Entering his first year as the head coach of the Golden Norse Football team, is former Norseman Clay Patterson. Patterson comes back home to NEO from conference rival Trinity Valley Community College in Athens, Texas, where he spent the last three seasons as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. Patterson has over twelve years of NCAA Division II and NJCAA offensive coaching experience (9 as offensive coordinator). During that time, Patterson has coached teams to a total of 98 wins, including three 10+ win seasons.
In Patterson’s 3 years at TVCC, he helped lead the team to five Southwest Junior College Football Conference (SWJCFC) championships (3 Conference, 2 Conference Playoffs) and two Heart of Texas (HOT) Bowl Game championships. Patterson’s offense broke the all-time yards per game record at any level of football with 656.1 YPG during the 2015 season. Other NJCAA records set during Patterson’s tenure were for total offense in a season (7,778 in 2014), yards per game (656.1 in 2015), and plays in a season (938 in 2014). In 23 of his 35 games as offensive coordinator, Patterson’s offense scored over 50 pts, with thirteen 60 point games and eight 70 point games. During his tenure at TVCC his overall record is 29-5 while averaging 54 points and 604 yards per game.
Patterson has had seven former quarterbacks sign Division 1 scholarships, and coached 2 quarterbacks to SWJCFC Player of the Year awards, one of which was rated by Rivals.com in 2015 as the #1 Dual-Threat QB in the country (Jérod Evans).
Prior to his tenure at TVCC, Patterson spent six seasons as the offensive coordinator at Texas A&M University-Kingsville. His Javelina offense broke 28 individual and 17 team passing records, Patterson’s offense helped lead the teams to one Lone Star Conference (LSC) championship and 2 playoff appearances.
Patterson is a native of Morris, Oklahoma and is a former Norseman who played for NEO in 1999-2000. Patterson finished his career at Southeastern Oklahoma State University, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in Health, Human Performance and Recreation and his master’s degree in Education Technology. Patterson's wife, the former Ashley Holt, is a Houston, Texas native and Baylor University graduate who currently serves as the Online Instructional Designer at NEO. Clay, Ashley and their adorable schnauzer Rio reside in Miami, Oklahoma.