Ben Albert (born March 19, 1971) is an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

coach and former player. He is currently the

Special teams coordinator In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their "position". Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...

at the

University of Massachusetts Amherst The University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass Amherst, UMass) is a public research university in Amherst, Massachusetts and the sole public land-grant university in Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Founded in 1863 as an agricultural college, it ...

. Albert's previous stops include the

University of Richmond The University of Richmond (UR or U of R) is a private liberal arts college in Richmond, Virginia. It is a primarily undergraduate, residential institution with approximately 4,350 undergraduate and graduate students in five schools: the School ...

Rutgers University Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's ...

, the

University of Delaware The University of Delaware (colloquially UD or Delaware) is a public land-grant research university located in Newark, Delaware. UD is the largest university in Delaware. It offers three associate's programs, 148 bachelor's programs, 121 mas ...

, the

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division. The team play ...

Temple University Temple University (Temple or TU) is a public state-related research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist minister Russell Conwell and his congregation Grace Baptist Church of Philadelphia then called Ba ...

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Founded in 1863, the university has more than 9,300 full-time undergraduates and nearly 5,000 graduate students. Although Boston College is classifie ...

, and

Duke University Duke University is a private research university in Durham, North Carolina. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco and electric power industrialist James ...

Coaching career

UMass (First stint)

Immediately following his playing career came to an end, Albert began coaching as a graduate assistant, coaching the defensive line for his alma mater, UMass, in 1995 and 1996.

Richmond (First stint)

From 1997 to 2000, Albert coached the defensive line and linebackers on

Jim Reid James McLeish Reid (born 29 December 1961) is a Scottish singer/songwriter and the lead singer for the alternative rock band The Jesus and Mary Chain, which he formed with his elder brother and guitarist William Reid in 1983. Career The Jes ...

’s staff at

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...

. Reid was the head coach at UMass for Albert's first two seasons as a player. In his four seasons, the Spiders had three winning seasons and won two

Atlantic 10 Conference The Atlantic 10 Conference (A-10) is a collegiate athletic conference whose schools compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) Division I. The A-10's member schools are located in states mostly on the United States Eastern ...

championships (1998, 2000), and also reached the

NCAA Division I-AA The NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), formerly known as Division I-AA, is the second-highest level of college football in the United States, after the Football Bowl Subdivision. Sponsored by the National Collegiate Athleti ...

playoffs in 1998 and 2000. During his time, Albert mentored

Paris Lenon Paris Michael Lenon (born November 26, 1977) is a former American football linebacker. He was signed by the Carolina Panthers of the NFL as an undrafted free agent in the spring of 2000, then chosen by the Memphis Maniax in the XFL Draft in the ...

to All-Atlantic 10 seasons, and he went on to have a twelve-year NFL career. Albert also got his first NFL experience during his first Richmond tenure when he had the opportunity to work as minority fellowship intern with the

Oakland Raiders The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Oakland from its founding in 1960 to 1981 and again from 1995 to 2019 before relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan area where they now play as the Las Vegas Raide ...

in 1999.

Rutgers

In 2001, Albert got his first chance to coach at the

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of College athletics, intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major ...

level, when he was hired by new

Rutgers Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and was a ...

head coach

Greg Schiano Gregory Edward Schiano (born June 1, 1966) is an American football coach. He is the head football coach at Rutgers University, a position he held from 2001 to 2011 and resumed before the 2020 season. Schiano served as the head coach for the Tampa ...

as the defensive line coach for the Scarlet Knights.

UMass (Second stint)

In 2002, Albert returned to UMass as the special teams coordinator and inside linebackers coach on

Mark Whipple Mark John Whipple (born April 1, 1957) is an American football coach, who most recently served as offensive coordinator at Nebraska in 2022. Whipple was the head football coach at University of New Haven from 1988 to 1993, Brown University from 1 ...

’s staff for two seasons. During this time, he recruiting fellow

Paterson, New Jersey Paterson ( ) is the largest City (New Jersey), city in and the county seat of Passaic County, New Jersey, Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Victor Cruz to UMass.

Richmond (Second stint)

Albert spent the 2004 season on new Richmond head coach

Dave Clawson David Paul Clawson (born August 16, 1967) is an American football coach and former player. He currently serves as the head football coach at Wake Forest University, where he was named the 2021 ACC Coach of the Year. Clawson previously served a ...

’s staff as the special team coordinator and defensive line coach.

Delaware

In December 2005, Albert was hired as the linebackers coach at

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...

by head coach

K. C. Keeler Kurt Charles Keeler (born July 26, 1959) is an American football coach and former player. He is the head football coach at Sam Houston State University, a position he had held since 2014. Previously, Keeler was the head coach at his alma mater, th ...

, and was eventually promoted to associate head coach. While on staff, he helped lead the Blue Hens to the 2007 NCAA Division I FCS Football Championship game.

Jacksonville Jaguars

In 2010, Albert joined

Jack Del Rio Jack Louis Del Rio Jr. (born April 4, 1963) is an American football coach who is the defensive coordinator for the Washington Commanders of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football as a linebacker at the University of South ...

