Keith Hatcher - Football Coach - Murray State University Athletics

Keith Hatcher

Title:
Secondary/Recruiting Coordinator
Email:
khatcher1@murraystate.edu
Phone:
(270) 809-6834

Keith Hatcher enters his third season on his cousin Chris’ staff at Murray State. He serves as the secondary coach and recruiting coordinator, while also handling the punt return team.

The secondary in 2011 was filled with many new faces, and that list grew even longer as injuries hampered the unit from the opening game.

Senior Dontrell Johnson led the OVC with 12 passes defended, despite missing time with injury. He managed just one interception, and even that came with a huge cast on his arm.

Safety Brandon Wicks was the anchor as he ranked second on the team with 89 tackles. He also picked off a pass and had seven pass break-ups. Wicks showed his versatility on special teams as he blocked a pair of kicks, including one that was recovered in the endzone for a touchdown.

Newcomers Darius Buck and Julian Whitehead led the team with two interceptions each as the secondary intercepted seven passes on the season.

Under Hatcher’s tutelage, the 2010 Racers led the country with a 19.7 yard punt return average. The Racers also returned two punts for touchdowns.

Johnson spearheaded the unit, as he led the country with a 22.8 yard return average. He became the first Racer to return two punts for a touchdown in a season, and also became the first punt returner to earn All-America accolades when he was honored by The Sports Network.
Johnson was also honored by the College Football Performance Awards when he was named the 2010 FCS Elite Punt Returner.

Johnson also intercepted a pair of passes, including returning one for a touchdown, in earning second-team all-OVC honors as a defensive back.
True-freshman Brandon Wicks started 10 games in the secondary and ended the season with a team-best 73 tackles.

Hatcher joins the Racer coaching staff after serving the previous three years as the secondary coach, recruiting coordinator and director of football operations at Georgia Southern.

In 2009, the Eagle secondary held opponents to 214.6 yards a game and tied for third in the Southern Conference with 11 interceptions.

Rover Darius Eubanks ranked second on the team in tackles and tied for the team lead with two forced fumbles. Corner Laron Scott was third on the team in tackles and ranked second in the SoCon with 11 pass break-ups.

The 2008 defensive backs underwent a near-complete makeover from the beginning of the season as All-American Chris Covington moved to linebacker and true-freshmen emerged into the starting lineup. By the end of the season, the secondary was starting a pair of true-freshman and a sophomore.

Two of the Eagles, Derek Heyden and K.R. Snipes, earned a spot on the SoCon All-Freshman Team. In fact, it was Snipes that came up with the game-clinching interception late in the Furman game to secure the 17-10 win over the 14th-ranked Paladins and record the programs’ 25th winning season. The secondary accounted for all but one of the team’s interceptions and broke up 29 more passes.

Hatcher also oversaw the punt return unit at GSU. In 2008, Raja Andrews ranked 12th nationally, averaging 14 yards per punt return. The return unit tied a program record with two returns for touchdown (at Chattanooga, vs. Appalachian State).

Hatcher had to make unprecedented adjustments in the secondary throughout the 2007 season as half of the opening-day two-deep were out over the final month of the season. Two former offensive players started at the end of the year and two more saw significant playing time. Covington would not only earn all-SoCon honors, but Honorable Mention All-America accolades as well.

The secondary accounted for 10 interceptions and recorded 56 pass break-ups.

After spending three years in private business as an investment advisor specialist, Hatcher decided to join in the family footsteps and enter the coaching profession.

He joined his cousin’s staff at Valdosta State as a graduate assistant in 2003, before moving on to serve two years on the staff at Alabama-Birmingham. He spent the 2004 season and the 2005 spring season working under former defensive coordinator Wayne Bolt.

Hatcher returned to VSU in 2005, where he worked with the secondary and served as the director of football operations and summer camps for two seasons.

In 2006, the Blazers defense ranked 25th in the nation, after allowing just 15.7 points per game. VSU ranked 35th nationally in total defense (270 yards/game), while totaling 24 takeaways in 10 games. The defense also recorded 69 tackles-for-loss, 22 sacks, 13 interceptions and 38 pass break-ups.

The 2006 season was Hatcher’s first in charge of the punt rush. His special team squad blocked seven punts and returned three for a touchdown, leading the league in blocks and punt return yardage.

During his tenure, Hatcher coached All-America free safety and all-GSC punt returner Sherard Reynolds.

Hatcher was a two-sport athlete at Mars Hill, where he earned four letters in baseball and two in football. His success was not limited to the playing field as he was a four-time Academic All-Conference pick in baseball and twice earned the honor in football.

He received his bachelor’s degree in business administration and sports management from Mars Hill College in 2000.

Hatcher, like cousin Chris, was a standout athlete at Mount de Sales Academy in Macon, Ga. He is married to Ashley and are the proud parents of a son, Ace, and daughter, Allie Cate.