Inside The Huskies

Kirkland Parker's Near Decade-Long Coaching Quest

The UW quality control staffer reportedly will join North Texas as a safeties coach.
Dan Raley|
Kirkland Parker has a practice presence for the UW.
Kirkland Parker has a practice presence for the UW. | UW

Kirkland Parker still turns up online as one of 28 University of Washington football coaches listed on Jedd Fisch's staff, as part of a defensive quality control group that runs five deep.

Yet on Monday, CBS Sports reported that Parker soon will join North Texas as the safeties coach, which if it plays out is a major development in his career pursuits.

This would be the capper of a near decade-long quest for him to become a full-time FBS coach that has taken him to some of the most obscure outposts across college football.

Certainly he has sacrificed along the way, making previous coaching stops at West Texas A&M University in Canyon, Texas, Ottawa University in Surprise, Arizona, and East Central University in Ada, Oklahoma.

Parker even has had to redraw some deep-rooted football allegiances, going from a Washington State nickelback to a Washington staffer, crossing lines in the past two Apple Cups.

"Sometimes gotta slow down and be grateful where your feet is," he posted on social media at the beginning of the year.

For the past two years, Parker has worked in the background interacting with defensive backs at the UW, almost in anonymity, after coming in with Fisch's Montlake staff.

When you're a quality control coach, it means you don't get paid much. You don't have a public bio provided by the athletic department, explaining who you are and where you've been. You don't necessarily speak to any media members.

You just put in your time with the players, advising them on the nuances of their positions and reassuring them it will work out.

Kirkland Parker has been a UW quality control coach for two years.
Kirkland Parker has been a UW quality control coach for two years. | UW

"Deserve everything that’s coming your way! Can’t wait to see," Parker posted when nickelback Leroy Bryant transferred to Stanford.

"Proud of you bro! Made the last 3 years a movie," he wrote to Denzel Boston after the wide receiver declared his NFL intentions.

Parker is a native Texan from Houston who played one year at Blinn Junior College, also in Texas, and three seasons for WSU.

In 31 games for the Cougars, he came up with 37 tackles, 4 pass break-ups and a forced fumble.

He played in the 2017 Apple Cup at Husky Stadium, coming up with a tackle in WSU's 41-14 loss to a Chris Petersen team headed to the Fiesta Bowl.

Parker's final college outing was a 42-17 defeat to Michigan State in the Holiday Bowl, with the two consecutive lopsided losses to close taking a bit of a shine off a Cougars' season that ended up 9-4.

His first coaching job lasted three seasons at the Mater Dei high school powerhouse in Southern California, then it was on to those various college stops in different capacities.

He appears to be on his way now.

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Dan Raley
DAN RALEY

Dan Raley has worked for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, as well as for MSN.com and Boeing, the latter as a global aerospace writer. His sportswriting career spans four decades and he's covered University of Washington football and basketball during much of that time. In a working capacity, he's been to the Super Bowl, the NBA Finals, the MLB playoffs, the Masters, the U.S. Open, the PGA Championship and countless Final Fours and bowl games.

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