Mike Hankwitz

Last updated

Mike Hankwitz
Biographical details
Born (1947-12-14) December 14, 1947 (age 76)
Ludington, Michigan, U.S.
Playing career
1966–1969 Michigan
Position(s) Linebacker, tight end
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1970Michigan (JV)
1971–1972Michigan (GA)
1973 Arizona (OLB)
1974–1975Arizona (OLB/DB)
1976Arizona (DC)
1977–1981 Purdue (OLB/P)
1982–1984 Western Michigan (DC/DB/P)
1985–1987 Colorado (OLB/P)
1988Colorado (DC/ILB/P)
1989Colorado (DC/P)
1990Colorado (DC/DB/P)
1991Colorado (DC/P)
1992–1994Colorado (DC/OLB/P)
1995–1996 Kansas (DC/ILB)
1997–2002 Texas A&M (DC/LB/P)
2003Arizona (DC)
2003Arizona (Interim HC)
2004–2005Colorado (DC)
2005Colorado (Interim HC)
2006–2007 Wisconsin (DC)
2008–2020 Northwestern (DC)
Head coaching record
Overall1–7
Bowls0–1

George Michael Hankwitz (born December 14, 1947) is a former American football coach and player. He was the defensive coordinator at Northwestern University, a position he had held from 2008 to 2020. Hankwitz has twice served as an interim head football coach, for seven games in 2003 at the University of Arizona and for one game in 2005, the Champs Sports Bowl, with the University of Colorado–Boulder, compiling a career head coaching record of 1–7.

Contents

Hankwitz played college football at the University of Michigan from 1966 to 1969. He has spent most of his coaching career as an assistant at a number of schools. Teams for which Hankwitz has coached have had a winning record in 34 of his 40 years. Ten of those clubs won conference championships and 12 more were league runners-up. Hankwitz has coached in 25 bowl games, including every major New Year's Day bowl game—Rose Bowl, Sugar Bowl, Fiesta Bowl, Orange Bowl, Cotton Bowl Classic, Outback Bowl and Capital One Bowl.

In his 25 years as a defensive coordinator, his defense has ranked in the nation's top 25 on 14 occasions. As coordinator, his teams have 36 wins over ranked programs, including nine wins over top-five clubs and two wins over #1-ranked teams. Hankwitz also has coached 14 first-team All-Americans, including four straight punters at Colorado, five conference defensive players of the year, 47 first-team all-conference choices and 12 team MVPs. He has recruited eight players who went on to play in the NFL. As a coordinator, Hankwitz has won 400 games and 11 conference championships.

Playing career

Hankwitz was a three-year football letterwinner for the Wolverines and started on the 1969 Big Ten championship squad that played in the Rose Bowl. Hankwitz earned a B.S. in education from Michigan in 1970. [1]

Although born in Ludington, Mike grew up in Scottville, MI where he was an all-conference quarterback. At the University of Michigan, he became their primary fieldgoal kicker.

Coaching career

Including his work as a graduate assistant at Michigan and his stints as an interim head coach, Hankwitz has made 11 different coaching stops. Hankwitz is considered an X's and O's guru, having built top-five defenses at multiple stops. He has served as an assistant under a number of accomplished head coaches, including Bo Schembechler at Michigan, Jim Young at Arizona and Purdue, Bill McCartney at Colorado, Glen Mason at Kansas, R. C. Slocum at Texas A&M, John Mackovic at Arizona, and Gary Barnett at Colorado.

Michigan, first stint at Arizona, Purdue, Western Michigan

Hankwitz began his coaching career as a graduate assistant from 1970 to 1972 at his alma mater, the University of Michigan, under head coach Bo Schembechler. There he helped the Wolverines to two Big Ten Conference titles, a 30–3 record, three top-ten national rankings and an appearance in the 1972 Rose Bowl. Hankwitz was the outside linebackers, secondary, and punt return/punt rush coach at the University of Arizona from 1973 to 1976. He then moved to Purdue University as the outside linebackers and punting coach from 1977 to 1981. Next Hankwitz was the defensive coordinator with additional responsibilities for the secondary, punters, and punt team at Western Michigan University from 1982 to 1984. The 1982 Western Michigan defense allowed only 72 points, the fewest in Division I that season.

