CONWAY — Coastal Carolina University didn’t take long to find the Chanticleers’ next football coach.
Coastal officials on Dec. 11 announced they had hired Missouri State head coach Ryan Beard to lead the program.
Beard, 36, has coached Missouri State since 2022 when he became the youngest coach in the program’s history. The Bears recently joined Conference USA.
Beard posted a 19-16 record in three seasons leading Missouri State.
At Coastal, Beard inherits a program that has struggled to break even in recent years. CCU fired Tim Beck on Nov. 30, a day after the Chanticleers fell 59-10 to James Madison and ended the regular season with a 6-6 record (5-3, Sun Belt Conference).
During Beck’s three seasons at Coastal, the team went 20-18 and 13-11 in Sun Belt play, though Beck’s teams did make a bowl game each year.
A native of Kentucky, Beard earned two degrees and played defensive back at Western Kentucky, according to his bio on the Missouri State website. His coaching journey has included stops at Central Michigan University (special teams and safeties coach), Louisville (defensive backs coach, quality control and co-special teams coordinator) and Western Kentucky (defensive backs coach).
He and his wife, Katie, have four children.
