Kenny Holmes Coaching Bio From University of Idaho
Kenny Holmes, the 18th selection of the 1997 draft, has been hired as the University of Idaho’s defensive line coach.
“We are very excited to have Kenny join the staff,” head coach Paul Petrino said. “He coaches with great passion and is a great teacher of technique.”
Holmes’ playing credentials speak for him. A graduate of the University of Miami, he was taken in the first round of the 1997 by Tennessee. As the franchise's first draft choice in its inaugural season, he tied for the team lead in sacks was selected for the All-Rookie team. In 1999 Holmes helped lead the Tennessee Titans franchise to its first and only Super Bowl (XXXIV) and in 2003 helped lead the New York Giants to the playoffs. After seven successful seasons in the NFL, Holmes retired as a leading defensive end with career slats of 289 tackles and 39 sacks.
His proving ground was Miami where he was a two-time all-Big East choice as well as a two-year team captain. He earned First Team All-Big East Honors in 1995 and 1996, notched 29 career sacks and 207 tackles. He reached a personal-best 10 sacks in 1996, and his 29 career sacks rank second all-time for the Hurricanes.
He comes to Idaho from the University of San Diego after three years at the New Mexico Military Institute. He helped lead NMMI to the 2013 El Taro Bowl championship. In addition, he helped to produce the 2013 No. 1 and No. 6 rated defensive ends in junior college football. One of his former players, Florida State’s Brian Stork, won the 2013 Rimington Award.
Prior to coaching at NMMI, Holmes served as a graduate assistant at the New Mexico State University where he coached the defensive tackles and helped the Aggies to upset the University of Minnesota in "The Gopher Hole."
From 2008-2011, Holmes was the Defensive Coordinator for Vera Beach High School.
Holmes holds a BA in Liberal Arts from the University of Miami, an MA in Curriculum and Instruction with a specialization in Special Education from New Mexico State University, and Certification in Business Management and Entrepreneurship from Harvard School of Business.
“We are very lucky to have him join our staff,” Petrino said.