’s staff with the

as the assistant defensive line coach working under defensive coordinator

Mel Tucker Melvin Tucker II (born January 4, 1972) is an American football coach and former player. He is currently the head football coach at Michigan State University, a position he has held since 2020. Previously, Tucker served as the head football coach ...

and defensive line coach Joe Cullen.

Temple

After a season in the NFL, Albert returned to the collegiate game as the linebackers coach at

Temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...

in 2011. While coaching for

Steve Addazio Stephen Robert Addazio (born June 1, 1959) is an American football coach and former player. He currently is the offensive line coach for Texas A&M University. Addazio served as the head football coach at Temple University from 2011 to 2012, Bos ...

, Albert coached future NFL players

Tahir Whitehead Tahir Ali Whitehead (born April 2, 1990) is a former American football linebacker. He played college football for Temple University, and was drafted by the Detroit Lions in the fifth round of the 2012 NFL Draft. Early years A native of Newark, ...

Adrian Robinson Adrian Lynn Robinson, Jr. (November 21, 1989 – May 16, 2015) was an American football linebacker. He was signed by the Pittsburgh Steelers as an undrafted free agent in 2012. He played college football at Temple University. He also played ...

, and John Youboty.

Boston College

In 2013, Addazio was hired as the new head coach at

, and he brought Albert with him as the defensive line coach. In 2015, the Eagles led the country in total defense (254.3), third down conversion defense (.241) and tackles for loss per game (9.6) while also ranking among the nation's top five in rushing defense (2nd; 82.8), scoring defense (4th; 15.3) and passing efficiency defense (5th; 104.66). During his tenure, Albert helped Boston College to bowl game appearances in 2013 ( AdvoCare V100 Bowl) and 2014 ( New Era Pinstripe Bowl). While with the Eagles, Albert mentored defensive end

Harold Landry Harold Antonio Landry III (born June 5, 1996) is an American football outside linebacker for the Tennessee Titans of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Boston College and was drafted by the Titans in the second ...

, who was a second-round pick by the

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division, and play their h ...

in the

2018 NFL Draft The 2018 NFL Draft was the 83rd annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2018 NFL season. The draft was held on April 26–28 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas; it was the first draft ...

. Landry earned All-America accolades while at Boston College and established the school's single season record for quarterback sacks.

Duke

From 2016 through 2021, Albert was on

David Cutcliffe David Nelson Cutcliffe (born September 16, 1954) is the Special Assistant to the Commissioner for Football Relations at the Southeastern Conference and former college football coach, most recently head coach of the Duke University Blue Devils. ...

’s staff at

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ran ...

. Hired as the defensive line coach, Albert's defensive line tallied 29 sacks in 2016, after only managing 17 in the previous season. In 2017, Duke's defense continued to improve, ranked second in the

ACC ACC most often refers to: * Atlantic Coast Conference, an NCAA Division I collegiate athletic conference located in the US *American College of Cardiology, A US-based nonprofit medical association that bestows credentials upon cardiovascular spec ...

in scoring defense and third in total defense. The Blue Devils allowed less than 25 points in 11 of their 13 games, and were one of only four ACC schools with four players to secure 9 or more tackles for loss. Albert's defensive line was led by senior captain Mike Ramsay, who later signed with the

. In February 2018, Albert was promoted to co-defensive coordinator. In an injury filled season, the Blue Devil defensive line lost four starters to season ending injuries, but Albert coached

Chris Rumph II Chris Rumph II (born October 19, 1998) is an American football outside linebacker for the Los Angeles Chargers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Duke and was drafted by the Chargers in the fourth round of the ...

to Freshman All-America honors. In the 2019 season, he coach Rumph II and

Victor Dimukeje Victor Dimukeje (born November 18, 1999) is a Nigerian-born American football linebacker for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Duke Blue Devils football, Duke, and was drafted by the Cardi ...

to All-ACC honors and Duke's defense finished 18th in the nation in sacks per game and 31st in the nation in tackles for loss. Rumph II also earned All-America honors that season. The 2020 season was one of great success for Albert's defensive line. Rumph II and Dimukeje were both drafted in the

2021 NFL Draft The 2021 NFL Draft was the 86th National Football League Draft, the annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2021 NFL season. The draft was held in Cleveland from April 29 to May 1, 2021 ...

. Rumph II finished tied for most sacks in a single season with 8 and third on the career sacks all-time list with 17.5, and Dimukeje finished second on the career sacks all-time list with 21.5. In 2021, the Blue Devil defense struggled mightily as the gave up over 30 points in all but two games.

UMass (Third stint)

When Don Brown was hired as the head coach at UMass, he hired Albert to return to his alma mater for a third stint as assistant head coach, special teams coordinator, and defensive line coach.

Playing career

Albert was a three-year starter and an all-conference defensive lineman at UMass, graduating in 1985.

Personal life

Albert and his wife, Lisa, have two children. He has degrees in political science and sociology and a master's degree in education.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Albert, Ben 1971 births Living people American football defensive linemen UMass Minutemen football players