Brian Townsend (American football)

Brian Townsend
No. 51
Position:	Linebacker
Personal information
Born:	November 7, 1968; Cincinnati, Ohio
Height:	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Weight:	242 lb (110 kg)
Career information
High school:	Northwest High School (Cincinnati, Ohio)
College:	Michigan
NFL Draft:	1992 / Round: 11 / Pick: 281; (by the Los Angeles Rams)
Career history
As a player:
	Northwest High School (Cincinnati, Ohio) (1984–1987); University of Michigan (1987–1991); Cincinnati Bengals (1992);
As a coach:
	Ann Arbor Pioneer High School (1998–2003); Ohio University (2003–2007);
As an administrator:
	Director of Basketball Operations University of Michigan (2007–2010); Assistant Sport Administrator University of Michigan (2010–2014); Director of Student-Athlete Development University of Michigan (2014–present);
	Player stats at PFR

Last updated January 15, 2022

Brian Lewis Townsend (born November 7, 1968) is a college athletics administrator and former American football player. He is currently the Director of Student-Athlete Development at the University of Michigan. He played college football at Michigan from 1987 to 1991 and played professional football for the Cincinnati Bengals in 1992.

Early years

Townsend was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1968. He attended Cincinnati's Northwest High School.^[2]

University of Michigan

Townsend enrolled at the University of Michigan in 1987 and played college football as a linebacker for the Michigan Wolverines football teams from 1988 to 1991.^[3] During his four years as a player for Michigan, Townsend had 70 tackles and 23 assists.^[4] After winning four straight Big Ten titles, he helped lead the Maize and Blue to four straight Bowl appearances. In 2000, the Wolverine Magazine named Townsend to its Michigan Football All-Decade Team.^[5]

Professional football

Townsend was drafted by the Los Angeles Rams in the 11th round (281st overall pick) of the 1992 NFL Draft.^[1] He appeared in three games as a linebacker for the Cincinnati Bengals during the 1992 NFL season.^[2]

Coaching and administration

After retiring from football, Townsend was hired as an assistant basketball coach at Northwest High School in Cincinnati. From 1998 to 2003, Townsend was the boys' basketball coach at Ann Arbor's Pioneer High School. His 1999 team won the Class A State Championship title, the first one in school history, and Townsend compiled a record of 109–36 in six years as head coach.^[5]

From 2003 to 2007, he was an assistant basketball coach at Ohio University. In each of his last three seasons, his teams won 19 or more games. During the 2004–2005 season, his team compiled a 21–11 record and appeared in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 11 years.^[5]^[6]

In 2007, Townsend was hired as the Director of Basketball Operations for the University of Michigan. While Director of Basketball Operations, Townsend helped oversee the resurgence of Michigan basketball onto the national stage under head coach John Beilein. Townsend was a part of a staff that led Michigan to the 2009 NCAA Tournament, its first appearance since 1995. In 2010, he was promoted to Assistant Sport Administrator for football, men's basketball, and hockey. In this role, Townsend worked directly with the Athletic Director in the oversight and administration of the three sports.^[7]

In 2014, Townsend transitioned to the role of Director of Student-Athlete Development. In that position, he is responsible for developing and implementing comprehensive student-athlete programming and services. The goals of that programming and services are focused on lifelong health and wellness, as well as personal growth and development.

Related Research Articles

Glenn Edward "Bo" Schembechler Jr. was an American football player, coach, and athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at Miami University from 1963 to 1968 and at the University of Michigan from 1969 to 1989, compiling a career record of 234–65–8. Only Nick Saban, Joe Paterno and Tom Osborne have recorded 200 victories in fewer games as a coach in major college football. In his 21 seasons as the head coach of the Michigan Wolverines, Schembechler's teams amassed a record of 194–48–5 and won or shared 13 Big Ten Conference titles. Though his Michigan teams never won a national championship, in all but one season they finished ranked, and 16 times they placed in the final top ten of both major polls.

