Kenni Burns

Kenni Burns (born November 24, 1983) is an American college football coach and former player. He is the head football coach for Kent State University, a position he has held since 2023. He is the former running backs coach and assistant head coach for Minnesota Golden Gophers football.^[1]

Burns was a three-year letter winner at Indiana. As a student he played running back from 2003 to 2006.

Burns followed P. J. Fleck from Western Michigan to Minnesota 2017, as the running back coach.^[2] In 2019, he was granted the additional title as assistant head coach. During his tenure, Burns coached Rodney Smith and all-American back Mohamed Ibrahim.^[3]

On December 14, 2022, Burns was named the head coach for the Kent State Golden Flashes.^[4] His head coaching debut against UCF in the 2023 season is considered one of the worst in NCAA Division I FBS history, leading the Golden Flashes to a 56–6 defeat. In his first season as head coach, he led Kent State to a 1–11 record, marking them as one of the worst teams in NCAA Division I FBS in the 2023 season. The only win of the season was a victory over the NCAA Division I FCS Central Connecticut. In his second season, he led Kent State to a winless 0-12 record. The Golden Flashes once again finished as the worst team in the 2024 season and became the first winless team in a full season since 2019. Burns holds a 1-23 record as a head coach, which includes an upset loss against NCAA Division I FCS Saint Francis and 22 consecutive losses to FBS teams. Burns is currently on a multi-year 3+ million dollar coaching contract with Kent State athletics which goes through the 2028 college football season.

Burns is from Springfield, Illinois. He graduated from Sacred Heart-Griffin High School in 2003 and attended Indiana University Bloomington where he graduated with a degree in general studies in 2006.

Burns and his wife, Ciara, have two children.

• Kent State profile