Sports

Extras

Photos

Mike Haywood, Miami football coachClick to enlarge

OXFORD — Mike Haywood said he intends to build Miami University football into a program in which he and his players will expect "to win on a consistent basis, not just once in a while."

Haywood, 44, Notre Dame's offensive coordinator and running backs coach, was named earlier today, Dec. 23, as Miami's first African-American head football coach.

Haywood, who has experience coaching in the Mid-American Conference, is in Honolulu, Hawaii preparing for Notre Dame's Hawaii Bowl game against the host school Wednesday, Dec. 24.

He will be introduced locally on Tuesday, Dec. 30 at Miami's new Voice of America Learning Center in West Chester Twp.

Haywood becomes the sixth African-American head coach among the nation's 119 BSC football programs and the 33rd coach in Miami history.

Haywood, who has coached in the MAC at Ohio University and Ball State, said he has been aware of Miami's Cradle of Coaches tradition for about 25 years.

"Ara Parseghian, Bill Mallory, Jim Tressel ... What a great tradition. It's a great opportunity and I'm anxious to get started right away," Haywood said by phone late Tuesday afternoon.

Haywood noted that Miami has a fan and alumni base that is nationwide and added that "Ohio is a great state for high football ... We are looking forward to developing a relationship with the high school coaches and to recruit their student-athletes to Miami."

Miami Director of Athletics Brad Bates said the person with the highest expectations for Haywood is Haywood himself.

"He has a clear vision for Miami football to be exceptional and win championships," Bates said.

Haywood replaces Shane Montgomery, who resigned last month after the RedHawks posted a 2-10 record for the second time in three years. Montgomery was 17-31 overall in his four seasons as Miami head coach.

Haywood is in his 21st year as a college coach and in 2005, his first season at Notre Dame, he was named NCAA Division I-A Assistant Coach of the Year by the American Football Coaches Association.

Prior to his stint at Notre Dame, Haywood spent two seasons at Texas (2003-04) as running backs coach and co-special teams coordinator, and in 2004 he was named recruiting coordinator.

Haywood began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Minnesota in 1988. He spent two seasons at Army (1989-90) as defensive backs coach and special teams assistant.

He worked the next four years in the MAC, first at Ohio University (1991-92) as outside linebackers coach and special teams assistant, and then Ball State (1993-94) as running backs and receivers coach and co-special teams coordinator.

Haywood's next eight years were spent at LSU (1995-2002). The Tigers appeared in six bowl games during that span while Haywood coached running backs and spent five years as special teams coordinator.

Haywood is a 1986 graduate of Notre Dame who played flanker and then cornerback for the Fighting Irish.

He reportedly interviewed for the head coaching vacancy at Washington earlier this year and was a finalist last year for the same position at Minnesota.

Miami President Dr. David Hodge said in a press release, "We are very excited to have Mike join the Miami family. His extraordinary experience with some of the most successful football programs in the country makes him an outstanding choice.

"He is passionate about the future of our program and has a well-thought out plan to assure success both on and off the field," Dr. Hodge said. "Mike's values align exceptionally well with Miami and he is a great fit for our institution."