UTEP Football Announces the Hiring of Tom Williams to Defensive Staff
EL PASO ? Former Yale football head coach Tom Williams has been appointed as the safeties coach at UTEP, head coach Mike Price announced Wednesday. Williams replaces Al Simmons, who recently accepted a job at Colorado State.
?We are extremely excited with the hiring of Tom Williams,? Price said. ?We are very fortunate that we have a coach of his quality coming to UTEP.
?He has coached at every level collegiately and professionally and will bring a wealth of experience to our defense. The fact that he was head coach of Yale brings status and prestige to our program.?
Williams brings with him 11 years of collegiate coaching experience as well as NFL knowledge, having been a defensive assistant for the NFL?s Jacksonville Jaguars.
?I?m thrilled to be back in my home state of Texas,? said Williams. ?I?m excited to be at UTEP with an established coach like coach Price and his staff. I?m looking forward to getting started.?
During his tenure at Yale, Williams guided the Bulldogs to a record of 16-14 over three seasons.
Williams was the co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at San Jose State from 2005-06, helping the defense decrease its points allowed by 21.8 per game in that timeframe. Additionally Williams spent three seasons at Hawaii (1996-98), including one in charge of the defense.
A native of Fort Worth, Texas, Williams served as linebackers coach at the University of Washington (1999-2001) where he helped the Huskies to three consecutive bowl appearances. They won the 2001 Rose Bowl, which capped an 11-1 season.
He got his start in coaching as a graduate assistant at Stanford on Bill Walsh?s staff (1993-94), and later worked full-time from 2002-04. He coached linebackers, served as the co-defensive coordinator (2002 & 2003) and was the associate head coach in 2004.
Williams was a four-year varsity letterwinner at Stanford from 1989-92. The Texas native led a Stanford squad that went 10-3 in 1992 and won a share of the Pac-10 championship, leading the Cardinal to a No. 9 finish in the national polls.
He attended Trinity Valley College Prep in Fort Worth, where he earned all-state honors in football, basketball and baseball.
Williams graduated from Stanford in 1992 and earned his master’s degree from the school in 1995. He and his wife, Tonya, have four children, Grace, Tre, Ana and Lauren.
Source: UTEP Athletics
