The college football offseason began with a number of major head coaching changes across the country as programs scrambled to find the best fit to lead their respective programs in to the future. The Big 12 wasn’t impacted nearly as much that way as it has been in past years but there were some significant assistant coaching changes that flew under the radar a little bit despite that they should not be overlooked. Here is a breakdown of the new assistant hires in the Big 12 from this offseason with a grade for each of them.
Jon Heacock, Iowa State Cyclones
Defensive Coordinator
Heacock was hired as the defensive coordinator at Iowa State following another strong year at Toledo and it’s no surprise that he is bringing a good chuck of his staff with him in an effort to help turn things around for the Hawkeyes. Heacock will handle the coordinator duties and coach the safeties while Eli Rasheed will handle the defensive line and DK McDonald will be in charge of the cornerbacks. The Rockets had one of the better defenses in the MAC over the last few years so it was a smart idea to keep everybody on the same page as they attempt to get the most out of the defensive pieces currently in place at Iowa State. Heacock and his staff will have the opportunity to recruit their own talent in time and it will certainly help if they are able to upgrade the Hawkeyes defense from the outset.
Todd Bradford, Kansas Jayhawks
Linebackers Coach
David Beaty filled an important hole on his staff with a hire that makes our list of notable new assistant hires in the Big 12. He hired a veteran assistant coach in Bradford to serve as the team’s linebacker coach. Bradford will take over for the departed Kevin Kane, who accepted a defensive coordinator job Northern Illinois and he should be a quality replacement despite the fact that he hasn’t worked since serving as the defensive coordinator at Maryland in 2011. That Terrapins’ defense finished last in defense in the ACC that season but he will certainly have a more narrow focus with the Jayhawks as he concentrates on the linebackers and brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to the table.
Joe Robinson, Texas Tech Red Raiders
Special Teams Coordinator
It might not have seemed like a significant hire on the surface but many feel that Texas Tech pulled off an absolute coup when they hired veteran assistant coach Joe Robinson to be the new special teams coordinator. Robinson has been coaching since 1986 and has been an assistant coach since 1989 so he will provide the Red Raiders with a veteran coach that brings plenty of experience and knowledge to the table in addition to the work he will do coaching the special teams units. There is no doubt that Texas Tech needed a veteran coach that can really bring along a number of younger players in that department and it won’t be a surprise if Robinson’s attributes prove to be invaluable for the Red Raiders next season.
Joe Wickline, West Virginia Mountaineers,
Offensive Coordinator
There’s some pressure for West Virginia’s head coach Dana Holgersen, which is why we saw some changes on his staff this offseason. Remember, Holgersen is an offensive guru who was supposed to make the Mountaineers a dynamic offensive team, yet it hasn’t quite transpired. The team started just 3-4 this season with some ugly losses like the 62-38 drubbing at the hands of Baylor and the 40-10 loss to TCU. The team did win five of their final six games – including the bowl game against Arizona State – to remove Holgersen off the hot seat but there’s still pressure. Beating up on the Big 12’s cellar-dwellers isn’t going to inspire confidence. That’s why we’ve seen some offensive changes.
That’s why Joe Wickline is one of the notable new assistant hires in the Big 12. He comes by way of the Texas Longhorns and he should give this West Virginia team a boost. He’s known as one of the best offensive line coaches in the country and that should help a front five that is always forced to protect a lot. Don’t expect this offense to change very much – it will still be the Air Raid – but hopefully (for Holgersen’s sake) the protection for the quarterbacks is is better.
