Former Ole Miss football Rebel Micheal Spurlock hired as Western Kentucky wide receivers coach
Former Ole Miss quarterback/running back Micheal Spurlock is taking the next step in his post-playing career.
Spurlock, as reported by ESPN’s Pete Thamel on Monday, is expected to join Tyson Helton’s staff at Western Kentucky as wide receivers coach. Spurlock spent last season as special teams quality control coach for the Green Bay Packers. He was a senior player personnel analyst at Ole Miss for two seasons (2020-21) under now-fourth-year Rebel head coach Lane Kiffin.
Spurlock appeared in 11 games (eight starts) as a player at Ole Miss. He was initially viewed as the heir apparent at quarterback after Eli Manning left for the NFL. Manning — an all-time Ole Miss great and Heisman finalist his senior season — was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2004 NFL Draft.
However, then-Ole Miss head coach David Cutcliffe struggled to fit Spurlock’s difference in playing style to Manning into the Rebel offense. Spurlock, a former in-state recruit from Indianola, ultimately changed positions.
Spurlock started the season finale of his senior season at running back. For his career, he completed 142 of his 267 pass attempts for 1,709 yards, seven touchdowns and nine interceptions. He rushed for two additional touchdowns.
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Spurlock found more consistent success as a wide receiver in the NFL.
All while being an undrafted free agent in 2006. He played for seven different organizations over his nine seasons, with his most memorable run coming with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (twice). Spurlock in 2007 became the first player in the organization’s then-32-year history to return a kickoff for a touchdown in a regular season game.
He returned a punt for a touchdown in his second go-around with the Buccaneers in 2009. Spurlock also took a squib kickoff back for a touchdown that year, the second of his career. He had a 99-yard scoring return with the then-San Diego Chargers in 2012.
Spurlock was waived by the Bears two years later and soon after embarked on his coaching career. He’s also been an assistant with the Dallas Cowboys, UTSA and Southeastern Louisiana.
With Spurlock helping out the Ole Miss offense as an analyst in 2021, the Rebels, led by quarterback Matt Corral, finished as the top-ranked offense in the SEC. They were sixth overall in the country.
