Following are reputed to be Wisconsin's DC Candidates - Should Wilcox consider any of them for the DC opening on his staff?
Jim Leonhard
Leonhard, the current defensive backs coach for the Badgers, is a 34-year-old alumni of the university. As a walk-on, he contributed three first-team All-American seasons. After a nine-year NFL career with the Bills, Ravens, Jets, Broncos, Saints, and Browns, Leonhard joined the Wisconsin coaching staff less than a year ago as the DB coach. Under his command came some of the best moments of the season, from the Leo Musso fumble recovery touchdown to D’Cota Dixon’s game-sealing pick against LSU. He was part of a defensive coaching unit that was home to a top-five NCAA defense. The Wisconsin secondary recorded 21 interceptions this season, good for 2nd in the country. Leonhard is one of many in-house candidates considered, and an impressive first season with Dixon, Musso, Shelton, Jamerson, Tindal and more could secure him the promotion.
Tim Tibesar
Tibesar is in his second year as the outside linebacker coaching job for the Badgers. In his first year (2015), under the command of Dave Aranda, Wisconsin posted nation-best marks on defense, and they continued to thrive in his 2016 campaign. Tibesar was instrumental in the development of former Badger Joe Schobert (now in the NFL), graduating Badger Vince Biegel (29 tackles, 6.0 TFL, 4.0 sacks, forced fumble in 12 games) and up-and-coming Badger Jack Cichy, who spent most of the 2016 season injured, but was still able to record a whopping 45 tackles in his first seven games. Tibesar may be looked favorably upon because of his experience in coaching – prior to Wisconsin, he has spent time with the Chicago Bears, Northwestern, Purdue, North Dakota, and the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League. Tibesar also represents another popular in-house candidate for Wisconsin.
Charlie Partridge
The former head coach at Florida Atlantic, Partridge is a familiar face around Madison. His time as a head coach didn’t pan out, as he led FAU to a 9-27 record in his three years in charge there. However, in 2011 and 2012, he served as the associate head coach, co-defensive coordinator, and defensive line coach for the Badgers, after serving as the defensive line and specialists coach since 2008. The promotion he earned prior to 2011 is largely thanks to a guy named J.J. Watt, who, under the direction of Partridge, won the Lott Impact Trophy and went on to become a three-time NFL Defensive MVP and four-time Pro Bowler. Other players under the direction of Partridge at Wisconsin included O’Brien Schofield and Matt Shaughnessy. Prior to his career at Wisconsin, Partridge worked with the defensive line and special teams at Pitt, Iowa State, Eastern Illinois, and Drake, his alma mater. Partridge may be perhaps the most enticing outsider candidate because of his familiarity with the program in Madison and the name he created for himself while at the school.
Inoke Breckterfield
The current defensive line coach for the Badgers, Breckterfield has been part of the Wisconsin coaching staff since 2015 and was, along with Tibesar and under the direction of Aranda, partially responsible for the nation’s best defense in 2015. Prior to Wisconsin, he spent time at Pitt (sensing a theme here?), and was known for building up Aaron Donald, the current Los Angeles Ram who in his senior season was a unanimous All-American as well as the winner of the Lombardi Award, the Outland Trophy, the Nagurski Trophy and the Bednarik Award. Players like Chikwe Obasih, Olive Sagapolu and Connor Sheehy have all flourished under the direction of Breckterfield, who represents a third qualified in-house candidate. Prior to Wisconsin and Pitt, Breckterfield coached with UCLA and Montana and played at Oregon State and in the CFL with the Toronto Argonauts and Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
Erik Chinander, UCF Defensive Coordinator
Insiders may have an advantage, but few younger coaches in the world of college football have been as impressive as Chinander. He’s got a Big Ten pedigree, having been an offensive lineman at the University of Iowa in the early 2000’s and at the age of 37 certainly has a youthful edge to him.
This past season, Chinander moved along with Scott Frost from Oregon to UCF as the new defensive coordinator. All that happened was a remarkable turnaround from a team that went 1-11 in 2015 to 6-6 this past season. A big part of that change was a defense that made a huge step forward.
UCF finished this past season 10th nationally in defensive efficiency, while going from giving up 37.7 points to 24.6 points per game this past season. That was good enough for third in the AAC and 41st nationally.
Overall, this is an incredibly quick turnaround and the best days may be ahead for the Knights defense. It also may be attractive to get someone with ties to bigger recruiting areas like California and Florida as well.
Maybe the raw numbers don’t impress given where Wisconsin has been, but consider the quick turnaround of a miserable defensive record. Chinander is also an outside linebacker specialist, and Wisconsin has a great group of linebackers overall.
Chinander’s biggest strike against him? He’s got limited experience as an actual defensive coordinator. His only experience leading a defense came last season. But, of course, as we’ve shown, that was one heck of a defensive performance as well.
Will Chryst look to someone outside the Badgers sphere who is so young and overall inexperienced as a leader of the defensive coaching staff?
