Football
- Title:
- Defensive Coordinator
Cosh begins his first season at North Texas as the defensive coordinator.
Cosh comes to North Texas with a wealth of experience having served as a defensive coordinator for 16 of his 30 seasons in coaching, including time at Kansas State, Maryland, South Carolina, Michigan State and Illinois. Cosh spent the 2014 season as the defensive line coach at the University of Buffalo.
Cosh, 55, was the defensive coordinator at South Florida in 2012 and in his one season in Tampa he helped produce two All-Big East defenders.
From 2009-11, Cosh was the defensive coordinator at Kansas State, where he helped rebuild the Wildcat defense culminating with a Cotton Bowl appearance in 2011. The Wildcats defense was ranked 37th in the nation in 2011 and produced three All-Big 12 performers, including Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year Arthur Brown. The Wildcats finished the season with a 10-3 record.
In 2010 Cosh guided the Wildcat defense and saw true freshman Ty Zimmerman earn freshman All-America honors after recording 74 tackles, three interceptions, three PBUs and two fumble recoveries.
In 2009 under Cosh, K-State's defense made tremendous strides, from 117th nationally in total defense in 2008 to No. 39 in 2009. The 2009 Wildcat defense yielded just 105.4 yards per game on the ground, which ranked 16th nationally, and surrendered 339.9 total yards per contest.
As defensive coordinator at Maryland, the Terrapins (7-5) ended the 2008 regular season 35th nationally in scoring defense (21.4 ppg) and were led by All-ACC performers Alex Wujciak at linebacker and Jeremy Navarre on the defensive line.
In 2007, the Terrapin defense was highlighted by first-team All-ACC performers Erin Henderson and Dre Moore. Henderson led the league in tackles from his weakside linebacker spot, while Moore, a defensive tackle, went on to become a fourth-round draft choice of Tampa Bay in the 2008 NFL Draft.. Cosh's defense ended the year at No. 24 nationally in scoring defense (21.5 ppg) and No. 33 in pass defense.
In 2006, Cosh was responsible for a unit that contributed to the school's first nine-win season since 2003 and a victory in the Champs Sports Bowl. The Terps defense held the opposition to an average of 21.8 points per game. Under Cosh's leadership, the defense marked breakout performances by cornerback Josh Wilson and Henderson, who each earned All-ACC honors. Wilson went on to become a second-round choice of the Seattle Seahawks in the 2007 NFL Draft.
Prior to his stint at Maryland, Cosh made his first stop at Kansas State for two seasons, 2004-05, under head coach Bill Snyder as linebackers coach. The Wildcat defense ranked 30th nationally in 2005 allowing an average of 128.9 rushing yards per game. Junior linebacker Brandon Archer was an honorable mention All-Big 12 selection in 2005, an accolade which came a year after Cosh helped coach the newcomer to second-team honors in his first year as a starter.
In the five years prior to his first stop in Manhattan, Cosh served under Lou Holtz as linebackers coach (1999-2002) and defensive coordinator (2003) at South Carolina.
While at South Carolina, he helped produce some of the Southeastern Conference's top linebackers, including Kalimba Edwards (two-time first team all-league, Butkus and Lombardi Awards finalist in 2001). His resume as a position coach also includes tutoring New York Jets' first-round pick and Pro Bowler John Abraham (1999) and freshman All-American Lance Laury (2002). During his time in Columbia, S.C., the Gamecocks won back-to-back bowl games for the first time in school history.
In addition to serving under coaching legends Snyder and Holtz, Cosh was the defensive coordinator at Michigan State under former Miami Dolphins and current Alabama head coach Nick Saban. In his lone season (1998) in East Lansing, Mich., the Spartans upset No. 1 Ohio State and knocked off Notre Dame. Cosh's unit helped spark those wins with the 10th-ranked pass defense in the nation.
A former linebacker who earned his bachelor's degree in physical education from Virginia Tech in 1983, Cosh got his start coaching in Blacksburg, Va., where he was a student assistant during the 1983 season. He then made five different stops (Wisconsin-Oshkosh, Southeast Missouri State, UNLV and two tours at Minnesota) before settling in at Illinois.
Cosh and his wife, Mary, have two sons, J.J., who played football at the United States Naval Academy, and Billy, a quarterback at James Madison.
