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Illinois Football: 5 options to replace Ryan Walters as Illini defensive coordinator

By Rees Woodcock

MINNEAPOLIS, MN - NOVEMBER 6: Head coach Bret Bielema of the Illinois Fighting Illini looks on in the second quarter of the game against the Minnesota Golden Gophers at Huntington Bank Stadium on November 6, 2021 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Fighting Illini defeated the Golden Gophers 14-6. (Photo by David Berding/Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS, MN - NOVEMBER 6: Head coach Bret Bielema of the Illinois Fighting Illini looks on in the second quarter of the game against the Minnesota Golden Gophers at Huntington Bank Stadium on November 6, 2021 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Fighting Illini defeated the Golden Gophers 14-6. (Photo by David Berding/Getty Images) /
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Nov 25, 2016; Columbia, MO, USA; Arkansas Razorbacks head coach Bret Bielema talks with defensive coordinator Robb Smith (right) before the game against the Missouri Tigers at Faurot Field. Missouri won 28-24. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 25, 2016; Columbia, MO, USA; Arkansas Razorbacks head coach Bret Bielema talks with defensive coordinator Robb Smith (right) before the game against the Missouri Tigers at Faurot Field. Missouri won 28-24. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports /

3. Robb Smith – Current Duke DC

Bret Bielema has quite the coaching tree out there in the football world. One of the names I think people should keep an eye on is Robb Smith.

Smith has a ton of coaching experience. He started in 1999 as an Iowa graduate assistant. From there, he made stops at Maine and Rutgers in various defensive roles. In 2014, Bielema would hire Smith as the defensive coordinator at Arkansas after Chris Ash took the Rutgers job.

This marriage would last three seasons before Smith would move on to the Minnesota defensive coordinator position in 2017. He would then make stops at Texas A&M and Rutgers before taking the Duke defensive coordinator position for the 2022 campaign.

In the first season under Smith’s tutelage, Duke improved their defense greatly. The Blue Devils went from giving up 41.8 points per game, which ranked No. 126 out of 130 DI programs in 2021, to giving up 23.1 points per game in 2022. That was good enough to rank No. 33 in the nation. That is a massive improvement.

Smith also made great improvements in the Rutgers defense in the two seasons prior to taking the Duke job. In 2019, the year before Smith took over as defensive coordinator, the Scarlet Knights were giving up 36.7 points per game, which ranked No. 120 in the nation. Rutgers would then give up 32.1 points per game and 26.7 points per game in the 2020 and 2021 seasons, respectively. That is a 10-point improvement in just two seasons.

It wouldn’t shock me to see Bielema pursue Smith. Bielema is familiar with Smith as a coach, and Smith has clearly proven he can coach a defense.

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