Scott Shafer
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Scott Shafer (born January 6, 1967) 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 Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...
and former player. He currently serves as the
defensive coordinator A defensive coordinator is a coach responsible for a gridiron football (American football) team's defense. Generally, the defensive coordinator, the offensive coordinator and the special teams coordinator represent the second level of a team's c ...
for the
Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders The Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders are the men's and women's athletic teams at Middle Tennessee State University, in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. MT athletic teams participate in NCAA Division I (Bowl Subdivision in football) in Conference USA. MT com ...
. He previously served as the head coach at
Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York. Established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church, the university has been nonsectarian since 1920. Locate ...
until November 2015. He was a high school and college quarterback in Ohio at Riverside High School,
Ohio University Ohio University is a Public university, public research university in Athens, Ohio. The first university chartered by an Act of Congress and the first to be chartered in Ohio, the university was chartered in 1787 by the Congress of the Confeder ...
, and
Baldwin-Wallace College Baldwin Wallace University (BW) is a private university in Berea, Ohio. It was founded in 1845 as Baldwin Institute by Methodist businessman John Baldwin. The school merged with nearby German Wallace College in 1913 to become Baldwin-Wallace Co ...
. He has held various positions including defensive coordinator, assistant head coach, and secondary coach at major universities such as the
University of Rhode Island The University of Rhode Island (URI) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Kingston, Rhode Island, United States. It is the flagship public research as well as the land-grant university of the state of Rhode Island ...
,
Northern Illinois University Northern Illinois University (NIU) is a public research university in DeKalb, Illinois. It was founded as Northern Illinois State Normal School on May 22, 1895, by Illinois Governor John P. Altgeld as part of an expansion of the state's system ...
, the
University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the University ...
,
Western Michigan University Western Michigan University (Western Michigan, Western or WMU) is a public research university in Kalamazoo, Michigan. It was initially established as Western State Normal School in 1903 by Governor Aaron T. Bliss for the training of teachers ...
,
Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...
,
University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...
, and Syracuse University. He was officially named the head coach of Syracuse on January 9, 2013.


Early life and education

Shafer's father, Ron, was a high school football and track coach at Riverside High School in
Painesville, Ohio Painesville is a city in and the county seat of Lake County, Ohio, United States, located along the Grand River northeast of Cleveland. Its population was 19,563 at the 2010 census. Painesville is the home of Lake Erie College, Morley Libra ...
. His father died at age 53 after coaching 28 years at Riverside High. As an Ohio native, Shafer attended school in Painesville, Ohio where he received his high school diploma in 1985. He attended
Baldwin-Wallace College Baldwin Wallace University (BW) is a private university in Berea, Ohio. It was founded in 1845 as Baldwin Institute by Methodist businessman John Baldwin. The school merged with nearby German Wallace College in 1913 to become Baldwin-Wallace Co ...
in
Berea, Ohio Berea ( ) is a city in Cuyahoga County in the U.S. state of Ohio and is a western suburb of Cleveland. The population was 19,093 at the 2010 census. Berea is home to Baldwin Wallace University, as well as the training facility for the Cleveland ...
where he received his bachelor's degree in education in 1990. He went on to study at
Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universit ...
in
Bloomington, Indiana Bloomington is a city in and the county seat of Monroe County, Indiana, Monroe County in the central region of the U.S. state of Indiana. It is the List of municipalities in Indiana, seventh-largest city in Indiana and the fourth-largest outside ...
where he was awarded a master's degree in education in 1993.


