Luke Fickell
 Fickell at the 2014 spring game | |
| Sport(s) | Football |
|---|---|
| Current position | |
| Title | Defensive coordinator |
| Team | Ohio State |
| Conference | Big Ten |
| Annual salary | $750,000 |
| Biographical details | |
| Born |
August 18, 1973 Columbus, Ohio |
| Playing career | |
| 1993–1996 | Ohio State |
| 1997 | New Orleans Saints |
| Position(s) | Nose guard |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 1999 | Ohio State (GA) |
| 2000–2001 | Akron (DL) |
| 2002–2003 | Ohio State (ST) |
| 2004 | Ohio State (LB) |
| 2005–2010 | Ohio State (co-DC/LB) |
| 2011 | Ohio State (interim HC) |
| 2012–2015 | Ohio State (co-DC) |
| 2015–present | Ohio State (DC) |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 6–7 |
| Bowls | 0–1 |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Awards | |
| AFCA Assistant Coach of the Year Award (2010) | |
Luke Joseph Fickell (born August 18, 1973) is an American football coach and former player. Fickell is currently the Defensive coordinator and linebackers coach for the Ohio State Buckeyes. An assistant at Ohio State for over ten seasons, Fickell served as the team's head coach during the 2011 football season.
Playing career
Fickell spent his entire playing career in Columbus, Ohio, graduating from DeSales High School in 1992. After redshirting for the Buckeyes in 1992, Fickell went on to be a standout member of the defensive unit, making a school-record 50 consecutive starts at the nose guard position from 1993 to 1996,[1] four bowl games. In his freshman year, he lined up next to Dan Wilkinson. Despite having a torn pectoral muscle, Fickell started the 1997 Rose Bowl, making two tackles in the Buckeyes victory over Arizona State.[2] After graduating from Ohio State in 1997, Fickell signed as an undrafted free agent with the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL) .[3] After tearing the ACL in his knee, he spent the remainder of the season on the injured reserve list and was later released by the team.[3][4]
Coaching career
After his brief stint in the NFL, Fickell fulfilled a childhood dream by joining the Ohio State Buckeyes coaching staff after being accepted as a graduate assistant with the Buckeyes in 1999 under his former coach, John Cooper. In 2000, Fickell was hired by the University of Akron as the defensive line coach.[5] After two seasons with the Zips, he returned to Ohio State once again in 2002, this time as the special teams coordinator under second-year head coach, Jim Tressel.[1] In 2004, Fickell took over as the linebackers coach, adding the title co-defensive coordinator to his responsibilities in 2005.[1] In 2010, he was named Assistant Coach of the Year by the AFCA, joining a list of Buckeyes coaches to be recognized by the association that also includes Carroll Widdoes, Woody Hayes, Earle Bruce and Jim Tressel.[6]
Fickell was initially promoted to the position of assistant head coach and was to serve as the interim head coach during Jim Tressel's five game suspension to open the 2011 season.[7] However, on May 30, 2011, Tressel resigned amid an NCAA investigation and Fickell was appointed to the position of head coach.[8] After an underwhelming 6-6 regular season, on November 28, Fickell's stint as head coach ended with the hiring of Urban Meyer. He coached the Buckeyes one last time in the 2012 Gator Bowl against Meyer's old team, the Florida Gators.[9] On January 15, 2012, Luke Fickell was introduced as Urban Meyer's co-defensive coordinator.
Head coaching record
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ohio State Buckeyes (Big Ten Conference) (2011) | |||||||||
| 2011 | Ohio State | 6–7 | 3–5 | 4th (Leaders) | L Gator | ||||
| Ohio State: | 6–7 | 3–5 | |||||||
| Total: | 6–7 | ||||||||
References
- 1 2 3 http://www.ohiostatebuckeyes.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=17300&ATCLID=1059279
- ↑ http://www.ohiostatebuckeyes.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=87743&SPID=10408&ATCLID=205159453&DB_OEM_ID=17300
- 1 2 "Injuries are name of game at NFL camps". Albany Times Union. via HighBeam Research (subscription required). Associated Press. 24 July 1997. Retrieved 17 January 2013.
- ↑ BuckeyeGrove.com - Year of uncertainty begins for Fickell
- ↑ Luke Fickell's athletic career | Fanbase
- ↑ http://bucknuts.com/index.php/bucknuts/fickell-receives-afca-assistant-award/menu-id-1346.html
- ↑ Ohio State football: Fickell promoted to assistant head coach | The Columbus Dispatch
- ↑ https://sports.yahoo.com/ncaa/football/news?slug=ap-ohiostate-fickell
- ↑ Gator Bowl 2012: Ohio State Vs. Florida In Urban Meyer Bowl - SB Nation Cleveland