Michigan loses assistant coach to Rice
12/9/2017
Brian Smith, who served as the Michigan Wolverines' defensive backs coach for two seasons, is heading to Rice to become the defensive coordinator.
Michigan will need to hire at least two assistant coaches in the offseason.
The Wolverines lost defensive backs coach Brian Smith to Rice, where Smith will be the defensive coordinator. ESPN’s Ivan Maisel was first to report the news.
New Rice head coach Mike Bloomgren is hiring Michigan secondary coach Brian Smith as his defensive coordinator and North Carolina Central head coach Jerry Mack (31-15, four seasons, three MEAC titles) to run the Owls' offense. https://t.co/ZrDrteSk7k
— Ivan Maisel (@Ivan_Maisel) December 8, 2017
Smith spent two seasons at Michigan after spending a decade in the NFL coaching ranks with the New York Jets and Philadelphia Eagles. UM’s pass defense ranked No. 1 nationally in Smith’s two seasons in Ann Arbor.
Smith is a Don Brown disciple, playing for the coach at UMass and spending two years on the staff after graduating.
Rice hired former Stanford assistant Mike Bloomgren Wednesday to be the school’s head coach.
Contact Kyle Rowland at krowland@theblade.com, 419-724-6110, or on Twitter @KyleRowland.