Football
- Title:
- Running Backs
- Phone:
- 205-348-3600
Robert Gillespie joined Alabama head coach Nick Saban's staff in January of 2021 to coach the Crimson Tide's running backs.
Known as one of the country's top recruiters, Gillespie beings his third season at the Capstone. He arrived in Tuscaloosa after three years coaching running backs at North Carolina for then-head coach Larry Fedora for a season followed by two years for head coach Mack Brown.
Over the course of his 18-year career in coaching, Gillespie has produced 13 NFL running backs, including 2017 Offensive Rookie of the Year Alvin Kamara. He will add one more to that list with Alabama's Jahmyr Gibbs slated to hear his name called in the 2023 NFL Draft. Including Kamara, Gillespie mentored three NFL backs at Tennessee, three at Oklahoma State and two each at South Carolina and West Virginia.
Gibbs was the leader of the Tide's rushing attack in 2022 but also proved to be one of the best pass-catchers out of the backfield in college football as a junior. Gibbs finished the season with 926 rushing yards and seven touchdowns on the ground while catching 44 passes for 444 yards and three more scores. Jase McClellan also turned in a solid season, gaining 655 yards on 112 carries (5.8 ypr) with seven touchdowns, while Roydell Williams added 250 rushing yards (four touchdowns) and Jamarion Miller 223 yards.
Gillespie's first season at Alabama saw Brian Robinson Jr. rush for 1,343 yards and 14 touchdowns in 14 games, helping the Crimson Tide win the SEC Championship and advance to the CFP National Championship Game. Robinson Jr. was also fourth on the team in receiving, catching 35 passes for 296 yards and two touchdowns.
He guided two of the nation's finest running backs in 2020 at North Carolina as Michael Carter and Javonte Williams both recorded 1,000-yard seasons. Carter led the way with 1,245 yards on the ground and nine touchdowns while Williams scored 19 times on the ground and finished with 1,140 yards. In 2019, his running backs helped the Tar Heels rank 12th nationally in total offense while rushing for 188.2 yards per game. The backfield trio of Carter, Javonte Williams and Antonio Williams combined to rush for 2,258 yards (5.8 ypc) and 11 touchdowns while catching 40 passes for another 334 yards and three scores. UNC averaged 193 rushing yards per game and 5.3 yards per carry in 2018, ranking 19th nationally.
Gillespie joined the Carolina staff after five seasons at Tennessee, where he served as assistant head coach and recruiting coordinator in addition to working with the Vols' running backs. While in Knoxville, Gillespie coached several talented backs, including Kamara, Jalen Hurd, John Kelly and Rajion Neal.
During his time on Rocky Top, Gillespie directed a rushing attack that scored a rushing touchdown in a school-record 32 straight games. The Vols scored 31 rushing touchdowns in 2016 alone to go along with 2,668 rushing yards as a team, marking the first time since the 1992, 1993 and 1994 seasons that UT had topped 2,000 rushing yards in three consecutive years.
Prior to his time at UT, Gillespie tutored running backs at West Virginia for two years (2011-12), where he helped the Mountaineers to the 2011 BIG EAST title. The Mountaineers rushed for an average of 171.8 yards per game in 2012, a marked improvement of almost 50 yards per game.
Gillespie spent a pair of seasons as the running backs coach at Oklahoma State (2009-10) where he coached future NFL running backs Kendall Hunter, Joseph Randall and Keith Toston. Hunter was an All-American for the Cowboys in 2010, ranking ninth nationally with 1,548 rushing yards, and went on to play in Super Bowl XLVII for the 49ers. Gillespie coached three All-Big 12 runners at Oklahoma State in Hunter, Toston and fullback Bryant Ward. The Pokes averaged 187.8 yards on the ground in 2009 and followed that up with 174.4 rushing yards per game in 2010, which ranked 36th in the country.
Before his stint in Stillwater, Gillespie spent four seasons at South Carolina (2005-08), beginning his tenure as a graduate assistant in 2005 before being elevated to running backs coach in 2006 where he mentored Cory Boyd, who ended up being the first SC running back drafted since 1998. As a senior, Boyd piled up 1,308 yards from scrimmage and scored 10 touchdowns.
Gillespie was a four-year letterman at the University of Florida from 1998-2001, where he played running back for the Gators. He totaled 1,854 career rushing yards and was also a reliable receiver out of the backfield. Gillespie still ranks second all-time for the Gators in receptions (96) and receiving yards (1,091) by a running back. He served as team captain in 2001, helping lead the Gators to a 56-23 Orange Bowl victory over Maryland and a No. 3 final national ranking in the Associated Press and Coaches polls. He also helped Florida win an SEC Championship in 2000.
Following his collegiate playing career, Gillespie played in the NFL for the Washington Redskins (2002-03) and the Jacksonville Jaguars (2003). A native of Hattiesburg, Miss., Gillespie earned his undergraduate degree from Florida in 2005. He and his wife, Crystal, have two daughters, Nola and Sadie, and a son, Wynston.
