Smith & Sparber Named Co-Defensive Coordinators

PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Rutgers football head coach Greg Schiano has named Robb Smith and Zach Sparber co-defensive coordinators. Smith returns to the Scarlet Knights with over 20 years of experience, including 12 as a defensive coordinator, while Sparber, who will also coach linebackers, is back in his home state after helping James Madison to a top-25 defense in 2024. The duo reunites after working together on the 2022 Duke staff.

“I am excited by the opportunity to work with Robb again,” Schiano said. “He is one of the most intelligent football coaches I have ever been around. In Zach, we are hiring a rising star in the profession, who has proven to be a great communicator. Together, I am confident they will lead our defense to new heights. We are thrilled to welcome them both back to New Jersey.”

ROBB SMITH

Smith, a two-time Broyles Award nominee, is set for his third stint in Piscataway, previously working on the staff in various roles, including as defensive coordinator, from 2009-12 and from 2020-21. He also worked on Schiano’s staff at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2013. A native of Leechburg, Pennsylvania, Smith most recently coordinated the Duke defense in 2022, one of the top turnarounds nationally, and was part of Penn State’s staff the past two years (2023-24).

Last season, Smith worked as an analyst for a Nittany Lion team that appeared in the Big Ten Championship Game and won two games in the College Football Playoff. In 2023, he also handled the role of co-defensive coordinator and play caller for the Peach Bowl.

After Duke recorded an 0-8 ledger in ACC play in 2021, Smith took over the defense and guided the Blue Devils to a 5-3 conference mark to match the best one-year improvement by a winless team in league history. In addition, the plus-six wins overall equaled the second-best turnaround in ACC history. The defense went from ranked 127th nationally to 31st in points allowed per game, while the team had an ACC-best and No. 2 national turnover margin of plus-16, claiming the Military Bowl over UCF for its ninth win of the year.

Under Smith’s guidance as defensive coordinator in 2021, Rutgers held opponents to 52-for-162 on third down (32.1 percent), the 11th-best percentage nationally following the regular season. That mark included nine games allowing five or less conversions. The Scarlet Knights also finished the season holding their opponents to under 300 yards of total offense on six different occasions.

In 2020, Smith led a Rutgers…