Jay Hill Officially Joins BYU Football Staff With Two Job Titles

PROVO, Utah – BYU football makes it official with former Weber State head coach Jay Hill. Hill is now the Associate Head Coach and Defensive Coordinator at BYU.

“I’m very excited to be joining Kalani and the rest of the BYU staff,” Jay Hill said. “They have an outstanding program that wins on and off the field. BYU’s brand is nationally recognized and respected, and I can’t wait to get to coaching, recruiting and winning in the Big 12.”

#BYU's new Associate Head Coach & Defensive Coordinator, @CoachJayHill. #BYUFootball #GoCougs pic.twitter.com/GZx7Fm4Dg0

— KSL Sports (@kslsports) December 7, 2022

The associate head coach title became open yesterday when Ed Lamb was announced as the new head coach at Northern Colorado.

Jay Hill is the BYU Associate Head Coach & Defensive Coordinator

Hill leaves Weber State as the winningest coach in Wildcats history. The opportunity to win in the Big 12 Conference is a significant factor in BYU landing Hill from his post as head coach of the Weber State Wildcats.

Hill has worked closely with Kalani Sitake over the years from their time at the University of Utah. A former Utah defensive back, Hill has never worked at BYU before, but he has strong ties to existing coaches on the current staff.

𝐖𝐞𝐥𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐅𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐲 @CoachJayHill!! pic.twitter.com/XDoHNMoIKC

— BYU FOOTBALL (@BYUfootball) December 7, 2022

“I am pleased to announce Jay Hill as our associate head coach and new defensive coordinator,” BYU head coach Sitake said. “Jay is a leader. I have worked with Jay for nine years while we were at Utah together, so I know first-hand how like-minded we are defensively, how great of a recruiter he is and how committed he is to developing players. He has done an amazing job everywhere he has been, including building and leading the Weber State program most recently, and I’m excited to now have him here at BYU.”

Hill built top defenses at Weber State

Hill’s defenses at Weber State have been among the top-performing units in the FCS ranks. Weber State finished in the top 30 in total defense and scoring defense in five consecutive seasons, including a top 10 ranking in passing defense, No. 15 mark in total defense, and top 20 in scoring defense the last two seasons.

Hill takes over a BYU defense near the bottom nationally in many metrics. The Cougars were 93rd nationally in total defense, allowing 409.7 yards, 98th in rush defense (174.0), and 100th in scoring defense, giving up 30 points per game.

Hill and Sitake’s next line of business is to piece together the defensive staff.

Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for sports.ksl.com and host of the Cougar Tracks Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and Cougar Sports Saturday (Saturday from 12–3 p.m.) on KSL Newsradio. Follow Mitch’s BYU football coverage on Twitter: @Mitch_Harper.

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