St. Andrews University has named Matt Quinn as the school’s new head football coach. Quinn, who has honed his skills coaching high school football in both South Carolina and North Carolina, was officially announced by the Knights on Friday.
He takes over for Bob Curtin, who stepped down in December after three seasons at the Laurinburg school, which competes at the NAIA level.
“We are excited to move forward in a positive direction,” St. Andrews athletic director Elizabeth Burris said in a release. “Coach Quinn’s leadership, vision and dedication will be instrumental in elevating our football program to new heights.”
Quinn spent the 2024 football season as head coach at Chesterfield High School in South Carolina. Chesterfield finished 6-5, 1-4 in its region.
Quinn spent one season as head coach at North Augusta High (S.C.) in 2022, leading the Yellow Jackets to a 6-6 mark, 4-0 in region play. He was named the region coach of the year.
Quinn’s high school coaching experience also includes three seasons at Westwood High in Blythewood, S.C., where he went 15-11 and collected 2021 region coach of the year honors. He coached at Union Pines High in Cameron, N.C., in 2017 and 2018. The 2017 Union Pines squad went 6-5, 3-2 in the Tri-County 3A Conference. The 2018 team finished 5-6, 2-3 in the Tri-County 3A.
Quinn had a decorated high school playing career as a wide receiver at Byrnes High School in Duncan, S.C., from 2003-05. Byrnes went 43-1 during that stretch, winning three state titles. Quinn made 77 catches his senior year for 1,038 yards and 15 touchdowns.
He committed to Vanderbilt University for the 2006 campaign before finishing out his playing career at Presbyterian College. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in History from Presbyterian in 2010. He obtained a Master of Science in Sports Administration from Southeastern Oklahoma State.
The St. Andrews release announcing Quinn’s hiring praised his ability to motivate and develop student-athletes.
“He is committed to fostering a culture of excellence on and off the field,” the release stated. “Quinn’s coaching philosophy centers on skill development, teamwork and character building—values that align closely with St. Andrews University’s mission of fostering personal and academic growth. He emphasizes the importance of balancing academics with athletics, ensuring that his players excel not only on the field but also in the classroom and the community.”
St. Andrews is North Carolina’s only NAIA football program. The Knights play in the Appalachian Athletic Conference with schools from Virginia, Georgia and Kentucky.
St. Andrews became the 10th school out of North Carolina’s 34 college football programs to undergo a head coaching change since October.
North Carolina college football head coaching changes | 2024-25
- Appalachian State: Shawn Clark → Dowell Loggains
- Charlotte: Bigg Poggi → Tim Albin
- Davidson: Scott Abell → Saj Thakkar
- East Carolina: Mike Houston → Blake Harrell
- Elizabeth City State: Marcus Hilliard → Adrian Jones
- North Carolina: Mack Brown → Bill Belichick
- North Carolina A&T: Vincent Brown → Shawn Gibbs
- Shaw: Adrian Jones → Lamar Manigo
- St. Andrews: Bob Curtin —> Matt Quinn
- Wake Forest: Dave Clawson → Jake Dickert
Timeline of NC college football head coaching changes
- Jan. 31, 2025 – St. Andrews hires Matt Quinn as head coach
- Jan. 7 – Shaw announces that former OC Lamar Manigo has been hired as head coach
- Jan. 1 – Shaw announces that Greg Ruffin has declined the head coaching job due to health reasons
- Dec. 24, 2024 – Shaw announces the hire of Greg Ruffin as head coach
- Dec. 20 – Elizabeth City State hires Adrian Jones as head coach
- Dec. 18 – Wake Forest hires Jake Dickert as head coach
- Dec. 17 – Davidson hires Saj Thakkar as head coach
- Dec. 16 – Wake Forest announces that Dave Clawson has stepped down from his position as head coach, effective immediately.
- Dec. 12 – UNC introduces Bill Belichick at a 2 p.m. press conference that is carried live by national outlets like ESPN and NFL Network.
- Dec. 11 – After a couple of days of suspense, North Carolina officially announces that Bill Belichick will be the next head coach
- Dec. 7 – Appalachian State hires Dowell Loggains as head coach
- Dec. 7 – Charlotte hires Tim Albin as head coach
- Dec. 6 – North Carolina A&T hires Shawn Gibbs as head coach
- Dec. 4 – North Carolina A&T fires Vincent Brown as head coach
- Dec. 3 – Shaw University fires Adrian Jones as head coach
- Dec. 2 – Appalachian State fires Shawn Clark as head coach
- Dec. 2 – Bob Curtin steps down as St. Andrews head coach
- Dec. 1 – UNC names Freddie Kitchens as interim coach
- Nov. 27 – East Carolina removes interim tag, announces Blake Harrell as head coach
- Nov. 25 – Scott Abell resigns as Davidson’s head coach, named new coach at Rice University; Jon Berlin named interim coach
- Nov. 25 – UNC fires Mack Brown as head coach
- Nov. 18 – Charlotte fires Biff Poggi as head coach; Tim Brewster named interim
- Nov. 16 – Elizabeth City State names David Castillo as interim head coach
- Nov. 14 – Elizabeth City State fires Marcus Hilliard as head coach
- Oct. 20 – East Carolina fires Mike Houston as head coach; Blake Harrell named interim