Nate Woody, Appalachian State Defensive Coordinator
Wisconsin needs to cast a wide net to look for its next defensive coordinator and making a swift move is only wise if that person is an internal candidate. However, if the Badgers are going to cast a wide net, one name that should be on the list to contact is Appalachian State DC Nate Woody.
He’s got a good pedigree in the 3-4 defense and is versed in coaching inside and outside linebackers at lower levels of the game. But, it is Woody’s work over the last four seasons as App State’s DC that should attract Chryst’s attention.
App State have transitioned nicely from the FCS to the FBS level, and a large part of that has been its stifling defense. After a rough transition in 2014, where the Mountaineers finished 81st in defensive efficiency according to Football Outsiders, this team has shot up to 11th in 2015 and 20th this past season.
Those are good indications of the level of coaching and the level of recruiting being done.
Additionally, Woody is engrained in the recruiting of players in North and South Carolina. Wisconsin has always had an interest in players out of those states, but only has dipped in there thanks to the connections of running back coach John Settle.
There’s a lot to like about the 56-year-old coach, but the question is if Woody would have the interest in uprooting his life at that age at a shot for a job like Wisconsin. Ultimately that may be the factor that eliminates him from contention. Still, it would be worth a phone call.
Vic Koenning, Troy Defensive Coordinator
If youth isn’t going to be served, why not look at one of the most well-traveled and well-respected defensive coordinators in the country? Koenning should be a name familiar to some in the Badgers fanbase, as he was the artchitect of a huge Illinois defensive turnaround in 2011, it just wasn’t enough to save Ron Zook’s job in Champaign.
Oh, and did we forget to mention he was the man behind the Troy defense that muted Wisconsin’s offense in 2015? Remember that 28-3 game? I sure do, and I remember it for not allowing Wisconsin much room on third downs (3-10) or to go completely off considering how much the Troy offense was stifled on the day.
Wisconsin may have put up 401 total yards on the day, but no running back went over the 100-yard mark. It also hit a few big individual plays to score two of its four touchdowns in a pretty plodding effort.
That said, Koenning has consistently put up some of the best defenses in the country no matter where he is. Currently, Koenning is heading in to his third season at Troy, but has also had stops at Clemson and Kansas State in addition to Illinois.
While he has been a bit of a journeyman, it could be exactly what is needed should Chryst be looking to groom Leonhard for the job in the near future. Koennig’s Trojans defense finished this past season 21st in the country in defensive efficiency according to Football Outsiders, while also being one of the most proficient at turning opponents over as well.
This could be the best marriage possible between experience and being able to transition in to a younger coach relatively soon. However, would Koenning jump at another Power 5 offer this late in his career? Either way, it is worth a phone call.
Jim Leonhard
Leonhard, the current defensive backs coach for the Badgers, is a 34-year-old alumni of the university. As a walk-on, he contributed three first-team All-American seasons. After a nine-year NFL career with the Bills, Ravens, Jets, Broncos, Saints, and Browns, Leonhard joined the Wisconsin coaching staff less than a year ago as the DB coach. Under his command came some of the best moments of the season, from the Leo Musso fumble recovery touchdown to D’Cota Dixon’s game-sealing pick against LSU. He was part of a defensive coaching unit that was home to a top-five NCAA defense. The Wisconsin secondary recorded 21 interceptions this season, good for 2nd in the country. Leonhard is one of many in-house candidates considered, and an impressive first season with Dixon, Musso, Shelton, Jamerson, Tindal and more could secure him the promotion.
Tim Tibesar
Tibesar is in his second year as the outside linebacker coaching job for the Badgers. In his first year (2015), under the command of Dave Aranda, Wisconsin posted nation-best marks on defense, and they continued to thrive in his 2016 campaign. Tibesar was instrumental in the development of former Badger Joe Schobert (now in the NFL), graduating Badger Vince Biegel (29 tackles, 6.0 TFL, 4.0 sacks, forced fumble in 12 games) and up-and-coming Badger Jack Cichy, who spent most of the 2016 season injured, but was still able to record a whopping 45 tackles in his first seven games. Tibesar may be looked favorably upon because of his experience in coaching – prior to Wisconsin, he has spent time with the Chicago Bears, Northwestern, Purdue, North Dakota, and the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League. Tibesar also represents another popular in-house candidate for Wisconsin.
Charlie Partridge
The former head coach at Florida Atlantic, Partridge is a familiar face around Madison. His time as a head coach didn’t pan out, as he led FAU to a 9-27 record in his three years in charge there. However, in 2011 and 2012, he served as the associate head coach, co-defensive coordinator, and defensive line coach for the Badgers, after serving as the defensive line and specialists coach since 2008. The promotion he earned prior to 2011 is largely thanks to a guy named J.J. Watt, who, under the direction of Partridge, won the Lott Impact Trophy and went on to become a three-time NFL Defensive MVP and four-time Pro Bowler. Other players under the direction of Partridge at Wisconsin included O’Brien Schofield and Matt Shaughnessy. Prior to his career at Wisconsin, Partridge worked with the defensive line and special teams at Pitt, Iowa State, Eastern Illinois, and Drake, his alma mater. Partridge may be perhaps the most enticing outsider candidate because of his familiarity with the program in Madison and the name he created for himself while at the school.
