The Portland State Vikings will not bring back Bruce Barnum and his coaching staff for the 2026 season. Barnum was the head coach at Portland State for 11 seasons, going 39-75 overall and 29-51 in Big Sky games during his tenure.
Barnum joined Portland State in 2010 as the offensive coordinator on Nigel Burton‘s coaching staff. Burton went 21-36 overall and 12-27 in the Big Sky and was fired after the 2014 season. Barnum was promoted and had immediate success, guiding PSU to a 9-3 overall record and a second round appearance in the FCS Playoffs in 2015. It was only the second time Portland State had made the FCS Playoffs, with 2000 being the first appearance.
The Vikings fell off the next two years, dropping to 3-8 in 2016 and 0-11 in 2017. The Vikings had a solid start in 2018, opening 4-4, before losing the final three games to finish 4-7. In 2019, the team started 5-3 and lost the last four games to fall to 5-7. After playing only one game during the 2020-21 COVID season, Portland State sat at 5-4 overall in the 2021 fall campaign with only two games left. Those games were against #12 Sacramento State and #5 Eastern Washington, and wins would have put them in the Playoff conversation. Portland State lost both games and finished 5-6 overall.
In 2022, Portland State had a brutal early season schedule and opened 0-3. They rebounded to reach 4-5 before dropping the final two games to finish 4-7 overall. In 2023, the Vikings were 4-4 heading into November, but lost two of the last three to end the season at 5-6. Portland State went 3-8 in 2024 and 1-11 in 2025, with the latter’s lone win coming at Cal Poly.
Before joining Portland State as OC in 2010, Barnum was the OC and offensive line coach at Cornell from 2007 through 2009 in his second stint with the Big Red. He spent time at Idaho State as an assistant coach from 1998 through 2006. He was the assistant head coach and offensive line coach at NCAA Division III Coast Guard from 1994 through 1997 and the offensive line coach at NCAA Division III American International College in 1993. Barnum’s first stint at Cornell was in 1991 and 1992 as the offensive line coach. He started his college coaching career at D-II Western Washington in the same OL position.
Portland State will have a new head coach in 2026 and a difficult schedule. The Vikings’ first full month will see them face UC Davis at home, play at San Diego State, welcome North Dakota, and then play back-to-back road games at Oregon and Weber State.
Photo Credit to Portland State University Athletics
