Former Oklahoma TEs Coach Joe Jon Finley Lands Group of Five Job, per Report

Joe Jon Finley is reportedly headed to San Marcos after spending the last five years on the Sooners' staff.

Oklahoma tight ends coach Joe Jon Finley | John E. Hoover / Sooners On SI

Joe Jon Finley, who served as Oklahoma’s tight ends coach from 2021 to 2025, is reportedly dropping down to the Group of Five level.

Finley has accepted a role as an offensive assistant at Texas State, according to a report from Matt Zenitz of CBS Sports. The Sooners parted ways with Finley after the 2025 season and hired former NFL star Jason Witten to be his replacement.

Texas State is set to hire Joe Jon Finley as an offensive assistant, sources tell @CBSSports.

Will work with the team’s QBs. The former NFL tight end was tight ends coach and co-OC at Oklahoma the last five seasons. Was previously pass game coordinator at Ole Miss. pic.twitter.com/eNOlVTzu5w

— Matt Zenitz (@mzenitz) February 15, 2026

Long before his coaching career, Finley was a standout tight end for the Sooners from 2004 to 2007. During his four seasons in Norman, Finley compiled 775 yards on 62 catches. He bounced around NFL practice squads from 2008 to 2012 before entering the coaching ranks.

Prior to his return to Norman, Finley worked on Baylor, Missouri, Texas A&M and Ole Miss’ staffs.

Finley joined OU’s staff in 2021, when Lincoln Riley was still the Sooners’ head coach. In his first year as the Sooners’ tight ends coach, OU’s tight end room registered 710 receiving yards and nine touchdowns.

After the 2021 season, Riley departed from Oklahoma and accepted the head coaching job at USC. When Brent Venables was hired to become OU’s new head coach in 2022, he opted to keep Finley on board.

In his first season working under Venables, Finley’s tight ends helped OU average a Big 12-best 474 yards per game. Tight end Brayden Willis totaled 514 yards and seven touchdowns that year. Oklahoma’s offense was similarly strong in 2023, as the Sooners finished the season averaging 41.7 points and 507 yards per contest.

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The Sooners’ offense struggled mightily in 2024, as they fired offensive coordinator and play caller Seth Littrell midway through the season.

In Finley’s final year at OU, tight end Jaren Kanak — a former linebacker — was the only player in the position group who played a significant role. Kanak ended the year with 533 yards on 44 catches.

Finley will join a Texas State program that has only competed at the FBS level since 2012. The Bobcats have reached bowl eligibility in each of their last three seasons after failing to reach the postseason in their first 11 years as an FBS member.

Witten comes to Oklahoma after spending the last three years as the head coach at Liberty Christian School in Texas. The former Dallas Cowboys star made the Pro Bowl 11 times during his NFL career and earned First Team All-Pro honors twice.

With Kanak now out of eligibility, the Sooners revamped the tight end room after the 2025 season.

Oklahoma signed three tight ends — Hayden Hansen (Florida), Jack Van Dorselaer (Tennessee) and Rocky Beers (Colorado State) — from the transfer portal in January. The Sooners will also have Trynae Washington, Kade McIntyre and John Locke Jr. back on the roster in 2026.

OU will open its 2026 season against UTEP on Sept. 5.