Oklahoma head football coach Brent Venables announced the hirings of Miguel Chavis, Brandon Hall and Jerry Schmidt to the OU coaching staff.
Chavis joins OU as the Sooners’ new defensive ends coach, Hall is Oklahoma’s new safeties coach and Schmidt returns to OU as director of sports enhancement and strength and conditioning.
Chavis served in a defensive player development role over the past five seasons at Clemson. During his tenure, Chavis helped develop 2019 NFL Draft picks Clelin Ferrell, Christian Wilkins, Dexter Lawrence and Austin Bryant.
Ferrell (No. 4 overall), Wilkins (No. 13 overall) and Lawrence (No. 17 overall) were each first-round NFL Draft selections, while Bryant was taken in the fourth round.
“Miguel is a great story. He’s a former player at Clemson who was recruited by Coach (Dabo) Swinney and went on to play in the NFL, but he’d probably be the first to tell you he thought he would play there a lot longer. After going back to school, getting his degree and becoming an ordained minister, he found his calling in coaching. He was a real blessing to me at Clemson in our room as we built that program – on defense, in particular.
“He’s very passionate, he’s intense, players love him. He’s very gifted as a coach, as a communicator, teacher and mentor. And he’s high on life. We have a lot of similarities, even in our journeys. These players are really fortunate with what they’re getting. He’s genuine and authentic and will connect with them. He’s got a unique way of pulling the best out of people – adults and young people alike. He’ll be a dynamic recruiter and a tenacious coach who will demand perfection. But he leads with optimism and love. That’s what I love about him,” Venables said of Chavis.
Chavis described Oklahoma as a “dream job” and said he and his family are excited for the opportunity to come to OU.
“As a football fan, I’ve always looked at about four schools as the cream of the crop – Clemson, OU, Alabama and Ohio State. All I knew about OU is I thought they were at the top of college football and that my mentor Brent Venables came from there. This is what I’ve been preparing for, even back to my playing days at Clemson. I’ve always loved coaching – always wanted to know the ‘why’ behind what we were doing, loved preparing in the NFL and appreciated the different schemes and philosophies. The past five years I’ve been attending the Brent Venables school of defense, and I was getting a Ph. D.
“I’m excited to be with the guys and develop them on and off the field. That’s my passion – to develop defensive ends into great players, but also into great men, great husbands, fathers and neighbors. And I get to do that through football. The fan base here is amazing and they have great energy. And that’s perfect because I’m a passionate guy, an energy guy who will also bring knowledge, toughness and excitement. I can’t wait. My biggest message to our current players is, ‘You didn’t choose me, but I chose you. I chose to be here and this is my dream job. And I’m excited and I’m ready,” Chavis said.