Wayne State names Tyrone Wheatley new football coach
(CBS DETROIT) - Inkster native and former University of Michigan star running back Tyrone Wheatley has been named Wayne State University's new football coach.
Wheatley served as the running backs coach with the Denver Broncos this season.
"I am beyond excited to welcome Coach Wheatley and his family to the Wayne State community," Wayne State University Interim Director of Athletics Erika Wallace said in a statement. "Coach Wheatley has a passion for developing the student-athlete not only on the field, but off. His ability to mentor men, develop talent, and recruit will elevate our football program. I'm looking forward to watching his leadership as he guides our Warrior student-athletes into a new era."
A Dearborn Heights Robichaud graduate, Wheatley, 51, began his collegiate coaching career at Ohio Northern University. Other coaching stints included stops at Eastern Michigan, Syracuse, the Buffalo Bills, Michigan and the Jacksonville Jaguars. Wheatley also was the head coach at Morgan State from 2019-21.
"First of all I would like to thank Wayne State University, President M. Roy Wilson and athletic director Erika Wallace for the opportunity to lead a great university and its football team," Wheatley said in a statement.
"Throughout the interview process, Mrs. Wallace showed that Wayne State was well prepared and very detailed in what they wanted in the football program and the direction of the athletic department. This made me really excited about the job. I am looking forward to coming home, as they always say there is no place like home. No matter where I have been, I've always tried to recruit the state of Michigan and the city of Detroit. I am pleased, honored and blessed to be back home and to coach at Wayne State University."
The 1992 Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year, Wheatley rushed for 4,187 yards and amassed 53 total touchdowns as a Wolverine.
A 2013 Michigan Sports Hall of Fame inductee, Wheatley was selected by the New York Giants in the first round of the 1995 NFL Draft. Wheatley spent time with the Giants, Miami Dolphins and Oakland Raiders, ending his NFL career in 2004 with nearly 5,000 rushing yards and 47 total touchdowns.
Wheatley takes over a Wayne State program that went 1-9 in 2022.