First stint at Colorado

Hankwitz enjoyed a successful 10-year run in his first stint at the University of Colorado at Boulder (1985–1994). After coaching outside linebackers and punters his first three years with the Buffaloes, he was named the program's defensive coordinator in 1988. Colorado put together the nation's fifth-best record (58–11–4) from 1989 to 1994, won a share of the national title in 1990, captured three Big Eight Conference titles, made two appearances each in the Orange and Fiesta Bowl, and finished top-20 all six years including three top-five finishes. The Buffs' 1989 and 1991 teams set the school record for fewest points allowed (150) in a season. Among Hankwitz's standout players at Colorado were Jim Thorpe Award winners Deon Figures (1992) and Chris Hudson (1994), and Butkus Award winner Alfred Williams (1990).

Kansas, Texas A&M

Hankwitz spent two seasons (1995–1996) as defensive coordinator and inside linebackers coach for head coach Glen Mason at the University of Kansas. The 1995 Jayhawks recorded the school's first 10-win season since 1905, played in the Aloha Bowl and ranked 10th in the final national polls.

Hankwitz was the defensive coordinator, linebackers coach, and punting coach at Texas A&M University from 1997 to 2002, where he guided the Aggies' famed "Wrecking Crew" defense. During that span he had three top-10 ranked defenses and two more top-20 defenses as Texas A&M won the Big 12 Conference championship in 1998 and also captured Big 12 South Division title the year before. Among Hankwitz's standout players at Texas A&M was Dat Nguyen, who won the Lombardi and Bednarik Awards.

Returns to Arizona and Colorado, interim head coaching stints

After his stint at Texas A&M, Hankwitz returned to Arizona and served as defensive coordinator in 2003. After head coach John Mackovic was fired four games into the season, Hankwitz was named interim head coach for the rest of the season and compiled a record of 1–6.

The next season, Hankwitz returned to Colorado where he spent two seasons as defensive coordinator and outside linebackers coach there. He served as the program's interim head coach for the Buffaloes in the 2005 Champs Sports Bowl against Clemson after Gary Barnett was forced to resign, though Colorado credits the game to Barnett. Colorado won the Big 12 North Division title in both 2004 and 2005.

Wisconsin

Hankwitz next moved on to the University of Wisconsin, where he served as the Badgers' defensive coordinator. In 2006, Wisconsin touted one of the nation's best defenses, ranking first in the nation in pass efficiency defense (84.19 rating, third-lowest in Big Ten Conference history), second in scoring defense (12.1 point per game), and fifth in total defense (253.1 yard per game). The Badgers limited six of their opponents to ten or fewer points and allowed only three foes to reach the 20-point mark. In two years with the Badgers, Hankwitz coached 13 players who received at least honorable mention All-Big Ten honors. Eight of the 11 defensive starters from the 2006 squad received at least honorable mention All-Big Ten recognition, including first-team cornerback Jack Ikegwuonu and second-teamers Matt Shaughnessy and Roderick Rogers.

Northwestern

Hired on January 18, 2008, Hankwitz was Northwestern's defensive coordinator while assisting with the safeties. He made an impact in first season in 2008, coach the Wildcats defense to fifth-best improvement in the nation from the previous season. After allowing 31.0 points per game in 2007, Northwestern surrendered just 20.2 in 2008 to rank 27th in the country and fourth in the Big Ten. The Wildcats also ranked in the top-30 nationally in sacks (18th), pass efficiency defense (25th) and tackles for loss (28th). The defense was the best the Wildcat program had seen since their head coach, Pat Fitzgerald, led the unit on the field in 1995 and 1996 as an All-American linebacker. The Wildcats posted 20 defensive shutout quarters on the year and held four opponents to under 100 yards rushing—including a school record four-yard performance against Ohio. In the Alamo Bowl, Northwestern's defense held Missouri, which touted one of the nation's most potent offenses, averaging 497.5 yards of offense and 43.2 point per game), to just 286 yards and 17 points through four quarters of play. The Wildcats fell to the Tigers in overtime, 30–23. The Wildcats beat Auburn in the 2021 Citrus Bowl to earn Hankwitz’s 400th win.

Hankwitz retired from coaching at the end of the 2020 season. [2] He retired with 400 wins over his 51 year career and coached 580 games in his career, both records. [3]

Family

Hankwitz and his wife, Cathy, have a son, Jacob.

Head coaching record

YearTeamOverallConferenceStandingBowl/playoffs
Arizona Wildcats (Pacific-10 Conference)(2003)
2003 Arizona 1–6 [n 1] 1–6 [n 1] 10th
Arizona:1–61–6
Colorado Buffaloes (Big 12 Conference)(2005)
2005 Colorado 0–1 [n 2] 0–0L Champs Sports
Colorado:0–10–0
Total:1–7

Notes

  1. 1 2 Hankwitz served as interim head coach after the firing of John Mackovic five games into the season.
  2. ↑ Hankwitz served as interim head coach at the 2005 Champs Sports Bowl after Gary Barnett resigned. The NCAA and the College Football Data Warehouse credit the bowl loss to Hankwitz, while Colorado credits the entire season to Barnett.

Related Research Articles

Michael Joseph Stoops is an American football coach and former player, who is the inside linebackers coach at the University of Kentucky. Stoops also served as the head football coach at the University of Arizona from 2003 until his firing during the 2011 season. He previously served as an assistant football coach at the University of Iowa, Kansas State University, and University of Oklahoma. He is the younger brother of Bob Stoops, the former head coach of the Oklahoma Sooners football program, and the older brother of Mark Stoops, head coach of the Kentucky Wildcats football program. He returned to Oklahoma as the defensive coordinator in 2012. He served in the position until he was fired on October 7, 2018. After spending time at the University of Alabama as an analyst, he spent one season as the defensive coordinator of the Florida Atlantic Owls in 2021.

Gary Brent Darnell is an American former college football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at Tennessee Technological University from 1983 to 1985 and Western Michigan University from 1997 to 2004 and was interim head football coach at the University of Florida for seven games in 1989 and at Texas A&M University for one game in 2007, compiling a career head coaching record of 52–80. Darnell had stints at a defensive coordinator at Kansas State University, Wake Forest University, Florida, the University of Notre Dame, the University of Texas at Austin and Texas A&M.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gary Barnett</span> American football player and coach (born 1946)

Gary Lee Barnett is a former American football player and coach. He served as the head coach at Fort Lewis College (1982–1983), Northwestern University (1992–1998), and the University of Colorado at Boulder (1999–2005), compiling a career college football record of 92–94–2. His 1995 Northwestern team won the Big Ten Conference title, the first for the program since 1936, and played in the school's first Rose Bowl since 1949. At Colorado, Barnett was suspended briefly in the 2004 offseason due to events stemming from allegations of sexual misconduct by several members of the football team.

John Mackovic is an American football coach. He was most recently the head coach of the Italy national American football team from 2014-2023, which was formed to compete in the EFAF European Championship. Previously, Mackovic served as the head football coach at Wake Forest University (1978–1980), the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign (1988–1991), the University of Texas at Austin (1992–1997), and the University of Arizona (2001–2003), compiling a career college football record of 95–82–3. He was also the head coach of the National Football League's Kansas City Chiefs from 1983 to 1986, tallying a mark of 30–34.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northwestern Wildcats football</span> Football team of Northwestern University

The Northwestern Wildcats football team represents Northwestern University as an NCAA Division I college football team and member of the Big Ten Conference based near Chicago in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern began playing football in 1882. Its football mascot is the Wildcat, a term coined by a Chicago Tribune reporter in 1924, after reporting on a football game where the players appeared as "a wall of purple wildcats". Northwestern Football is also marketed as "Chicago's Big Ten Team" with its proximity and ties to Chicago.

Lou Tepper is a former American football coach. He served as the head football coach at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign from 1991 to 1996, the Edinboro University of Pennsylvania, from 2000 to 2005, and Indiana University of Pennsylvania from 2006 to 2010, compiling a career college football coaching record of 101–75–2. Tepper was the defensive coordinator at Louisiana State University (LSU) from 1997 to 1999 and the University at Buffalo from 2012 to 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pat Fitzgerald</span> American football player and coach (born 1974)

Patrick William Fitzgerald Jr. is an American former football player and coach. He served as the head football coach of the Northwestern Wildcats from 2006 until he was fired in July 2023 in the aftermath of a hazing scandal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mark Dantonio</span> American football player and coach (born 1956)

Mark Justin Dantonio is an American football coach and player. His most recent head coaching position was at Michigan State University, a position he had held from 2007 to 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arizona Wildcats football</span> University of Arizona football team

The Arizona Wildcats football program represents the University of Arizona (UA) in the sport of American college football. Arizona competes in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) as a member of the Big 12 Conference. They play their home games at Arizona Stadium, which opened in 1929 on the university's campus in Tucson, Arizona, and has a capacity of 50,782. The Wildcats head coach is Brent Brennan.

