Tom Herman joined the Rice Owls football coaching staff on January 19, following head coach David Bailiff to Houston from Texas State.

Over the previous two seasons, Herman served as the Bobcats' Offensive Coordinator and was also responsible for coaching the Bobcats' quarterbacks. The past two years, the Bobcat led the Southland in total offense, in addition to leading the league in passing this past season.

In 2005, he coached the SLC's Player of the Year, Barrick Nealy, who finished fifth in the voting for the Walter Payton Award which is given annually to the top offensive player in Division I-AA. Nealy ranked No. 13 in total offense and No. 21 in pass efficiency among NCAA Division I-AA players.

As a unit in 2005, Texas State's offense ranked eighth nationally in scoring (37.00 pg) and led the Southland Conference in total yards (439.07 ypg). The Bobcats won the Southland Conference championship for the first time and went on to make a deep run in the NCAA in the team's first ever Division I-AA appearance.

Prior to Texas State, Herman coached at Sam Houston State. During that stretch, the Bearkats twice captured Southland Conference championships and played in the NCAA Division I-AA playoffs. In 2004, Sam Houston posted an 11-3 record and advanced to the Division I-AA championship's semifinals.

At Sam Houston State, Herman served as the program's wide receivers coach and was also the squad's special teams' coordinator. In 2004, Sam Houston State led the Southland Conference and ranked second nationally in passing offense, averaging 358.5 yards. Sam Houston's 471 yards of total offense ranked fifth among Division I-AA schools.

As the wide receivers coach, Herman mentored the league's two leading receivers in 2004. Both players ranked among the nation's Top 15 when it came to receiving yards.

In his first season at Sam Houston State, Herman coached Jonathon Cooper who was named the NCAA Division I-AA Wide Receiver of the Year. Cooper earned All-America and All-Southland Conference honors in 2001 after leading Division I-AA with 18 touchdown receptions. Herman went on to have receivers each of his four seasons garner all-conference recognition as well as having coached three All-Americans during his tenure.

Prior to joining the Sam Houston State staff, Herman served as a graduate assistant coach at Texas where he worked with the offensive line as well as the defensive and special teams scout units. While at Texas, Herman coached two All-American offensive linemen and an All-Big 12 kicker. The Longhorns were ranked 15th nationally in 1999 and were 12th in 2000. Statistically, Texas ranked eighth in scoring (38.6 points), 14th in passing offense (293.2 ypg) and 15th in total offense (438.3 ypg) in 2000.

Herman began his coaching career as the wide receivers coach at Texas Lutheran in Seguin. He also coordinated the team's off-season developmental programs and directed offensive scouting. Herman's wide receivers were part of an offense that averaged 424 yards per game in 1998 and ranked second in the American Southwest Conference in both passing and total offense.

Outside of college athletics, Herman previously worked as a sports production assistant for KADY-TV in Oxnard, Calif., a highlight coordinator for Fox-TV in Los Angeles and a producer/production assistant at XTRA Sports Radio in Los Angeles. He has also managed training sites for Adams Course Texas which educates athletes on off-season workouts and directing the development of athletes' personal goals and leadership skills.

A member of Mensa, Herman earned his B.S. in Business Administration from California Lutheran in 1997 where he was a cum laude graduate. He was a Presidential Scholarship recipient. At California Lutheran he was an All-Southern California Athletic Conference wide receiver. He also earned a Master's of Education degree from Texas.

Herman and his wife Michelle are the parents of a daughter, Priya Nicolette Herman (3).