Gary Oscar Moeller is a former American football coach best known for being head coach at the University of Michigan from 1990 to 1994. During his five seasons at Michigan, he won 44 games, lost 13 and tied 3 for a winning percentage of .758. In Big Ten Conference play, his teams won 30 games, lost 8 and tied 2 for a winning percentage of .775, and won or shared conference titles in 1990, 1991 and 1992. He is the father of former Cleveland Browns offensive line coach Andy Moeller.

Benjamin Oosterbaan was a three-time first team All-American football end for the Michigan Wolverines football team, two-time All-American basketball player for the basketball team, and an All-Big Ten Conference baseball player for the baseball team. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest football players in Michigan history. He was selected by Sports Illustrated as the fourth greatest athlete in the history of the U.S. state of Michigan in 2003 and one of the eleven greatest college football players of the first century of the game.

Donald Eugene Nehlen is a former American football player and coach. He was head football coach at Bowling Green State University (1968–1976) and at West Virginia University (1980–2000). Nehlen retired from coaching college football in 2001 with a career record of 202–128–8 and as the 17th winningest coach in college football history. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2005 and has served as a president of the American Football Coaches Association.

George Edkin Little was an American football player, and coach of football, basketball, and baseball, and college athletics administrator.

Mark Duffner is an American football coach who is currently a senior defensive assistant for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League (NFL). Duffner served as the head coach of the Maryland Terrapins football team from 1992 to 1996.

Roy Lee Manning, Jr., is an American football coach and former player. He last served as cornerbacks coach at the University of Oklahoma. He played linebacker in the National Football League for three seasons. Manning was originally signed by the Green Bay Packers as an undrafted free agent in 2005. He also played for the Houston Texans, Buffalo Bills, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Cincinnati Bengals during his NFL career. Manning played college football at Michigan. He won the 2004 Roger Zatkoff Award as the University of Michigan's football team's top linebacker.

Greg Mattison is a former American football coach, and former player. He is known for having served at Michigan for eleven years at various defensive coaching positions and as co-defensive coordinator and defensive line coach for at the University of Florida for three years, including the 2006 BCS National Championship season. His last coaching stop was being the co-defensive coordinator for the Ohio State Buckeyes football team.

The Cincinnati Bearcats are the athletic teams that represent the University of Cincinnati. The teams are members of the American Athletic Conference, which from 1979 to 2013 was known as the Big East Conference. Cincinnati and Wichita State University are currently the only members of The American that are located in the Midwestern United States; all other members are in the Northeast or South.

Jeff Genyk is an American football coach and former player. He is currently the special teams coordinator for Northwestern. Genyk served as the head football coach at Eastern Michigan University from 2004 to 2008, compiling a record of 16–42 in five seasons. He was a television analyst for Atlantic Coast Conference football for ESPN during the 2009 season.

Richard George Babcock was an American football player, coach and athletic director. He played college football for the University of Michigan from 1923 to 1925 and served as the head football coach at the University of Akron in 1926 and at the University of Cincinnati from 1927 to 1930. He also served as the University of Cincinnati's athletic director from 1927 to 1932.

Erick Scott Anderson is a former American football player.

Ronald Bernard Simpkins is a former American football player. He played college football at the University of Michigan as an inside linebacker from 1976 to 1979. He became Michigan's all-time career tackle leader in 1979 and was a consensus first-team selection for the 1979 College Football All-America Team. He later played professional football in the National Football League (NFL) for the Cincinnati Bengals and Green Bay Packers (1988).

Mike Mallory is an American football coach and a former player who most recently worked as assistant special teams coordinator for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football as a linebacker for the University of Michigan from 1982 to 1985. He was the Most Valuable Player for the 1984 Michigan team and was a finalist for the Butkus Award in 1985. Since 1986, he has been a college football coach, including stints as the defensive coordinator for the Rhode Island Rams (1993–1995), Northern Illinois Huskies (1996–1999), Illinois Fighting Illini (2004–2005). He was also the assistant special teams coach of the New Orleans Saints from 2008 to 2012.

