FootballScoop is proud to announce that Jimmy Rogers (South Dakota State) is the 2022 FootballScoop FCS Coordinator of the Year, presented by AstroTurf as selected by prior winners.
Heading into Sunday's FCS National Championship, opponents average 15.4 points per game against South Dakota State, the third-lowest total nationally. And looking at the numbers, it makes one wonder how they even get to 15.
For starters, South Dakota State's run defense is the stingiest in FCS. Over 428 carries, opponents have traveled 1,162 yards and scored 12 touchdowns -- per carry (2.71) and per game (83.0) averages that both lead the nation.
Opponents hardly fared better through the air. The Jackrabbits have defended 393 passes, permitting 220 completions (56 percent) for 2,529 yards (6.44 per attempt) with 13 touchdowns against 16 interceptions. SDSU's 112.81 rating places them seventh nationally, and their 180.6 yards per game allowed are 12th in FCS.
Overall, 821 plays defended netted foes just 3,691 yards -- 4.50 per play (third) and 263.6 per game (second). Twenty-five of those 821 plays found the end zone, one in every 32.8 snaps.
Unsurprisingly, South Dakota State has also excelled in specialty situations. The Jackrabbits have yielded 65 conversions on 193 third downs (33.7 percent, 11th) and 13 touchdowns in 28 red zone penetrations.
Add it all up and you get a defense that defends a hair over two touchdowns per game. Five opponents failed to crack the double-digit mark, including Iowa, who was held without a touchdown in a 7-3 Hawkeyes win to open the season. South Dakota scored three, Indiana State and Illinois State seven, and Delaware six in an FCS playoff game. The FCS quarterfinals saw undefeated Holy Cross (38.8 points per game against everyone else) held to a season-low 21 and Montana State (44.8 points per game, including 28 against FBS Top 15 Oregon State) limited to a season-worst 18.
In fact, South Dakota State limited all four FCS playoffs opponents to their lowest scoring outputs of the season. SDSU held FCS National Championship foe North Dakota State to a season-low 21 in the Jackrabbits' Oct. 15 win earlier this season.
Defensive tackle Caleb Sanders was a consensus First Team All-American. Linebacker Adam Bock, lineman Reece Winkleman, and defensive back DyShawn Gales joined Sanders on the All-Missouri Valley Football Conference First Team, while linebacker Jason Freeman and defensive back Dalys Beanum earned Honorable Mention All-MVFC.
A former Jackrabbit standout himself, Rogers led the Great West Football Conference in tackles in 2007 and has coached SDSU's linebackers since 2013. Rogers joined the coaching staff as a graduate assistant following his playing career, and spent 2012 and the spring of 2013 as a GA at Florida Atlantic, coaching on both sides of the ball.
Rogers is also South Dakota State's assistant head coach.
The FootballScoop Coaches of the Year awards presented by AstroTurf are the only set of awards that recognize the most outstanding position coaches in college football. The finalists (Kevin Decker [Fordham], Taylor Housewright [Montana State], Dennis Thurman [Jackson State], Steve Verbit [Princeton] and Rogers) were selected based off of nominations by coaches, athletic directors, and athletic department personnel. The prior winners selected this year's winner.
Previous winners of the FCS Coordinator of the Year award are Heishman Northern (Prairie View A&M, 2008), Bob Shoop (William & Mary, 2009), Nick Rapone (Delaware, 2010), Scott Stoker (Sam Houston State, 2011), Chris Klieman (North Dakota State, 2012), Sterlin Gilbert (Eastern Illinois, 2013), Don Bailey (Idaho State, 2014), Lyle Hemphill (Stony Brook, 2015), Phil Longo (Sam Houston State, 2016), Bob Trott (James Madison, 2017), Matt Entz (North Dakota State, 2018), Shane Montgomery (James Madison, 2019), Ryan Carty (Sam Houston, 2020), and David Braun (North Dakota State, 2021).
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