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(3) Mike Zimmer
Current Position: Defensive Coordinator for the Cincinnati Bengals
Specialty: Defense
- Son of former NFL player Bill Zimmer.
- His first coaching job was as a Defensive Assistant at the University of Missouri from 1979-1980
- From 1981-1988, Zimmer coached at Weber State College. He was the Inside Linebackers Coach from '81-'84. and he was the Defensive Backs Coach from '85-'88 all while being the Defensive Coordinator from '83-88
- Zimmer was the Defensive Coordinator for the Washington State Cougars from 1989-1993. In 1993, the Cougars defense was ranked 8th in the nation in total defense and 2nd in the nation in rushing defense
- In 1994, was hired by the Dallas Cowboys as an Assistant Coach of the Nickel defense under Barry Switzer. He was promoted to Defensive Backs Coach in 1995 and held that position until he was promoted to Defensive Coordinator in 2000
- The 2003 Dallas Cowboys gave up the fewest yards in the NFL while running an aggressive 4-3 defense
- Zimmer survived several coaching changes in Dallas (Barry Switzer, Chan Gailey, Dave Campo, and Bill Parcells)
- In 2005, Zimmer implemented the 3-4 defense that was favored by Parcells
- In 2007, Zimmer agreed to join Bobby Petrino's staff as the Defensive Coordinator of the Atlanta Falcons. Zimmer is still mad about Petrino's NFL exit after just 13 games
- Was hired as the Defensive Coordinator of the Bengals in 2008
- In 2009, Zimmer earned NFL Assistant Coach of the Year honors from Pro Football Weekly/Pro Football Writers and CBSSports.com after leading the Bengals to the 4th ranked defense in the league
- In 2011, Bengals had the 7th ranked defense in the NFL. In 2012,Bengals finished with the 6th ranked defense in the NFL
- Cleveland Browns interviewed him for their Head Coaching vacancy before hiring Rob Chudzinski
(14) Dabo Swinney
Current Position: Head Coach at Clemson University
Specialty: Offense
- Started his coaching career as a Graduate Assistant for the Alabama Crimson Tide in 1993. In 1996, he was promoted to Wide Receivers and Tight Ends Coach. He coached their until after the 2000 season
- Swinney joined the Clemson coaching staff in 2003 as a Wide Receivers Coach and as an Assistant Head Coach under Tommy Bowden. He coached ACC-leading receivers
- He was named one of the Top 25 recruiters in the country in 2007 by Rivals.com
- Swinney was named the Interim Head Coach in 2008 after Tommy Bowden stepped down mid-season. He was chosen over Vic Koenning (former Wyoming Head Coach) and Brad Scott (former South Carolina Head Coach)
- Introduced the "Tiger Walk"
- Dabo had the "Interim" removed from his title after he defeating Boston College (they were on a 6-game losing streak to BC), and defeating South Carolina in their annual rivalry game making them Bowl eligible
- In 2009, Clemson finished 9-5, winning the Atlantic Division Title of the ACC and won their bowl game in Swinney's first full season as Head Coach. They finished the season ranked in the Top 25
- In 2011, Swinney lead the Tigers to a 10-3 record that culminated in an ACC Championship (their first since 1991), and a trip to the Orange Bowl (their first major bowl appearance since 1981)
- Swinney won the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Award which honors a coach whose team excels on the field, in the classroom and in the community
- In 2012, Dabo lead the Tigers to their first 11-win season since 1981 and capped off the year upsetting #8 LSU in the Chik-fil-A Bowl. They finished 9th in the Coaches Poll
- In 2013, Swinney guided the Tigers to their 3rd 10 win season in a row (first time since 1989). The completion of the season marked 31 wins for Swinney, the most ever in that span in Clemson Football history
- The Tigers received their 2nd Major Bowl invitation under Swinney against Ohio State in the Orange Bowl 2014
Feel free to add any additional information/stories about either candidate in the comments section and it may be added to their bio.