Mike Hankwitz had a really remarkable run as the defensive coordinator at Northwestern, capping his career with a bowl game victory that marked his 400th win as a longtime college assistant that spanned 51 years.
His retirement left Pat Fitzgerald with some significant shoes to fill on the Evanston campus, and after a thorough search, reports share that Fitz has found his guy.
Adam Rittenberg tweets that Raiders defensive backs coach Jim O'Neil is heading to Northwestern as the team's new defensive coordinator.
FootballScoop can confirm the hire.
O'Neil has a history with the program dating back to his days as a graduate assistant working with the defensive backs during the 2003 and 2004 seasons.
He went on to become the defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach at Towson, and came back to the major college level at Eastern Michigan as the recruiting coordinator and safeties coach.
In 2009 he took a quality control position with the Jets, and has been in the league ever since, including stints as the defensive coordinator for the Browns (2014-15) and 49ers (2016).
Stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest.