Middle Tennessee hires Scott Shafer as defensive coordinator

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (AP) Middle Tennessee has hired former Syracuse head coach Scott Shafer as its defensive coordinator. Shafer spent the 2016 season out of

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (AP) Middle Tennessee has hired former Syracuse head coach Scott Shafer as its defensive coordinator.

Shafer spent the 2016 season out of football after going 14-23 in three years as Syracuse's coach.

Before taking over as Syracuse's head coach, Shafer was the Orange's defensive coordinator from 2009-12. He also has been a defensive coordinator at Northern Illinois, Western Michigan, Stanford and Michigan.

Shafer said Friday in a release announcing the hire that ''we will put a physical, attacking, multiple defense on the field that will excel in fundamentals and tackling.''

WIN $2KIN TICKETS

WIN $2KIN TICKETS

GET READY TO COMPETE

Pick your champion (you can change it later). We’ll email you when brackets open.

• Miami (FL)
• Georgia
• Utah
• Indiana
• Alabama
• Kentucky
• Texas
• UCLA
• BYU
• Ole Miss
• Notre Dame
• Ohio State

PREREGISTER TO PLAY

No purchase necessary. 50 U.S./D.C. 18+. Entry opens 3PM ET Dec 6, 2026 and closes 8PM ET Dec 18, 2026. Void where prohibited.See Official Rules for complete details. The College Football Playoff (CFP) is not a sponsor or administrator of this contest.

Shafer replaces Tyrone Nix, who was fired Dec. 28 after five seasons as Middle Tennessee's defensive coordinator.

Middle Tennessee went 8-5 this season, including a 52-35 Hawaii Bowl loss to Hawaii.

---

More AP college football: www.collegefootball.ap.org and https://twitter.com/AP-Top25