Head football coach Randy Shannon added two new members to his coaching staff last week, hiring former Kansas defensive coordinator Bill Young and former Pittsburgh wide receivers coach Aubrey Hill to fill those same roles for the upcoming football season.
Young was hired after directing a Kansas defense that contributed in large part to a 12-1 record and Orange Bowl victory over University of Miami rival Virginia Tech. Last season his defense ranked 12th overall in the nation and their 35 turnovers lead the Big 12 conference.
Young will replace Tim Walton, who was the defensive coordinator last season and the defensive backs coach for three seasons before that.
Hill comes from the staff of former Hurricane assistant coach Dave Wannstedt, now the head coach at Pitt. He served as the team’s wide receivers coach for the past three seasons and is credited for a large part of the success of wide receivers Derek Kinder and Greg Lee, both of whom earned first team All-Big East honors over the past three seasons.
Hill will replace Marquis Mosley, who held the job at UM for the past two seasons.
Both hires are considered success stories for the Hurricanes, who looked to shore up two big areas of concern and got the top names on their list to do so.
Young is an expert in the zone blitz out of a base 4-3 defensive alignment, which is the same base defense the Hurricanes have used for the past 30 years. He is known as a master of disguising pressure and is also known to use a “bandit” linebacker in blitz situations to put more heat on the quarterback and force bad throws. If implemented, this position would be new at UM; however, personnel with the necessary skill set is in place already, particularly linebackers Spencer Adkins and Allen Bailey.
For a defense that was accused of being too predictable and too resistant to adjustments last season, this blitz-happy scheme would be a breath of fresh air.
Hill, a native of Miami, is considered a terrific recruiter and has maintained ties to South Florida high schools, traditionally pipelines of immense talent at skill positions.
More importantly, however, Hill is a great developer of talent. With a roster that has raw but talented players at the wide receiver position like Miami’s, Hill is an important cog.
The Canes finished 5-7 last season, and the success of this offseason will be crucial in the process of brining Miami back to the top of college football.
Dan Stein may be contacted at d.stein4@umiami.edu.