense allowed 21.7 points per game this season, ranking third in the MIAA.
Moore previously served as defensive backs coach at Southern Arkansas for two seasons and Chadron State for one after his playing days. A three-year starter at Southeast Missouri State, Moore earned a scholarship after walking on to the team as a freshman and was twice voted by his peers as a team captain.
Coach St. Louis isn't the only former Griffon joining the fold.
Michael Gallo will return to his alma mater and serve as defensive line coach.
A two-year letter winner for the Griffons in 2016 and 2017, Gallo has spent the last two seasons coaching the defensive line at Missouri Southern.
Prior to his time in Joplin, Gallo spent two years at Southwestern Oklahoma State, where he helped coach inside linebackers for the Bulldogs.
Gallo started his coaching career in St. Joseph, serving as the freshman offensive coordinator and assistant defensive line coach at Central High School.
The offensive coordinator and several other assistants are yet to be announced. Missouri Western's last day of the fall semester was Friday, and more assistant coaches are expected to be announced shortly after New Year's Day.
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