Russell Gaskamp


Russell Gaskamp is an American football coach. He is the head football coach for Franklin Pierce University, a position he has held since 2019. He was the head football coach for Oklahoma Panhandle State University from 2012 to 2018. He was the head football coach for the Austin Rattlers of the North [American Football League (2000s)|North American Football League]. He also coached for Sam Houston State, Texas A&M–Commerce, Southwestern Oklahoma State, and Angelo State. He played college football for Texas as an offensive lineman.

Playing career

Gaskamp played football for three seasons at Weatherford [High School (Oklahoma)|Weatherford High School] and helped them win back-to-back state titles in 1991 and 1992. He was all-state in both wrestling and football and was a USA Today High School All-American in 1993.
Gaskamp went to college at the University of Texas where he played center for the Longhorns football team from 1994 to 1998, lettering in 1996 and 1998. He helped the Longhorns win three conference championships and played in the Sun, Sugar, Fiesta and Cotton Bowls. He started all 13 games at center in 1998 and was part of the offensive line that helped Ricky Williams set the college career rushing record in his Heisman Trophy winning year. He was named to the Longhorn All-Decade Team of the 1990's.
In 2016, he was named to the Weatherford Athletic Hall of Fame.

Coaching career

Gaskamp had several years of assistant coaching experience before becoming a head coach at the college level. From 1999–2000, he was the offensive coordinator for the Austin Rattlers minor league football team, helping them win back to back championships. In 2002, he was promoted to head coach and led them to a 13–1 record and to the North American Football League Championship game.
He taught and coached at Austin's Johnston High School from 2002–04.
He then moved to college football and was a graduate assistant/tight ends coach at NCAA Division I-AA/FCS Sam Houston State on the Bearkats 2004 national semi-finals team. He was the offensive line coach at Texas A&M–Commerce from 2005–06. He was the offensive coordinator at Southwestern Oklahoma State from 2006–08 and was an assistant coach at Angelo State from 2009–2011.
In 2011, he was hired as the head coach at Oklahoma Panhandle State and stayed in the position as the team dropped down to NAIA. In 2018, he was hired as the head coach at Franklin Pierce.