Starkville - Mississippi State head coach Jeff Lebby is bringing on Coleman Hutzler as his defensive coordinator, according Ross Dellenger of Yahoo Sports. Hutzler has spent the past two seasons as Alabama’s outside linebackers coach and special teams coordinator, and has also coached at Florida, South Carolina, Texas and Ole Miss.
While coaching the Crimson Tide’s outside backers, Will Anderson Jr. and Dallas Turner were both named All-Americans. Anderson saw his name called by the Houston Texans with the third pick of the 2023 NFL Draft while Turner was named this season’s SEC Defensive Player of the Year.
Hutzler spent the 2021 season at Ole Miss as special teams coordinator where the Rebels ranked fifth in the SEC in field goal percentage. In 2020, Hutzler served as the co-defensive coordinator at Texas, where he helped orchestrate a Longhorn defense that surrendered 28.5 points per game which ranked sixth in the Big 12.
Hutzler coached four seasons at South Carolina from 2016-19 as the special teams coordinator and linebackers coach. Under his watch, Deebo Samuel was named an All-SEC performer as a return specialist while linebackers D.J. Wonnum and T.J. Brunson each were selected in the 2020 NFL Draft.
As Boston College’s special teams coordinator and linebackers coach in 2015, he helped produce one of the nation’s top defenses as the Eagles held their opponents to 15.2 points per game which ranked fourth in college football.
Hutzler had two stints at Florida from 2010-11 as an assistant linebackers coach before returning in 2014 as the outside linebackers coach and special teams coordinator. Gator outside linebacker Dante Fowler was selected third overall in the 2015 NFL Draft by the Jacksonville Jaguars after working with Hutzler.
In between his two tenures in Gainesville, Hutzler coached outside linebackers and special teams at New Mexico. Lobos punter Ben Skaer and return specialist Carlos Wiggins were each named All-Mountain West performers under his command.
Hutzler, Las Vegas native, played his college football as a linebacker at Middlebury College in Vermont from 2002-05, and was named team captain as a senior. He got his first coaching gig as a defensive assistant at San Diego in 2006 and moved to the Power Five as a recruiting assistant at Stanford in 2007 before being promoted to defensive assistant.
Hutzler is the first defensive hire made by Lebby, and he’s expected to be joined by Memphis defensive coordinator Matt Barnes who will serve as the co-defensive coordinator and special teams coach. Defensive line coach David Turner has also been retained from the previous staff.
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