Ole Miss analyst Michael Nysewander to be hired as Jacksonville State TEs coach

Jacksonville State is hiring Ole Miss analyst Michael Nysewander to be its new tight ends coach, according to On3’s Matt Zenitz.

The 30-year-old Nysewander has been on staff with the Rebels as an analyst since 2020.

He started his coaching career with Samford as a offensive/special teams quality control assistant before joining Lane Kiffin — who was his offensive coordinator at Alabama for two seasons — at Florida Atlantic. He started out on the offensive and special teams staff before moving to the role of assistant director of player development.

In 2019, he was the running backs coach for Samford.

With the Gamecocks, he will be coaching under head coach Rich Rodriguez, who is entering his second year at the program.

Jacksonville State finished the 2022 season with a 9-2 record and an ASUN Conference title. The Gamecocks will play this next season in Conference USA. It will be their first season at the FBS level.

Historically, the Jacksonville State program has been really strong. The team has 25 conference championships in its history and the 1992 NCAA Division II National Championship Game.

Over the past nine season, the Gamecocks have won seven conference titles.

In 2015, they made the NCAA FCS Championship Game against North Dakota State. Jacksonville State lost the game, 37-10.

Michael Nysewander played at Alabama

Michael Nysewander played his college football at Alabama from 2011-2015, where he was a walk-on and became a favorite among the team.

He had three catches for 40 yards and two touchdowns in his career, playing mostly on special teams and as an H-Back/tight end.

During his time with the Crimson Tide, Nysewander won three national championships.

“He’s just one of those throwback players to me,” Alabama head coach Nick Saban said during Nysewander’s time with the team. “You’ve got to love him. I get a smile on my face every time I talk about him. He’s just a tough grinder. He does a really good job for us on special teams and he’s a very productive fullback. He’s a fifth-year guy around here and he’s worked hard and it’s finally paying off for him.”

Lane Kiffin was the offensive coordinator for Alabama during Nysewander’s final two seasons with the program in 2014 and 2015.

After college, he signed with the Kansas City Chiefs as an undrafted free agent.

Nysewander is originally from Alabama and played his high school football for Hoover (Ala.) High.