Kealilhaaheo Brian David Cabral is an American football coach and former player. He stood in as the interim head football coach for three games at the University of Colorado at Boulder in 2010. Cabral played professionally as a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL) with the Atlanta Falcons, the Green Bay Packers, and the Chicago Bears. He won a Super Bowl as a member of the 1985 Chicago Bears.

Harlon T. Barnett is an American football coach and former player who is currently the defensive backs coach at Northwestern University. He was the interim head coach at Michigan State University for most of the 2023 season. Barnett previously served as associate head coach/co-defensive coordinator at Michigan State as well as defensive coordinator/defensive backs coach at Florida State University. As a player, Barnett was a four-year letter-winner as a defensive back for Michigan State University, serving as team captain and earning All-America honors during his senior year, and spent seven seasons in the National Football League.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mel Tucker</span> American football player and coach (born 1972)

Melvin Gene Tucker II is an American football coach and former player. He was the head football coach at Michigan State University from 2020 to 2023.

The 1973 Arizona Wildcats football team represented the University of Arizona during the 1973 NCAA Division I football season. Led by Jim Young in his first year, the Wildcats shared the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) championship with rival Arizona State, with ASU winning the head-to-head matchup to clinch the conference’s bowl bid and Arizona was left out of the postseason as a result.

Scott Gregory Hazelton is an American football coach who is currently a special assistant to the head coach at the University of Texas at Austin. He was previously the defensive coordinator at Michigan State University. Hazelton was the defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at Kansas State University in 2019 before moving to Michigan State. He was also the defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at the University of Wyoming in 2017 and 2018 where he led nationally ranked defenses in both seasons, linebackers coach at USC in 2012 and the defensive coordinator of the 2011 FCS National Champions, North Dakota State Bison. Hazelton was tutored as a defensive coach under the guidance of then North Dakota State head coach and current Buffalo Bills assistant Bob Babich and Gus Bradley who is a former head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars, former Bison assistant coach, and is currently the defensive coordinator for the Los Angeles Chargers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2003 Arizona Wildcats football team</span> American college football season

The 2003 Arizona Wildcats football team represented the University of Arizona during the 2003 NCAA Division I-A football season. They were coached by John Mackovic in his third season with the Wildcats. Arizona completed the season with a record of 2–10 and finished in last place in the Pac-10 standings.

Robb Smith is an American football coach and former player. He is currently an analyst for the Penn State Nittany Lions. Previously, he was the defensive coordinator for the Duke Blue Devils, Rutgers Scarlet Knights, Arkansas Razorbacks and Minnesota Golden Gophers. He was formerly the linebackers coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers under coach Greg Schiano during the 2013 season.

The 2018 Northwestern Wildcats football team represented Northwestern University during the 2018 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Wildcats played their home games at Ryan Field in Evanston, Illinois and competed in the West Division of the Big Ten Conference. They were led by 13th-year head coach Pat Fitzgerald.

The 2022 Iowa Hawkeyes football team represented the University of Iowa as member of the West Division of the Big Ten Conference during the 2022 NCAA Division I FBS football season. Led by 24th-year head coach Kirk Ferentz, the Hawkeyes played home games at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, Iowa.

The 2023 Northwestern Wildcats football team represented Northwestern University in the West Division of the Big Ten Conference during the 2023 NCAA Division I FBS football season. They were led by first-year head coach David Braun and played their home games at Ryan Field in Evanston, Illinois. Braun began the season as interim head coach and was elevated to permanent head coach on November 15 following the team's 24–10 road win over Wisconsin.

References

  1. ↑ O'Donnell, Jim (December 26, 2008). "Hankwitz' defense key to Alamo Bowl". Chicago Sun-Times . Archived from the original on November 5, 2012. Retrieved April 13, 2011.
  2. ↑ "Mike Hankwitz, the longtime Northwestern defensive coordinator, will retire after this season". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved December 15, 2020.
  3. ↑ "Football: Northwestern's defense steps up to get Mike Hankwitz win No. 400". Daily Northwestern. Retrieved September 19, 2022.
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.