Jerry Kill named athletic director at Southern Illinois

Former college football coach Jerry Kill has been named athletic director at Southern Illinois.

Kill, who twice had to retire from coaching because of health issues, joined Southern Illinois' staff in February 2018 as special assistant to the university chancellor. He became acting athletic director in April 2018 before the school's board of trustees approved his permanent appointment at a meeting Thursday.

Kill, 57, served as Southern Illinois' head coach from 2001 to 2007 before leading programs at Northern Illinois and then Minnesota. He was diagnosed with kidney cancer in 2005 while coaching at Southern Illinois and then contracted epilepsy, which caused him to retire at Minnesota late in the 2015 season. He returned to coaching as Rutgers' offensive coordinator in 2017 before retiring again after the season.

"I spent some great years here in the coaching profession, and if it wasn't for Southern Illinois University taking a chance on me, I wouldn't have had the same opportunities in my career," Kill said in a statement. "I didn't know for sure what I wanted to do when I returned to SIU a year ago, but I've talked it over with my wife, Rebecca, and I think I can help this university move forward and try to get us back where we need to be."

Kill will earn $215,000 annually in his new role. He has a coaching record of 152-99 with five college teams.