Washington Huskies’ Special Teams Coordinator and EDGEs Coach Eric Schmidt has taken the defensive coordinator position for San Diego State.
Under Schmidt Special Teams rose to an elite level being ranked 5th in the country in 2023 by Pro Football Focus.
Something special … 💯☔️#USvsUS pic.twitter.com/eqcNrkqFwx
— Washington Football (@UW_Football) December 12, 2023
Next in line for the position could be Schmidt’s understudy, Nick Brautigam, a current Washington quality control. The 2009 Wahlert grad has served as a defensive quality control coach the past two seasons for the University of Washington football team. Schmidt will stay on with the UW through the College Football Playoffs.
First up, January 1 Washington will play Texas in the Sugar Bowl. The winner of the Sugar Bowl will play either Michigan or Alabama for the national championship a week later in Houston, Texas.
Brautigam, has coaching in his blood as the son of former University of Dubuque head football coach Vince Brautigam. He joined the Huskies after spending three seasons as defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at Montana Tech.
He worked there under then-head coach and current Washington co-defensive coordinator Chuck Morrell with the Orediggers.
He coached edge defenders under Morrell and has had a big role with helping with that position group for the Huskies the past two years.
With Schmidt, they helped put the “Special” in Special Teams, nicknaming the position group Special Forces.
Early in the season Schmidt tinkered with Germie Bernard at kick returner where Bernard came within a few whiskers of breaking a touchdown. When Bernard was slowed by injury he found a field-flipping Daniyel Ngata on kickoffs.
In 8 games Ngata returned 16 kicks for 380 yards. He averaged nearly 24 yards a pop with a long of 41 yards.
With Bernard down against Cal, Rome Odunze returned a punt for a touchdown.
On kick coverage teams who chose to return kicks were often greeted by Carson Bruener around the 20. Punts by Washington punters the past two years rarely returned the ball. Through the first 6 games of the season the UW punt coverage gave up 1 yard.
For Washington’s edge position he turned Bralen Trice into an All-American and helped to resurrect Zion Tupuola-Fetui’s career.
No heir has been named for Schmidt, but it seems logical that Kalen DeBoer and Morrell will look to promote from within.