Playing career

Shafer played football for Riverside High School, Ohio University, and Baldwin–Wallace College. While at Riverside, he played
quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...
and was the 1984 Northeastern Conference Most Valuable Player. He went on to play quarterback at
Ohio University Ohio University is a Public university, public research university in Athens, Ohio. The first university chartered by an Act of Congress and the first to be chartered in Ohio, the university was chartered in 1787 by the Congress of the Confeder ...
in the
Mid-American Conference The Mid-American Conference (MAC) is a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I collegiate athletic conference with a membership base in the Great Lakes region that stretches from Western New York to Illinois. Nine of the twel ...
. During the 1985 season, he suffered a knee injury that required him to have surgery and miss the remainder of the season. After the 1985 season, Shafer transferred to Baldwin–Wallace College, where he played quarterback for the
Baldwin Wallace Yellow Jackets The Baldwin Wallace Yellow Jackets are the athletic teams for Baldwin Wallace University. The Yellow Jackets participate in Division III of the NCAA in the Ohio Athletic Conference. BW's rivalries include John Carroll University and University of ...
from 1987 to 1989. Playing in the Yellow Jackets'
run and shoot offense The run and shoot offense (also known as Run N' Shoot) is an offensive system for American football which emphasizes receiver motion and on-the-fly adjustments of receivers' routes in response to different defenses. It was conceived by former ...
, Shafer was ranked 17th in the nation in passing efficiency and earned team MVP honors. In 1989, he led the Yellow Jackets to a 5–2–1 record. In the final game of the 1989 season, Shafer was 16-for-31 passing for 237 yards and three touchdowns, throwing a 55-yard touchdown pass to Jerry Wrobel with 2:52 left to play for a 25–19 win over previously unbeaten
John Carroll John Carroll may refer to: People Academia and science *Sir John Carroll (astronomer) (1899–1974), British astronomer *John Alexander Carroll (died 2000), American history professor *John Bissell Carroll (1916–2003), American cognitive sci ...
. He finished the 1989 season with a 139.39 passing efficiency rating, best in the
Ohio Athletic Conference The Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) was formed in 1902 and is the third oldest athletic conference in the United States. Its current commissioner is Sarah Otey. Former commissioners include Mike Cleary, who was the first General Manager of a profe ...
.


Coaching career

Shafer has held numerous positions within Division I colleges, including the University of Rhode Island, Northern Illinois University, the University of Illinois, Western Michigan University, Stanford University, the University of Michigan, and Syracuse University.


Early career

Shafer began his coaching career as a graduate assistant to
Bill Mallory William Guy Mallory (May 30, 1935 – May 25, 2018) was an American football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at Miami University (1969–1973), the University of Colorado at Boulder (1974–1978), Northern Illinois Universi ...
at
Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universit ...
from 1991 to 1992. For the
1991 season File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, 1991 Russian presidential election, elected as Russia's first President of Russia, president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated ...
, the team finished with a 7 and 4 record with 1 tie. The team also graduated a first round pick in
Vaughn Dunbar Vaughn Allen Dunbar (born September 4, 1968) is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL) for three seasons. He played college football for the Indiana Hoosiers, and earned A ...
who was taken 21st overall by the
New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...
in the
1992 NFL Draft The 1992 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 26–27, 1992, at the Marriott Mar ...
. Shafer also earned his master's degree from in Education from the university while coaching football. He next coached the secondary at the
University of Rhode Island The University of Rhode Island (URI) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Kingston, Rhode Island, United States. It is the flagship public research as well as the land-grant university of the state of Rhode Island ...
from 1993-1995.


Northern Illinois

Shafer spent eight years as an assistant coach at
Northern Illinois University Northern Illinois University (NIU) is a public research university in DeKalb, Illinois. It was founded as Northern Illinois State Normal School on May 22, 1895, by Illinois Governor John P. Altgeld as part of an expansion of the state's system ...
, the first four as secondary coach, before adding defensive coordinator duties to his resume in 2000. Throughout his career at Northern Illinois, Shafer's players earned 13 All- MAC selections. and the team was ranked among the top three teams in MAC scoring defense in 2002 and 2003. His 2002 unit led the MAC in interceptions, takeaways, scoring defense, run defense and pass sacks. During the 2003 season, Northern Illinois was ranked as high as No. 12 in the AP poll, recorded its first 10-win season in 20 years, and had three victories over BCS teams while holding them to an average of 15 points per game. The team started 7-0 with victories over Maryland, Alabama, and Iowa State. During his time with the Huskie Football Program, Shafer also spent time with the local community including speaking at numerous coaching clinics.


