FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                    March 9, 2007

NORTHWESTERN NAMES BAREFIELD AS NEW HEAD FOOTBALL COACH

            A veteran coach who has built successful football programs at three different levels of competition has been named as the new head football coach at Northwestern Oklahoma State University.

            Keith Barefield will be introduced as head coach during a ceremony Monday, March 12, at 10 a.m., in the Ranger Room of the Student Center. The public is encouraged to attend the ceremony and meet the coach.

            “Northwestern has a proud football tradition and there are high expectations,” Barefield said. “Those high expectations match my own.”

            Barefield was selected from a field of more than 70 applicants.

            “Coach Barefield brings to Northwestern a wealth of experience and a record of success on and off the field,” said Milburn Barton, director of athletics. “His stature in the NAIA will further enhance the reputation of our football program.”

            A native of Eufaula, Ala., Barefield comes to Northwestern from Memorial High School in Victoria, Texas, where he is an assistant coach in charge of quarterbacks and receivers.

            His greatest success came during an 18-year tenure at NAIA power Evangel University in Springfield, Mo. Barefield served as an assistant there for eight years beginning in 1980 before becoming head coach in 1988. He compiled a record of 66-33-2, recorded eight consecutive winning seasons and made four trips to the NAIA playoffs.

            Barefield also coached 15 NAIA All-America players and 10 All-America Scholar-Athletes at Evangel. He was a finalist for NAIA Coach of the Year in 1996 and served as president of the NAIA Football Coaches Association that year. He also was named the Heart of America Athletic Conference Coach of the Year in 1996 and 1997.

            Off the field, Barefield’s players graduated at a higher rate than the general student population.

            Barefield also coached high school football in Evangel Christian Academy in Shreveport, La., and at Cornerstone High School in San Antonio. His team at Evangel won the 2004 Class 5A state title and his squads at Cornerstone captured state championships in 2001 and 2003.         From 2003 to 2005, Barefield was head coach and director of football operations for the Bossier-Shreveport Battle Wings of the Arena Football League 2.

            Since 2001, Barefield has served as a regional scout for the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League. He also was head coach of the East team in the Max Emfinger All-American Bowl.

            Barefield is a 1978 graduate of Evangel University.

-NW-

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