COLLEGE FOOTBALL: SIU HIRES NEW FOOTBALL COACH

CARBONDALE, Ill. -- Southern Illinois has hired Emporia State football coach Jerry Kill as head coach of the Salukis, the university announced Wednesday.

Kill, who will be introduced Thursday, replaces Jan Quarless, who was fired earlier this month after his team finished 3-8.

Kill, 39, has been a coach for 16 years. He spent two years as a high school coach and seven years as an assistant coach at Pittsburg State in Kansas.

Kill was head coach for five years at Saginaw Valley State in Michigan and the last two at Emporia State, his record was 49-25 at the Division II schools. Emporia State finished 6-5 this season.

SIU's sports information officer Fred Huff said athletic director Paul Kowalczyk wanted someone with head coaching experience to coach the Salukis. Also, said Huff, Kowalczyk liked the idea of a person moving up (SIU is Division 1 AA) as opposed to a person stepping down to a lower level.

Quarless, whose teams went 14-30 in four seasons, was fired with one year left on a five-year contract. The Salukis haven't had a winning season since 1991.