The 1989 Michigan Wolverines football team was an American football team that represented the University of Michigan as a member of the Big Ten Conference during the 1989 NCAA Division I-A football season. In its 21st and final season under head coach Bo Schembechler, the team compiled a 10–2 record, won the Big Ten championship, lost to USC in the 1990 Rose Bowl, outscored opponents by a total of 335 to 184, and was ranked No. 7 and No. 8, respectively, in the final AP and UPI polls.

Matthew A. Dyson is an American football coach and a former player. He is currently the head coach of the George Mason University football team. He played college football as an outside linebacker for the University of Michigan from 1991 to 1994. He was selected as a first-team All-Big Ten linebacker as well as Honorable Mention All-American in 1992. He was the defensive player of the game in the 1994 Holiday Bowl. He was selected by the Oakland Raiders in the fifth round of the 1995 NFL Draft and appeared in four games during the 1995 Oakland Raiders season.

The 1983 Michigan Wolverines football team was an American football team that represented the University of Michigan in the 1983 Big Ten Conference football season. In their 15th season under head coach Bo Schembechler, the Wolverines compiled a 9–3 record, lost to Auburn in the 1984 Sugar Bowl, and outscored all opponents by a total of 355 to 160.

John T. White was a college football assistant coach, and a second-team 1947 College Football All-American center who played for national championship teams at both the University of Michigan and Ohio State University. White also played basketball for the Ohio State Buckeyes men's basketball team. Although White was drafted to play professional football, he chose to pursue a career as an assistant football coach for both the Michigan Wolverines and Penn State Nittany Lions football teams. He served as an assistant coach for a national champion at Michigan and three undefeated and untied seasons at Penn State. White served in the United States Army during World War II causing a break in his collegiate education.

Larry Ernest Stevens Jr. is a former American football defensive end and linebacker. He played college football for the University of Michigan from 2000 to 2003. He also played professional football for the Cincinnati Bengals during the 2004 and 2005 NFL seasons.

References

1 2 "1992 Los Angeles Rams". databaseFootball.com. Archived from the original on April 9, 2007. Retrieved July 18, 2020.CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
1 2 "Brian Townsend". pro-football-reference.com.
↑ "University of Michigan All-time Rosters Search Page". University of Michigan, Bentley Historical Library. Archived from the original on 2007-09-28.(Enter Townsend's first and last name on the search page, and press enter)
↑ "Michigan Football Statistic Archive Query Page". University of Michigan. Archived from the original on November 12, 2007. Retrieved April 2, 2015.(To access Townsend's record, enter his first and last name in the main search page. Then click on "Display Stats By Season" to access his game-by-game and season-by-season results.)
1 2 3 "Brian Townsend Profile". University of Michigan. Archived from the original on 2017-06-22. Retrieved 2011-07-21.
↑ "Brian Townsend biography". Ohio University. Archived from the original on 2012-03-20. Retrieved 2011-07-21.
↑ "U-M AD Dave Brandon Announces Four Staff Promotions". University of Michigan Athletics.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[dbF-1] 1 2 "1992 Los Angeles Rams". databaseFootball.com. Archived from the original on April 9, 2007. Retrieved July 18, 2020.CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)

[PFR-2] 1 2 "Brian Townsend". pro-football-reference.com.

[3] "University of Michigan All-time Rosters Search Page". University of Michigan, Bentley Historical Library. Archived from the original on 2007-09-28.(Enter Townsend's first and last name on the search page, and press enter)

[Stat-4] "Michigan Football Statistic Archive Query Page". University of Michigan. Archived from the original on November 12, 2007. Retrieved April 2, 2015.(To access Townsend's record, enter his first and last name in the main search page. Then click on "Display Stats By Season" to access his game-by-game and season-by-season results.)

[Bio-5] 1 2 3 "Brian Townsend Profile". University of Michigan. Archived from the original on 2017-06-22. Retrieved 2011-07-21.

[6] "Brian Townsend biography". Ohio University. Archived from the original on 2012-03-20. Retrieved 2011-07-21.

[7] "U-M AD Dave Brandon Announces Four Staff Promotions". University of Michigan Athletics.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]