Illinois

Shafer was hired as the secondary coach at the
University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the University ...
in 2004, after four straight winning seasons with Northern Illinois. Working with Illinois head coach Ron Turner, Shafer coached cornerback
Kelvin Hayden Kelvin Darnell Hayden Jr. (born July 23, 1983) is a former American football cornerback. He played college football at Illinois and was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the second round of the 2005 NFL Draft. In Super Bowl XLI he returned a R ...
, who led the Big Ten Conference in interceptions and was selected by the
Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) South division. Since the 2008 ...
in the second round of the NFL Draft. While Shafer was coaching at Illinois, the team's defensive coordinator was former Michigan linebacker,
Mike Mallory Mike Mallory (born November 16, 1962) is an American football coach and a former player who is thSpecial Teams Coordinator for the Denver Broncos NFL football team in 2022. Before that, he most recently worked as assistant special teams coordin ...
who also worked with Shafer at Northern Illinois. Mallory noted that Shafer's experience as a quarterback helped him as a defensive coach: "He knows how to get into quarterbacks' heads and what to do to throw them off their game."


Western Michigan

In December 2004, he was hired by
Bill Cubit William John Cubit (; born October 14, 1953) is an American football coach and former player. Cubit was the head football coach at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign, first on an interim basis in the 2015 season and then promoted t ...
at
Western Michigan University Western Michigan University (Western Michigan, Western or WMU) is a public research university in Kalamazoo, Michigan. It was initially established as Western State Normal School in 1903 by Governor Aaron T. Bliss for the training of teachers ...
, where he was the defensive coordinator from 2005-2006. Western Michigan was 1-10 the year before Shafer arrived, then went 7-4 in 2005 and 8-5 in 2006. In 2006, the Broncos ranked first in the nation in interceptions (24) and sacks (46), sixth in run defense, seventh in turnover margin and 11th in total defense. The Broncos' rush defense (76.1 yards per game) in 2006 set a MAC record for fewest rushing yards allowed per game. Shafer was a nominee for the
Broyles Award The Broyles Award is an annual award given to honor the best assistant coach in college football. First awarded in 1996, it was named after former University of Arkansas men's athletic director Frank Broyles. The award is presented in Little R ...
as the top assistant coach in the nation. He also coached two players who won the MAC West Division Player of the Week. Ammer Ismail and Dustin Duclo won the award twice in 2005 and Ismail was named to the First-Team All-MAC Defense. In 2005, his defense forced 13 fumbles and intercepted 15 passes.


Stanford

Jim Harbaugh James Joseph Harbaugh (; born December 23, 1963) is an American football coach and former quarterback, who is the current and 20th head football coach of the Michigan Wolverines. He played college football at Michigan from 1983 to 1986. He play ...
was hired as the head coach of the
Stanford Cardinal The Stanford Cardinal are the athletic teams that represent Stanford University. As of June, 2022, Stanford's program has won 131 NCAA team championships. Stanford has won at least one NCAA team championship each academic year for 46 consecutive ...
in December 2006. As part of his coaching staff, he hired Shafer as the defensive coordinator and assistant head coach. Harbaugh was quoted as saying Shafer being "one of the most creative and innovative defensive minds in college football." While at Stanford, he was part of the Cardinal's October 6, 2007 upset of
USC USC most often refers to: * University of South Carolina, a public research university ** University of South Carolina System, the main university and its satellite campuses **South Carolina Gamecocks, the school athletic program * University of ...
. The Trojans were favored in the game by 41 points but the Cardinal scored a touchdown in the final minute to win the game 24-23. The upset was considered by some to be the greatest upset in the history of college football. Shafer's defense at Stanford ranked fifth in the nation with 37 sacks and posted 101 tackles for loss, which was good for 11th in the country. The numbers were the Cardinal's best since their Rose Bowl season of 1999.


Michigan

Shafer was hired as the defensive coordinator for the University of Michigan by new head coach
Rich Rodriguez Richard Alan Rodriguez (; born May 24, 1963), also known as Rich Rod, is an American football coach and former player. He is currently the head coach at Jacksonville State University. Rodriguez previously was the head football coach at Salem Uni ...
in 2008. In Shafer's only season as Michigan's defensive coordinator, the team was ranked 68th in total defense, 87th in pass defense and 80th in scoring defense among all Division I teams, allowing 28.9 points per game. Coach Rich Rodriguez announced on December 16, 2008 that Shafer had resigned after one season as defensive coordinator.


