Mike Stoops hired as defensive coordinator at FAU

(Photo by David Stacy/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Mark Stoops’ brother is on the move.

After spending two seasons at Alabama as an off-field analyst, Mike Stoops has been hired as the defensive coordinator at Florida Atlantic University.

“Mike brings tremendous experience to the defensive side of the ball. His pedigree, two national championships, countless players to the NFL and his wealth of knowledge speaks for itself. This is a home run for us,” FAU head coach Willie Taggart said in a press release. “As a former head coach and defensive coordinator at ‘Power 5’ programs, he knows the importance of building a defensive staff that can teach and adjust. The strength of our defense is their on-field communication and the band of brother culture. I welcome Mike to the B.O.B.”

Prior to his time at Alabama, Stoops served as the defensive coordinator at Oklahoma from 2012-18 under Bob Stoops. He also served as co-defensive coordinator at Oklahoma from 1999 to 2003 before taking the head coaching job at Arizona from 2004 to 2011.

This offseason, the new FAU DC was expected to join Steve Sarkisian’s staff at Texas as the team’s linebackers coach, but the deal ultimately fell through.

He was also in discussions to join his brother’s staff at Kentucky back in the spring of 2020 before ultimately deciding to stay at Alabama for the time being.

“I tried to hire my brother Mike and get him on staff and that’s not going to work out, by his choice,” Stoops said at the time. “Mike chose to stay [at Alabama], he likes what he’s doing, the learning he’s doing and the work he’s doing with Nick [Saban] at Alabama. Mike’s a big picture guy, so the timing of this position and the capacity that it is, he decided to stay there and continue to recalibrate himself to come back as a coordinator, so he decided to stay.”

Now, Stoops has found his new home.

Tough defense. Tireless work ethic. Championship standard.

What we're getting with our new DC @Mike_Stoops41 ⬇️#WinningInParadise pic.twitter.com/516uzuNe3w

— FAU Football (@FAUFootball) January 28, 2021

Best of luck to Bob on his move to Boca Raton.