Bryant Haines

Biography

A two-time Broyles Award semifinalist, Bryant Haines moves into his second season as defensive coordinator/linebackers coach at Indiana and his 11th season with Curt Cignetti. A member of all four of Cignetti’s head coaching staffs, Haines has been the coordinator or co-coordinator of the defense for the last six seasons. The former collegiate linebacker at Ball State has coached the linebackers for nine straight campaigns after two seasons at IUP as the defensive line/strength and conditioning coach. After building one of the nation’s elite defenses at JMU, Haines didn’t skip a beat in his first season at Indiana. His units led the nation in rushing defense (80.2), finished No. 2 in total defense (256.34) and No. 10 in passing yards allowed (176.1). On its way to a College Football Playoff berth, Haines’ defense set program-best marks for fewest games allowing 100-yards rushing (8), lowest scoring average (15.6) and fewest yards rushing (1,043) and yards of total offense (3,332) in a season. A trio of defenders earned All-America honors, led by first-team All-American linebacker Aiden Fisher. A first-team All-Big Ten pick, Fisher finished the season tied for No. 16 on the IU single-season charts with 118 tackles. All-American defensive lineman Mikail Kamara finished No. 13 nationally in sacks per game, while D’Angelo Ponds was an All-America honoree at defensive back. In each of his first four seasons at JMU (2019-23), the Dukes ranked top 10 nationally in total defense. Eac