The current head coach of SMU Football, Sonny Dykes, prepares for the incoming season with a new defensive line coach and a promoted assistant coach in charge of cornerbacks.
Chidera Uzo-Diribe will be the new defensive line coach and brings many years of experience into the defensive line coach role. He began his professional football career as a four-year letterman at Colorado with several accolades including tying for sixth in sacks (20), tying for 17th in TFLs (31), and obtaining second in forced fumbles (10).
Uzo-Diribe went on to rank second nationally with the most forced fumbles (five), get on the watch list of two awards: the Ted Hendricks Award and the Bednarik Award, and become a free agent in 2015 with the New Orleans Saints.
As Uzo-Diribe dove into coaching, he became a Bill Walsh NFL Diversity Coaching Fellow with the San Francisco 49ers and named to 247Sports' most recent 30-Under-30 list along with current SMU running backs coach Ra'Shaad Samples.
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He spent two seasons as an outside linebackers coach in Kansas, and three seasons as a graduate assistant coaching the defensive line and outside linebackers in Colorado.
Stefan McClure is no stranger to the SMU Mustangs team and will be moving up from his previous defensive graduate assistant position to assistant coach in charge of cornerbacks.
McClure will be bringing experience from his time with the Indianapolis Colts (2016) and the Washington Football Team (2017).
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Before the NFL, McClure was a three-year starter at Cal State who served as the team captain for three seasons- the only player in Cal's history to do so.
McClure was a Wuerffel Trophy Watch List member, an Allstate AFCA Good Works Team nominee, and awarded honorable mention All-Pac-12 accolades. He also gained two awards: the Joe Roth Award and the Frank Storment Award/
McClure has already helped the Mustangs improve with his recent mentorship of Brandon Crossley who is ranked eighth in interceptions with four. Crossley was later selected to be apart of the 2021 NFL Combine and NFLPA Bowl.
Other SMU defensive players ranked in the American League last year include season starter, Brandon Stephens, who finished second in the league with 12 pass breakups, and Ar'mani Johnson who finished third in the conference with 11 PBUs.
SMU Mustangs will have their 2021 season home opener on Sept. 4 vs. Abilene Christian University.
For more ticket information call (214) SMU-GAME (768-4263). Season ticket renewals can be accessed through my.SMU or the SMU Ticket Sales Office.
