Greg Schiano

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Greg Schiano (born June 1, 1966) 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, and graduated in 1988 with a B.S. in business administration.

In his playing career at Bucknell, 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 Preseason All-American Team.

He and his wife Christy currently have four children.

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 then served as the defensive backfield coach there from 1991 until 1995.

From 1996 to 1998, Schiano coached 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.

Schiano's next coaching stop was at the University of Miami, where he served as defensive coordinator from 1999 to 2000. In 1999, the Canes 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).

On December 1, 2000, Schiano was named to his current position as head coach at Rutgers. In the 2001 season, 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, by Rutgers standards especially, 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 finally started to turn around for the program in 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 and one-time colleague in Miami and 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 appearance since the 1978 Garden State Bowl (which, coincidentally, was also against Arizona State, and which Schiano had attended). During preparations for the Insight Bowl, Schiano signed a new contract, extending his contract through the 2012 season.

The list of current NFL players who once played under Schiano at Rutgers includes Indianapolis Colts linebacker Gary Brackett, Seattle Seahawks cornerback Brandon Haw, Dallas Cowboys cornerback Nate Jones, Cleveland Browns defensive lineman J'Vonne Parker, and Philadelphia Eagles tight end L.J. Smith. Additionally, in 2006, five of the program's graduating seniors signed free agent contracts with NFL teams: Chris Baker with the San Francisco 49ers, Val Barnaby and Sameeh McDonald with the Detroit Lions, Tres Moses with the Baltimore Ravens, and Ryan Neill with the Buffalo Bills.

References

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