Quick Facts
Biography
Matt Luke (born October 29, 1976) is an American football coach and former player. He currently serves as the interim head coach at the University of Mississippi ("Ole Miss"). He had been an assistant at Ole Miss since 2012, serving as co-offensive coordinator. He replaced Hugh Freeze after the latter's resignation on July 20, 2017.
Playing career
Luke was born in Gulfport, Mississippi. He was a standout at Gulfport High School, but he was a walk-on at Ole Miss, where scholarships were limited because of NCAA sanctions. He played center there from 1995–1998, graduating in 1999. His father, Tommy Luke, played defensive back at Ole Miss in the 1960s while his older brother, Tom Luke, played quarterback there from 1989–1991. As a senior, he coached the offensive line at the 1998 Independence Bowl.
Coaching career
Luke exhausted his eligibility after the 1999 season but joined the coaching staff as a student assistant. After graduating from Ole Miss in 2000 he took a job with Murray State University as an offensive line coach. Following the 2001 season he returned to Ole Miss to coach offensive line and tight ends under head coach David Cutcliffe. Ole Miss fired Cutcliffe after the 2004 season, but new head coach Ed Orgeron retained Luke as part of his staff. Luke departed Ole Miss in 2006 to be reunited with Cutcliffe at the University of Tennessee, where the latter was assistant head coach/offensive coordinator.
Luke coached the offensive line and tight ends at Tennessee for two seasons (2006–2007). In early 2008 Duke University hired Cutcliffe as its new head coach, and Cutcliffe brought several Tennessee assistants with him, including Luke. At Duke, Luke was co-offensive coordinator with responsibility for the running game, while also coaching the offensive line. Luke departed Duke at the end of the 2011 season to rejoin the Ole Miss coaching staff under new head coach Hugh Freeze. At Ole Miss he had a similar role: co-offensive coordinator and offensive line coach.
Luke became interim head coach at Ole Miss on July 20, 2017, after Freeze resigned.
Head coaching record
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | Coaches# | AP° | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ole Miss Rebels (Southeastern Conference) (2017–present) | |||||||||
| 2017 | Ole Miss | 2–1 | 0–0 | ||||||
| Ole Miss: | 2-1 | 0–0 | |||||||
| Total: | 2–1 | ||||||||
| National championship Conference title Conference division title | |||||||||
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