When Iowa State Athletics Director Jamie Pollard brought Paul Rhoads back to his native state and the Cyclone football program, Pollard called on an Iowan whose ISU roots are only exceeded by his exemplary resume. Rhoads was welcomed back to the Iowa State campus in a Dec. 20 press conference long on feelings of warmth for a man who was coming home.

Born in Nevada, Iowa, just 10 minutes from Jack Trice Stadium, Rhoads came back to Iowa State after most recently coaching as defensive coordinator at Auburn. His stellar track record complements his Iowa roots. The man who was valedictorian at Ankeny High School, one of the largest schools in the state (located just 20 minutes south of Ames), Rhoads was the ideal individual to take control of the ISU football program.

“Paul Rhoads is an outstanding and intelligent football coach, a highly successful national recruiter and has nearly 10 years of experience as a BCS coordinator,” Pollard said. “During our exhaustive interview process, he was the one candidate that clearly demonstrated both extensive experience and an extreme passion for and familiarity with our institution. In addition, and most importantly, he also has a comprehensive plan for how to be successful at Iowa State. He is a great fit for our institution.”

“I am thrilled to welcome Paul back to Iowa State University as our head football coach,” said ISU President Gregory Geoffroy. “He is a man of great character, has an absolute commitment to the dual goals of academic and athletics success, a strong love for this institution and a single-minded desire to lead our football program and inspire our fan base.”

“It has been a professional goal of mine to become a head coach since my dad introduced me to the game as a kid and I could not have found a more perfect place than Iowa State,” said the 42-year-old Rhoads. “I know how special Ames and ISU were to me during my first tenure and having the chance to return and lead this program reads like a Hollywood script. I want to express my most sincere appreciation to Dr. Geoffroy and Jamie (Pollard) for the opportunity.”

Rhoads coordinated the Pitt defense for eight seasons (2000-07) before moving to Auburn in the same role last season.

His resume includes a 2004 Big East Conference championship with the Panthers. Five of the defenses he coordinated ranked in the nation’s Top 30 for scoring and three in the NCAA’s Top 12 for fewest yards allowed. His aggressive philosophy allowed Pitt to score 10 defensive touchdowns from 2004-06.

His last two defenses (Auburn in 2008 and Pitt in 2007) ranked 15th nationally in scoring defense and fifth in total defense, respectively. The Sporting News named him the best defensive coordinator in the Big East Conference two years ago. His Panther teams led that league in scoring defense, total defense and pass efficiency defense once each during his tenure. One of the highlight games of his Pitt tenure was the 13-9 upset of No. 2-ranked West Virginia in 2007. The Mountaineers gained 183 total yards, 292 below their season average.

At the end of the 2005 season, Pitt ranked second nationally in pass defense, yielding just 152.82 yards per game, and sixth in pass efficiency defense with a 99.36 rating. During Pitt’s victorious Insight Bowl season in 2002, the unit played at its highest level in decades. The Panthers ranked among the nation’s top 25 in an impressive seven different categories and allowed their fewest points in a season since 1988 despite playing in a school-record 13 games.

In 2001, the Panthers gave up just 7.4 points and 182.6 yards heading into the Visit Florida Tangerine Bowl. The unit ranked among the nation’s top 30 in five different categories at season’s end. Additionally, Pitt finished with 38 quarterback sacks, its highest total since 1987.

Rhoads coordinated defenses for both Walt Harris and Dave Wannstedt at Pitt. He was approached by Auburn’s Tommy Tuberville to move to Auburn in 2002 after two spectacular seasons at Pitt but turned down the offer. Tuberville again offered Rhoads his top defensive coaching position prior to last fall and he accepted.

Rhoads familiarity with Iowa State goes back to his youth growing up in central Iowa but also includes a five-year stint as inside linebackers (1995) and secondary (1996-99) coach with the Cyclones. He was a member of Dan McCarney’s first staff at ISU.

His first full-time coaching stint was at Pacific (1992-94) where he climbed from position coach to defensive pass game coordinator in three years. Rhoads also had graduate assistantships at Ohio State (1991) under John Cooper and Utah State (1989-90) under Chuck Shelton.

“I have been blessed to learn from and work along side some great football minds,” Rhoads said. “I’ve taken pieces from all of them and formed my own coaching philosophies, leadership style and approach to strong player relations.”

Six of his former defensive backs have been drafted by the National Football League, including Pitt’s Darrelle Revis (the 14th overall pick by the Jets) in 2007. He has coached in six bowl games, including the 2005 Tostitos Fiesta Bowl with Pitt. Fourteen of his Panther defenders earned first-team All-Big East honors including H.B. Blades (the 2006 Big East Defensive Player of the Year) and Scott McKillop (the nation’s leading tackler in 2007).

“A great recruiter” is how national recruiting analyst Tom Lemming described the charismatic and highly energized Rhoads a couple of years ago. “He knows how to relate to kids and they respond to him.”

During his playing days, Rhoads earned special mention all-state honors as a safety at Ankeny High School. He was also class valedictorian. He lettered three seasons (1986-88) as a defensive back at Missouri Western.

Rhoads earned a bachelor’s degree in economics in 1989 at Missouri Western and was the recipient of the Chris Faros Scholarship, which honors the football team’s top senior student-athlete. Rhoads added a master’s degree from Utah State in 1991.

His father, Cecil, was a high school coach for more than three decades and has been inducted into the Iowa High School Football Coaches Hall of Fame. His mother, Mary, was a teacher and homemaker. Rhoads is the youngest of five children.

Paul and his wife, Vickie, a former basketball player at Missouri Western, have two boys (Jacob and Wyatt).

Rhoads Quick Facts

Wife: Vickie
Children: sons, Jacob and Wyatt
Born: Feb. 2, 1967, Ankeny, Iowa
Education: B.S., Missouri Western (1989) and M.E.D., Utah State (1991)

Coaching Experience
Auburn, defensive coordinator (2008)
Pitt, defensive coordinator (2000-07)
Iowa State, assistant coach (1995-99)
Pacific, assistant coach (1992-93), pass game coordinator (1994)
Ohio State, graduate assistant (1991)
Utah State, graduate assistant (1989-90)

Bowl Games
2005 Tostitos Fiesta Bowl
2003 Continental Tire Bowl
2002 Insight Bowl
2001 Tangerine Bowl
2000 Insight.com Bowl
1992 Hall of Fame Bowl