Syracuse

Shafer was hired by
Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York. Established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church, the university has been nonsectarian since 1920. Locate ...
head football coach
Doug Marrone Douglas Charles Marrone (born July 25, 1964) is an American football coach and former offensive lineman who is the offensive line coach for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He came to prominence as the head coach at ...
in 2009. He was hired as the defensive coordinator for a team that allowed 32.7 points per game in the 2008 season. The defense went from being 101st in the country to the top 20 under Shafer. Under Shafer, Syracuse's defense ranked 7th in the nation in 2010 in total defense (from 37th), 12th in the nation in first downs allowed (from 27th), 10th in pass defense (from 85th), 14th in pass efficiency defense (from (113th), and 13th in scoring defense (from 81st). While at Syracuse, he coached 2012 1st round draft pick Chandler Jones, who was the highest draft pick from Syracuse since
Dwight Freeney Dwight Jason Freeney (born February 19, 1980) is an American former football player who played as a defensive end and outside linebacker for 16 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Syracuse University, ...
in
2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...
. Shafer was officially named the head coach of the Orange on January 9, 2013 after Doug Marrone left to become the head coach of the Buffalo Bills.


Middle Tennessee State

On January 20, 2017, Shafer was hired by Middle Tennessee State to serve as defensive coordinator under head coach
Rick Stockstill Richard Wilson Stockstill (born December 23, 1957) is an American football coach. He is the head coach for the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football program. Stockstill was a Florida State quarterback under coach Bobby Bowden from 1977 to 1981. O ...
.


Coaching and defensive philosophy

Shafer said his father was his greatest coaching role model. He noted: "My dad always said a good coach can coach any position, and a good coach can coach any scheme. We'll come up with an excellent scheme that is simple enough to let the kids attack and play with great aggression." Shafer explained his defensive philosophy this way: ::''"Scheme is overrated, I've always believed that. What's not overrated is getting your kids to play with great effort, great attitude and great enthusiasm. Those are things we can control on a daily basis, and that will be my primary goal. . . . The philosophy of our defense is attack-oriented, attack and react. We want to be a defense that is multiple, that is always putting pressure and forcing the hand of the offense. We want to be a penetrating defense. If you're going to (ask) what our objectives are? The one thing we want to do is stop the run, force them to throw the ball on first down, create negative plays on first down . . . and get ourselves in position to force them to throw the ball. Get them one-dimensional. We don't want to be a defense that sits back. We want to be a defense that creates turnovers and scores touchdowns."'' Similarly, he told the ''
Detroit Free Press The ''Detroit Free Press'' is the largest daily newspaper in Detroit, Michigan, US. The Sunday edition is titled the ''Sunday Free Press''. It is sometimes referred to as the Freep (reflected in the paper's web address, www.freep.com). It primari ...
'': ::''"We're an attack defense; scheme is overrated. All schemes can work if you tackle and keep the ball in front. We're an aggressive defense, force the offense's hand. We're going to stop the run on early downs and force the pass. We'll get situations where when we are forcing the pass, we hit the quarterback, forcing him to throw the ball into coverage."'' Shafer's defense philosophy has also been published to DVD. He is the author of eight instructional videos that are distributed by Coaches Choice and teach lessons such as tackling, press coverage, and different defense packages.


Family

Shafer and his wife Missy have a son, Wolfgang, and a daughter, Elsa. Wolfgang was a quarterback for the Ithaca College Bombers, and is currently the Safeties coach at Indiana State University. His brother John is an assistant football coach, and head track and field coach at Cuyahoga Heights High School.


Head coaching record


References


External links


Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders bio

Syracuse Orange bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shafer, Scott 1967 births Living people American football quarterbacks Baldwin Wallace Yellow Jackets football players Illinois Fighting Illini football coaches Indiana Hoosiers football coaches Michigan Wolverines football coaches Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football coaches Northern Illinois Huskies football coaches Ohio Bobcats football players Stanford Cardinal football coaches Syracuse Orange football coaches Western Michigan Broncos football coaches People from Painesville, Ohio Players of American football from Ohio