CORVALLIS, Ore. – JaMarcus Shephard has been named Oregon State University Head Football Coach, the 33rd in program history, Vice President and Director of Athletics Scott Barnes announced Friday.
“I’m extremely excited to announce JaMarcus Shephard as the head coach of the Oregon State football program,” Barnes said. “His character and persona are top-notch and genuine, which will make all of Beaver Nation proud. His values align perfectly as an exceptional leader who fosters a sincere connection with his student athletes. He has coached at the highest level, with stops in the Pacific Northwest, and I cannot wait to see him on the recruiting trail and leading our football program to immediate success.”
“I am thrilled to welcome Coach Shephard to Oregon State University and Beaver Nation,” OSU President Jayathi Murthy said. “I strongly believe that his energy, enthusiasm and experience in winning programs will lead OSU football to success as we launch the new Pac-12 Conference and beyond.”
Shephard has coached at the University of Alabama for the last two years and most recently as the Assistant Head Coach, Co-Offensive Coordinator and Wide Receivers Coach. He also has previous coaching experience at the University of Washington (Assistant Head Coach/Pass Game Coordinator/Wide Receivers) and Washington State University (Wide Receivers).
“I’m honored to lead the Oregon State University football program and to join a community that cares so deeply about its student-athletes,” Coach Shephard said. “We will build a culture rooted in toughness, integrity, and relentless effort, and I’m excited to get to work with our players, staff, and supporters to write the next great chapter of Beaver football.”
Coach Shephard will be formally introduced as the new Oregon State Head Football Coach during a press conference at Noon on Tuesday, December 2.
Shephard’s appointment is contingent on the completion of all university hiring processes.
He followed Head Coach Kalen DeBoer to Tuscaloosa to join the Alabama coaching staff in February of 2024, serving as the Assistant Head Coach and Wide Receivers Coach. The Crimson Tide went 9-4 and Shephard helped Germie Bernard and Ryan Williams post standout first seasons.
Shephard was promoted to Assistant Head Coach, Co-Offensive Coordinator and Wide Receivers Coach for the 2025 season at Alabama and has helped lead the Crimson Tide to a 9-2 record, while averaging 33.8 points and 415.7 yards per game.
He worked the previous two seasons at the University of Washington as Assistant Head Coach/Pass Game Coordinator/Wide Receivers. In 2023, the Huskies went 14-1, advanced to the CFP National Championship game and became the first team to go undefeated in Pac-12 play since the league expanded to 12 teams in 2011.
The Huskies’ passing game ranked second nationally in 2023 with 343.7 yards per game while scoring 36.0 points per game. Washington had one of the best wide receiver corps in the nation with two players recording 1,000-yard seasons, led by first team All-American Rome Odunze and Ja’Lynn Polk. The duo went on to be selected in the first and second rounds, respectively, in the 2024 NFL Draft.
Shephard worked at Purdue University for five seasons from 2017-21, serving as the Pass Game Coordinator and Wide Receivers Coach in 2017 before spending the final four as Co-Offensive Coordinator while maintaining his role with the wideouts.
In 2021, Purdue’s passing offense averaged 355.3 yards per game, fifth best in the nation, on the way to a 9-4 finish and a win over Tennessee in the Music City Bowl. That season wide receiver David Bell caught 93 passes for 1,286 yards to rank second in the NCAA in receptions per game and fifth in yards per game.
Shephard coached wide receivers at Washington State during the 2016 season when the Cougars averaged 370.8 passing yards per game, highlighted by wideout River Cracraft who had 53 receptions for 701 yards and five touchdowns despite a shortened season due to injury.
Making a return to the coaching ranks, Shephard joined the Western Kentucky staff in 2011 as a Defensive Analyst and Volunteer Assistant before moving to offensive analyst in 2013 and eventually into a full-time role as receivers coach for 2014-15. In his two seasons as a full-time staffer, Hilltopper receivers amassed 553 receptions and 86 touchdowns as the offense threw for 374.3 yards per game in 2014 and 372.2 yards per game in 2015.
Shephard graduated from DePauw University in 2005 with a bachelor’s degree in sports medicine before earning his master’s degree in recreation and sport administration from Western Kentucky University in 2013.
While at DePauw, Shephard was a four-year letterwinner from 2001-04 and a two-time All-American who still holds the school record for career kickoff return yards (1,430) while ranking sixth in receptions (168) and seventh in receiving yards (2,382). He served as a team captain and caught 47 passes for 815 yards and seven touchdowns as a senior. Shephard was one of only two Division III players to compete in the 2005 Hula Bowl.
He worked as an intern with the Philadelphia Eagles during his junior year at DePauw.
Shephard got his start in football coaching in the Indiana high school ranks, serving as an assistant at his alma mater, Fort Wayne Northrop, in 2005. He coached football at Broad Ripple High School in Indianapolis during the 2006 season before returning to DePauw in 2007 as a volunteer assistant with the DePauw track & field program where he worked with the long jumpers and sprinters.
He worked in the NCAA Championships and Education Services Division in 2006 and 2007 and with the National Center for Drug-Free Sport in Kansas City, Mo., from 2007 to 2011.
Shephard and his wife, Hallie, have three children, Jaylan, Alana and Maliyah.
Shephard’s Coaching Experience
- 2024-present: Alabama (Assistant Head Coach/Co-Offensive Coordinator/Wide Receivers)
- 2022-23: Washington (Assistant Head Coach/Pass Game Coordinator/Wide Receivers)
- 2018-21: Purdue (Co-Offensive Coordinator/Wide Receivers)
- 2017: Purdue (Pass Game Coordinator/Wide Receivers)
- 2016: Washington State (Wide Receivers)
- 2014-15: Western Kentucky (Wide Receivers)
- 2012-13: Western Kentucky (Quality Control)
- 2011: Western Kentucky (Defensive Analyst/Volunteer Assistant)
- 2006: Broad Ripple [Ind.] HS, WR/DB
- 2005: Northrop [Ind.] HS (Wide Receivers)
Shephard’s Playing Experience
OUR MISSION
Oregon State Athletics strives to Build Excellent Authentic Visionary Student-Athletes (Go BEAVS).
