Former NC A&T assistant Chris Barnette has found a new HBCU home – but it is at Winston Salem State University, not South Carolina State.
Barnette has been named the offensive coordinator at Winston-Salem State, according to the Winston-Salem Journal. This comes a week after reports that he was headed to South Carolina State.
Barnette became available when new North Carolina A&T head football coach Vincent Brown decided not to keep him on staff after taking the job in January. He had been a part of A&T’s staff since 2015 after starting his career at Guilford College, his alma mater. He helped A&T win four MEAC titles and four Celebration Bowl games during his tenure there under Rod Broadway and later Sam Washington.
To say Winston-Salem State University could use some offensive punch is an understatement. WSSU scored just 17 points per game during the 2022 season as it went just 3-7 overall. Barnette will be the third offensive coordinator in as many seasons for head coach Robert Massey, who is heading into his second season as head coach after spending the 2019 and 2021 seasons as interim head coach.
Barnette will take the place of Kam Smith, WSSU’s all-time leading passer who served as offensive coordinator for the 2022 season. Smith left the coaching profession, making an opening that Barnette will fill.