Inoke Breckterfield
The current defensive line coach for the Badgers, Breckterfield has been part of the Wisconsin coaching staff since 2015 and was, along with Tibesar and under the direction of Aranda, partially responsible for the nation’s best defense in 2015. Prior to Wisconsin, he spent time at Pitt (sensing a theme here?), and was known for building up Aaron Donald, the current Los Angeles Ram who in his senior season was a unanimous All-American as well as the winner of the Lombardi Award, the Outland Trophy, the Nagurski Trophy and the Bednarik Award. Players like Chikwe Obasih, Olive Sagapolu and Connor Sheehy have all flourished under the direction of Breckterfield, who represents a third qualified in-house candidate. Prior to Wisconsin and Pitt, Breckterfield coached with UCLA and Montana and played at Oregon State and in the CFL with the Toronto Argonauts and Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
Erik Chinander, UCF Defensive Coordinator
Insiders may have an advantage, but few younger coaches in the world of college football have been as impressive as Chinander. He’s got a Big Ten pedigree, having been an offensive lineman at the University of Iowa in the early 2000’s and at the age of 37 certainly has a youthful edge to him.
This past season, Chinander moved along with Scott Frost from Oregon to UCF as the new defensive coordinator. All that happened was a remarkable turnaround from a team that went 1-11 in 2015 to 6-6 this past season. A big part of that change was a defense that made a huge step forward.
UCF finished this past season 10th nationally in defensive efficiency, while going from giving up 37.7 points to 24.6 points per game this past season. That was good enough for third in the AAC and 41st nationally.
Overall, this is an incredibly quick turnaround and the best days may be ahead for the Knights defense. It also may be attractive to get someone with ties to bigger recruiting areas like California and Florida as well.
Maybe the raw numbers don’t impress given where Wisconsin has been, but consider the quick turnaround of a miserable defensive record. Chinander is also an outside linebacker specialist, and Wisconsin has a great group of linebackers overall.
Chinander’s biggest strike against him? He’s got limited experience as an actual defensive coordinator. His only experience leading a defense came last season. But, of course, as we’ve shown, that was one heck of a defensive performance as well.
Will Chryst look to someone outside the Badgers sphere who is so young and overall inexperienced as a leader of the defensive coaching staff?
Nate Woody, Appalachian State Defensive Coordinator
Wisconsin needs to cast a wide net to look for its next defensive coordinator and making a swift move is only wise if that person is an internal candidate. However, if the Badgers are going to cast a wide net, one name that should be on the list to contact is Appalachian State DC Nate Woody.
He’s got a good pedigree in the 3-4 defense and is versed in coaching inside and outside linebackers at lower levels of the game. But, it is Woody’s work over the last four seasons as App State’s DC that should attract Chryst’s attention.
App State have transitioned nicely from the FCS to the FBS level, and a large part of that has been its stifling defense. After a rough transition in 2014, where the Mountaineers finished 81st in defensive efficiency according to Football Outsiders, this team has shot up to 11th in 2015 and 20th this past season.
Those are good indications of the level of coaching and the level of recruiting being done.
Additionally, Woody is engrained in the recruiting of players in North and South Carolina. Wisconsin has always had an interest in players out of those states, but only has dipped in there thanks to the connections of running back coach John Settle.
There’s a lot to like about the 56-year-old coach, but the question is if Woody would have the interest in uprooting his life at that age at a shot for a job like Wisconsin. Ultimately that may be the factor that eliminates him from contention. Still, it would be worth a phone call.
Vic Koenning, Troy Defensive Coordinator
If youth isn’t going to be served, why not look at one of the most well-traveled and well-respected defensive coordinators in the country? Koenning should be a name familiar to some in the Badgers fanbase, as he was the artchitect of a huge Illinois defensive turnaround in 2011, it just wasn’t enough to save Ron Zook’s job in Champaign.
Oh, and did we forget to mention he was the man behind the Troy defense that muted Wisconsin’s offense in 2015? Remember that 28-3 game? I sure do, and I remember it for not allowing Wisconsin much room on third downs (3-10) or to go completely off considering how much the Troy offense was stifled on the day.
Wisconsin may have put up 401 total yards on the day, but no running back went over the 100-yard mark. It also hit a few big individual plays to score two of its four touchdowns in a pretty plodding effort.
That said, Koenning has consistently put up some of the best defenses in the country no matter where he is. Currently, Koenning is heading in to his third season at Troy, but has also had stops at Clemson and Kansas State in addition to Illinois.
While he has been a bit of a journeyman, it could be exactly what is needed should Chryst be looking to groom Leonhard for the job in the near future. Koennig’s Trojans defense finished this past season 21st in the country in defensive efficiency according to Football Outsiders, while also being one of the most proficient at turning opponents over as well.
This could be the best marriage possible between experience and being able to transition in to a younger coach relatively soon. However, would Koenning jump at another Power 5 offer this late in his career? Either way, it is worth a phone call.
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