MANHATTAN, Kan. – An experienced skill position coach with eight years of work at Power 4 schools after a highly-successful stint as a high school head coach, Cory Patterson has been hired as Kansas State’s running backs coach, head coach Collin Klein announced Tuesday.
Patterson most recently coached the running backs during the 2025 season at Oklahoma State, while he also worked at Illinois coaching tight ends (2018-20) and running backs (2021-22), and he was the associate head coach and wide receivers coach at Purdue (2023-24).
“I am excited about the opportunity to do something special here at K-State,” said Patterson. “There has been a tradition of great running back play here, so we have to keep the party going!”
Prior to his time working in college, Patterson was a successful high school coach in the St. Louis area, first as an assistant at Christian Brothers and Trinity Catholic before earning a 27-6 record and a state title as a head coach at Trinity Catholic.
“Coach Patterson has a great history of developing talent,” Klein said. “His passion for people is infectious, and he is a big part of where we are going offensively.”
A native of St. Louis, Missouri, Patterson coached one of the most successful running backs in Illinois history as Chase Brown combined for 2,648 yards and 15 touchdowns over the 2021 and 2022 seasons. Patterson guided Brown to an All-America campaign and finalist status for the Doak Walker Award in 2022. That season, Brown rushed for 1,643 yards, an average of 136.9 yards per game to rank third in the country, while he produced a 100-yard rushing game on a nation-leading 10 occasions. Brown went on to be selected in the 2023 NFL Draft by Cincinnati and has been the Bengals’ starting running back each of the last two seasons.
In his first season as Illinois’ running back coach in 2021, Patterson coached Brown to the tune of 1,005 yards and five touchdowns as he became the program’s 14th 1,000-yard rusher en route to All-Big Ten honors. Brown’s season total was boasted by a 223-yard output during a 20-18 nine-overtime win at No. 7 Penn State – the longest game in college football history – as he produced the most rushing yards ever by an opponent at Beaver Stadium. Paired with his career-high 257 rushing yards earlier in 2021 against Charlotte, Brown joined Illini legends Howard Griffith (1990) and Rashard Mendenhall (2007) as the only players in program history with multiple 200-yard rushing games in a single season. The 2021 season also saw Patterson coach true freshman Josh McCray to two 100-yard games in a breakout season.
In 2019, Patterson helped Illinois earn a berth into the Redbox Bowl, marking the program’s first bowl appearance in five years. He also helped coach the Fighting Illini to one of the biggest upsets in Big Ten history, a 24-23 victory over No. 6 Wisconsin.
Last season at Oklahoma State, Patterson tutored five Cowboy running backs to a combined 1,172 yards and six touchdowns.
Prior to his time in Stillwater, Patterson served as the associate head coach and tutored the wide receivers at Purdue. He guided Deion Burks to All-Big Ten Second Team honors in 2023 as he led the Boilermakers in receptions (47), receiving yards (629) and touchdowns (7), the latter ranking fourth in the conference.
Patterson began his coaching career in the high school ranks, first as an assistant at Christian Brothers College High School in St. Louis from 2009 to 2012, then at Trinity Catholic as an offensive coordinator in 2013 and 2014 before taking over as head coach from 2015 to 2017. Under Patterson, Trinity Catholic established itself as one of the top high school programs in St. Louis and the state of Missouri. He compiled a record of 27-6 in his three seasons at the helm – earning Archdiocesan Athletic Association (AAA) Conference Coach of the Year honors all three seasons – while he led the Titans to the 2016 Missouri Class 2 state title game.
Prior to entering coaching, Patterson worked in corporate accounting in St. Louis but also spent his time volunteering as a youth football coach at a local Boys & Girls Club in the evenings. His passion to mentor young athletes drew him out of the corporate world and into coaching and teaching as a full-time profession.
Patterson played collegiately at Lindenwood before his career was cut short due to a leg injury. He obtained his undergraduate degree in finance from Lindenwood in 2002.
Patterson and his wife, Tiffany, have two daughters, Nyla and Nori.
THE CORY PATTERSON FILE
Hometown: St. Louis, Missouri
College: Lindenwood – Bachelor’s degree in finance (2002)
Family: Wife: Tiffany; Children: Nyla, Nori
Playing Career: Lindenwood
CORY PATTERSON’S COACHING CAREER
2009-12, Christian Brothers High School (Assistant Coach)
2013-14, Trinity Catholic High School (Offensive Coordinator)
2015-17, Trinity Catholic High School (Head Coach)
2018-20, Illinois (Tight Ends)
2021-22, Illinois (Running Backs)
2023-24, Purdue (Associate Head Coach/Wide Receivers)
2025, Oklahoma State (Running Backs)
2026, K-State (Running Backs)
