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Michigan football names J.B. Brown as special teams coordinator

clayton-sayfieby: Clayton Sayfie02/02/24CSayf23
J.B. Brown
(Photo courtesy Michigan Photography / MGoBlue.com)

New Michigan Wolverines football head coach Sherrone Moore has now made four on-field coaching staff hires Friday, the most recent being the promotion of J.B. Brown from special teams analyst to special teams coordinator. Michigan’s special teams coordinator and safeties coach, Jay Harbaugh, is expected to depart for the Los Angeles Chargers.

Earlier in the day, Moore added offensive coordinator duties for quarterbacks coach Kirk Campbell and elevated Grant Newsome from tight ends to offensive line coach. Per TheWolverine.com’s Chris Balas, Moore is also expected to hire Steve Casula as tight ends coach.

Brown has been an analyst on the Michigan staff since 2021.

“Coach Brown has an outstanding mind for special teams and knows how we want to attack that phase of the game,” said Moore in a statement. “He has been a key factor in our special teams success and he will help us continue to be a leader in this important aspect of the game. I am glad to keep J.B. his wife Jessica and their family here in Ann Arbor and part of the Michigan Football program.”

“I am excited for this opportunity and grateful to Coach Moore,” said Brown. “Having been in meetings and at practice the last three seasons, I know how we want to run our special teams units and I will ensure we are an aggressive group capable of making plays that set up our offense and defense for success. I cannot wait to get working more actively with our players and to get to work for an outstanding set of spring practices.”

Brown began his coaching career as a graduate assistant, spending two seasons at the University of Kansas (2015-16) and two at the University of Houston (2017-18). He was special teams coordinator at Texas Southeern for two campaigns (2019-20), helping the Tigers rank seventh in the FCS in punt return defense in both seasons and eighth in net punting in 2020.

A Texas native, Brown has assisted a Michigan special teams unit that has ranked third, second and 28th in special teams FEI, an opponent-adjusted efficiency rating system. U-M has ranked second, third, and seventh in special teams SP+ in that same stretch.

According to Michigan’s press release, “Brown has helped develop the plan of attack in the kicking and kick coverage phases. The kickoff defense unit ranked first nationally in 2021 (12.4 yards per return attempt), 26th in 2022 (17.6), and 18th in 2023 (16.53), and U-M also has been top-25 in net punting twice (fifth, 2021; 22nd, 2023). Opponents have returned just 20 percent of all punt attempts against U-M since 2021 (28 returns on 140 punts). The Wolverines also have blocked four punts and two field goals in the last three seasons.”

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