The Southern Illinois University football program has added four new members to its coaching staff for the 2026 season. The hires include Tom Rebholz as linebackers coach, Jake Kulig as defensive tackles coach, CJ Polkinghorn as an offensive graduate assistant, and Drew Wilson as a defensive graduate assistant.
Tom Rebholz comes to Southern Illinois after serving as the defensive coordinator at the University of Findlay in Ohio from 2021 to 2025. This was his second tenure at Findlay, where he also worked as linebackers coach and co-defensive coordinator from 2015 to 2018 before spending two years at Fairmont State.
Jake Kulig will be responsible for coaching the defensive tackles. He spent the last two seasons coaching the defensive line at Gannon University in Erie, Pennsylvania. Kulig previously held a similar position at the University of Albany in New York for two seasons. Originally from Rochester, New York, he graduated from St. John Fisher in 2016 with a degree in Communication and Media Services.
CJ Polkinghorn joins SIU after working as a graduate assistant coach for Henderson State’s defensive line during the 2025 season. Between 2022 and 2024, Polkinghorn served as an offensive student assistant at Northern Iowa and gained experience as both an offensive analyst and offensive line assistant.
Drew Wilson was most recently the defensive backs coach at Upper Iowa in 2025. Before beginning his coaching career, Wilson played linebacker at Illinois College in Jacksonville, Illinois, from 2021 to 2024. He is originally from Adairsville, Georgia.
Southern Illinois University’s football team competes at the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision level and won a national title in 1983 (official website). The program represents Southern Illinois University and plays its home games in Carbondale, Illinois (official website). The Saluki dog breed serves as the team’s mascot due to its speed and endurance (official website).
Fans can stay updated on team news by following @SIU_Football on Twitter or Instagram or visiting Facebook.com/SalukiFootball. There is also a “Salukis” Mobile App available on both major app stores.
