Who is Johnny Nansen? Meet the new defensive coach for Texas Longhorns football
Johnny Nansen, who will replace Jeff Choate as Texas’ linebackers coach and co-defensive coordinator, won’t need many introductions when he joins the Longhorns.
As first reported by 247Sports on Saturday, Nansen will fill the same position as Choate, who left Texas to become head coach at Nevada but still helped guide Texas in its College Football Playoff semifinal against Washington on Monday.
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Nansen has a long history with Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian that dates back to Sarkisian’s first head coaching job at Washington in 2009. Sarkisian hired Nansen to coach the Huskies' defensive line and coordinate special teams, and Nansen eventually served as associate head coach during Sarkisian’s five-year tenure there.
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Nansen then joined Sarkisian’s staff at USC in 2014, and he has since coached at UCLA and Arizona, where he served as defensive coordinator the past two years. This season, the Wildcats (10-3) tied for 30th nationally in scoring defense, allowing 21.1 points per game.
A native of Samoa, Nansen, 49, played linebacker at Washington State before beginning his coaching career at Cabrillo High School in Long Beach, Calif., in 1998.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Meet Johnny Nansen, new defensive coach for Texas Longhorns football
