Austin Armstrong
Robert Austin Armstrong (born c. 1993) is an American football coach. He currently is the defensive coordinator for the Florida Gators football team. He previously was an assistant coach for West Georgia, Louisiana, Georgia, and Southern Miss. He played college football for Huntingdon as a linebacker.
| Current position | |
|---|---|
| Title | Defensive coordinator |
| Team | Florida |
| Conference | SEC |
| Biographical details | |
| Born | c. 1993 (age 29–30) York, Alabama, U.S. |
| Playing career | |
| 2010–2013 | Huntingdon |
| Position(s) | Linebacker |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 2016 | West Georgia (GA) |
| 2017–2018 | Louisiana (GA) |
| 2019 | Georgia (Quality control) |
| 2020 | Louisiana (LB) |
| 2021–2022 | Southern Miss (DC/LB) |
| 2023–present | Florida (DC) |
Early life
Armstrong was born and raised in York, Alabama, one of three children to David and Ruth Armstrong.[1][2][3] Growing up less than an hour from Tuscaloosa, he dreamt of coaching football at Alabama from the age of ten, idolizing Nick Saban.[2][3] When Armstrong was in the 3rd grade he dressed as Florida head coach Steve Spurrier for Halloween, his mother's favorite coach, and has stated that Spurrier is the reason he wears a visor.[2][3][4] Armstrong attended Sumter Academy for high school where he was a team captain in football and baseball before attending Division III Huntingdon College in Montgomery where he played linebacker on the football team and graduated in 2014.[1][2]
Coaching career
Following his graduation from college, Armstrong determined to break into coaching, drove to every university in Alabama with a football team and passed out his resume to coaches.[2] Armstrong would eventually be hired in 2016 by West Georgia as an assistant defensive line coach.[4]
Armstrong would serve as an assistant defensive line coach for Louisiana-Lafayette under Billy Napier for the 2017 and 2018 seasons.[5]
In 2019, Armstrong would serve under Kirby Smart as a defensive quality control coach at Georgia and to this day he tries to mold himself in the image of Smart.[6]
In 2020, Armstrong would return to Louisiana this time serving as the inside linebackers coach for the Ragin' Cajuns.[4]
In 2021, Armstrong was hired by Southern Miss to serve as their defensive coordinator and inside linebackers coach, making him the youngest defensive coordinator in FBS football.[5][7]
In January 2023, Armstrong was hired by his idol Nick Saban as the inside linebackers coach at Alabama.[8] A month later Napier would hire him as the defensive coordinator at Florida following the departure of Patrick Toney.[4][9]
References
- "Austin Armstrong". Huntingdon. Retrieved 2023-04-13.
- Hayes, Matt (2023-04-12). "Hayes: Meet the man who is most responsible for Florida's potential turnaround. And, no, he's not a QB". Saturday Down South. Retrieved 2023-04-13.
- Abolverdi, Zach (2023-03-13). "Austin Armstrong left his 'hero' Nick Saban to take DC job at Florida". On3. Retrieved 2023-04-13.
- Baker, Matt (March 11, 2023). "The 29-year-old coordinator Billy Napier hired to save Florida". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved 2023-04-13.
- Buckley, Tim. "Ragin' Cajuns football assistant coach being hired by Southern Miss". The Daily Advertiser. Retrieved 2023-04-13.
- Bratton, Michael Wayne (2019-01-22). "Georgia adds to support staff with addition of Austin Armstrong from Louisiana-Lafayette". Saturday Down South. Retrieved 2023-04-13.
- Wells, Kevin (2023-02-27). "Florida hires Austin Armstrong as defensive coordinator". WCBJ. Retrieved 2023-04-13.
- Schultz, Nick (2023-01-14). "Report: Alabama to hire defensive coordinator, former Georgia assistant to staff". On3. Retrieved 2023-04-13.
- Jeyarajah, Shehan (February 27, 2023). "Florida hires Alabama's Austin Armstrong after ex-defensive coordinator Patrick Toney leaves for NFL". CBSSports.com. Retrieved 2023-04-13.