Greg Schiano

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Greg Schiano

Title Head Coach
College Rutgers
Sport Football
Team record 38-46
Born June 1, 1966 (1966-06-01) (age 42)
Place of birth Flag of New Jersey Wyckoff, NJ
Career highlights
Overall 38-46
Coaching stats
College Football DataWarehouse
Awards
2006 Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year
2006 Walter Camp Coach of the Year
2006 Home Depot Coach of the Year
2006 Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year
2006 Big East Coach of the Year
Playing career
1985-88 Bucknell
Position LB
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1989
1990
1991–1995
1996–1997
1998
1999–2000
2001-present
Rutgers (GA)
Penn State (GA)
Penn State (DB)
Chicago Bears (def)
Chicago Bears (DB)
Miami (DC)
Rutgers

Gregory Edward Schiano (b. June 1, 1966 in Wyckoff, New Jersey) is the head coach and defensive coordinator for the Rutgers University football team.

Schiano grew up in Wyckoff, New Jersey, and attended Ramapo High School. He then attended Bucknell University, where he was a member of Phi Gamma Delta Fraternity, and graduated in 1988 with a B.S. in business administration.

In his playing career at Bucknell University, he was a three-year letterman at linebacker. In his junior year, he led his team with 114 tackles and was named to the All-Conference team. In his senior year, he was named team captain, and was named to The Sporting News Pre-season All-American Team.

He and his wife Christy have four children.

[edit] Coaching career

Schiano began his coaching career in 1988 as an assistant coach at Ramapo High School. In 1989, he served as a graduate assistant at Rutgers. In 1990, he took the same position at Penn State, and later served as the defensive backfield coach there from 1991 until 1995.

From 1996 to 1998, Schiano was an assistant coach in the NFL with the Chicago Bears. For his first two seasons there, he was a defensive assistant, and then was promoted in his third and final season with the Bears to defensive backfield coach.

He served as defensive coordinator for the University of Miami from 1999 to 2000. In 1999, UM finished the year ranked 12th in the NCAA's Division I-A in points allowed per game (17.2), and in 2000 moved up to 5th (15.5 points allowed per game). His brief 18 month stint at Miami and his roots in New Jersey, made him a candidate for his next position as Rutgers head coach.

On December 1, 2000, Schiano accepted the head coaching position at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. In 2001, his first season as head coach, the Scarlet Knights posted a 2-9 record (0-7 in the Big East), followed by a 1-11 mark (0-7 Big East) in 2002. This was followed by a 5-7 record (2-5 Big East) in 2003. In 2004, Schiano took on defensive coordinator responsibilities as well, and the team finished 4-7 (1-5 Big East). Although Schiano was producing solid recruiting classes, especially by Rutgers standards, his 3-24 record in conference games and 4-17 record in road games in those first four years were a cause for concern for some fans.

But things began to turn around for the program during the 2005 season. That year, the team finished with a 7-4 record, including a 4-3 conference record, and a nationally-televised 37-29 upset win over Pittsburgh and their coach Dave Wannstedt, a long-time friend of Schiano's who hired him while coaching Chicago. At season's end, Schiano and the Scarlet Knights accepted a bid to play in the Insight Bowl against Arizona State University, their first bowl game appearance since the 1978 Garden State Bowl. (Coincidentally, that game was also against Arizona State, and a then-12-year-old Schiano was among the attendees.) During preparations for the Insight Bowl, Schiano signed a new contract, extending his contract through the 2012 season.

In the 2006 season, Schiano's Scarlet Knights achieved their first Top 25 ranking since 1976. Following week four of the college football season, Rutgers with a record of 4-0 was ranked #23 in the Associated Press and Coaches Polls. The team was ranked as high as #6 in the country (BCS standings) with a 9-0 record after a historic win against the Louisville Cardinals, beating them 28-25 in Piscataway. Throughout the season, coach Schiano and Rutgers were featured prominently in both the local and national media, and Schiano's motivational phrase "keep choppin'" became part of the lexicon of college football. Rutgers finished the season with a 10-2 record, the first time they had won ten games since 1976. Following the season, Schiano and the Scarlet Knights accepted an invitation to play Kansas State in the inaugural Texas Bowl, where they would go on to defeat Kansas State 37-10, capturing their first ever bowl win. For his work in the 2006 season, Coach Schiano was awarded several Coach of the Year honors, including the Home Depot Coach of the Year award and the inaugural Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year Award.

Current NFL players who played under Schiano at Rutgers include Indianapolis Colts linebacker Gary Brackett, Dallas Cowboys cornerback Nathan Jones, and Philadelphia Eagles tight end L.J. Smith. 2006 graduates Brian Leonard and tight end Clark Harris were selected in the 2007 NFL Draft; Leonard in the second round to the St. Louis Rams and Harris to the Green Bay Packers in the seventh.

While at the University of Miami, Schiano coached: NFL Pro Bowlers Dan Morgan, linebacker, Carolina Panthers; Jonathan Vilma, linebacker, New York Jets; and Ed Reed, free safety, Baltimore Ravens.

Schiano received most of the major 2006 national Coach of the Year awards after orchestrating what was considered by many to be one of the great turn-around stories in college football history, transforming the hapless Scarlet Knights into a winning football program.

On December 4, 2006, one day after Rutgers accepted a bid to play in the 2006 Texas Bowl against Kansas State, Schiano announced that he would not be a candidate for the recently vacated head coaching job at his previous employer, the University of Miami, ending rumors and speculation that he would leave his creation at upstart Rutgers to return to Miami. He stated that he is "very happy at Rutgers" and that Rutgers is just beginning to "scratch the surface" of what the team can accomplish. He confirmed this by signing yet another contract extension, announced on February 16, 2007, upping his yearly compensation to $1.5 million per year and extending his deal with Rutgers to 2016.

On Thursday, December 6, 2007, ESPN reported that he had a lengthy conversation with University of Michigan Athletic Director Bill Martin, about the head coaching vacancy at the school. He later withdrew his name from consideration, and will remain the Rutgers Head Coach.

[edit] Coaching record

Year Team Overall Conference Standing Bowl Game Bowl Opponent Outcome Rank#
Rutgers University Scarlet Knights (Big East Conference) (2001 — present)
2001 Rutgers 2-9 0-7 8
2002 Rutgers 1-11 0-7 8
2003 Rutgers 5-7 2-5 7
2004 Rutgers 4-7 1-5 6
2005 Rutgers 7-5 4-3 3 Insight Bowl Arizona State L 40-45
2006 Rutgers 11-2 5-2 2-T Texas Bowl Kansas State W 37-10 12
2007 Rutgers 8-5 3-4 5-T International Bowl Ball State W 52-30
At Rutgers: 38-46 15-33
Career: 38-46
     National Championship          Conference Title
Indicates BCS bowl game. #Rankings from final Coaches Poll of the season.

[edit] References

Preceded by
Terry Shea
Rutgers Scarlet Knights Head Football Coach
2000-Present
Succeeded by
Current
Preceded by
Joe Paterno
Walter Camp Coach of the Year
2006
Succeeded by
Mark Mangino