University of Memphis Athletics
Kevin Clune Joins Tiger Football Staff
Mar 27, 2018 | Football
Joins staff as Senior Defensive Assistant as two seasons at Oregon State as defensive coordinator.
MEMPHIS – Kevin Clune, the former defensive coordinator and inside linebackers coach at Oregon State, has joined the Memphis football staff as a Senior Defensive Assistant, Head Coach Mike Norvell announced Tuesday.
Clune spent the 2016 and 2017 seasons at Oregon State as the defensive coordinator, following a season at Utah State. His final season at Utah State was one of two stops for Clune with the Aggies, as he helped the program to four bowl appearances and the 2012 Western Athletic Conference (WAC) championship.
A former player at Fullerton Junior College and the University of San Diego, Clune moved to the coaching ranks at Palma (Calif.) High School, serving as the defensive line and receivers coach. He then spent two seasons at Dos Pueblos (Calif.) High School as the linebackers coach and returned to his juco alma mater in 1996 as the special teams coordinator and linebackers coach. After four seasons at Fullerton, Clune joined the staff at Occidental College in 2000 as a defensive line coach, and then served at Utah for two years as a graduate assistant coach (2001-02). While at Utah, Clune coached his first bowl-bound team, as the Utes earned a spot in the 2001 Vegas Bowl, defeating USC, 10-6.
Clune, a native of Carmel, California, continued to spend time in Utah, moving to Southern Utah for his first stint as a defensive coordinator in 2003-04. In Cedar City, he guided a pair of linebackers to All-America honors as Nick DiPadova and Mazrquest Harris earned second and third team honors, respectively. In 2005, Clune became the defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at Weber State in Ogden, Utah. After two seasons in that role, he added assistant head coach duties in 2008, helping Weber State to a Big Sky co-championship.
That championship season was followed up by Clune's first stop at Utah State, working as a linebackers coach (2009-13). Freshman linebacker Kyle Fackrell was named all-conference and a freshman All-American, while Bobby Wagner was named the 2011 WAC Defensive Player of the Year and later was drafted in the second round of the NFL Draft by Seattle. Wagner recently completed his sixth year in Seattle with 778 total career tackles, 15.5 sacks, eight interceptions and five fumble recoveries.
Utah State (USU) appeared in back-to-back Famous Idaho Potato Bowls (2011 and 2012). After winning the WAC in 2012, USU would make it to the Poinsettia Bowl in 2013, defeating Northern Illinois, 21-14, in Clune's last year in his inaugural stop at USU.
After a one-year hiatus in Hawai'i, where he also served as defensive coordinator, Clune returned to Utah State to serve as the Aggies' defensive coordinator, helping guide linebacker Kyler Fackrell to a semifinalist spot on the Butkus Award list. Fellow linebacker Nick Vigil ranked sixth in the NCAA that same season in tackles per game (11.1), and the Aggies defense ranked 17th nationally in total defense (332.5/ypg), 13th in passing yards allowed (180.5) and 21st in third-down percentage (33.8 percent). The Aggies again returned to the Idaho Famous Potato Bowl in 2015, and the Aggies ranked in the top four in the Mountain West in 12 defensive categories.
In January of 2016, Clune was named the defensive coordinator and inside linebackers coach at Oregon State. His 2016 defense allowed 52.3 yards per game fewer than the previous season and ranked fourth in the Pac-12 in pass defense (211.2 ypg) and fifth in pass efficiency defense, a seven-spot improvement from the previous year. In 2017, senior linebacker Manase Hungalu and freshman safety David Morris earned Pac-12 honorable mention honors. Hungalu ranked fifth in the Pac -12 with 97 tackles and was named one of five finalists for the Polynesian College Football Player of the Year.
Memphis football heads into its second week of spring camp this week, as the Tigers hold practices six, seven and eight. For practice number 10, the Tigers will travel to Nashville to hold a practice session at Brentwood Academy. The spring session culminates with a Friday, April 13th scrimmage, dubbed Friday Night Stripes, at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium. Tiger Walk for the spring game begins at 6 p.m. and the on-field activities begin at 7 p.m.
Season tickets and parking passes for the upcoming 2018 season, which includes seven home dates, are on sale now at www.GoTigersGoTix.com.
Clune spent the 2016 and 2017 seasons at Oregon State as the defensive coordinator, following a season at Utah State. His final season at Utah State was one of two stops for Clune with the Aggies, as he helped the program to four bowl appearances and the 2012 Western Athletic Conference (WAC) championship.
A former player at Fullerton Junior College and the University of San Diego, Clune moved to the coaching ranks at Palma (Calif.) High School, serving as the defensive line and receivers coach. He then spent two seasons at Dos Pueblos (Calif.) High School as the linebackers coach and returned to his juco alma mater in 1996 as the special teams coordinator and linebackers coach. After four seasons at Fullerton, Clune joined the staff at Occidental College in 2000 as a defensive line coach, and then served at Utah for two years as a graduate assistant coach (2001-02). While at Utah, Clune coached his first bowl-bound team, as the Utes earned a spot in the 2001 Vegas Bowl, defeating USC, 10-6.
Clune, a native of Carmel, California, continued to spend time in Utah, moving to Southern Utah for his first stint as a defensive coordinator in 2003-04. In Cedar City, he guided a pair of linebackers to All-America honors as Nick DiPadova and Mazrquest Harris earned second and third team honors, respectively. In 2005, Clune became the defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at Weber State in Ogden, Utah. After two seasons in that role, he added assistant head coach duties in 2008, helping Weber State to a Big Sky co-championship.
That championship season was followed up by Clune's first stop at Utah State, working as a linebackers coach (2009-13). Freshman linebacker Kyle Fackrell was named all-conference and a freshman All-American, while Bobby Wagner was named the 2011 WAC Defensive Player of the Year and later was drafted in the second round of the NFL Draft by Seattle. Wagner recently completed his sixth year in Seattle with 778 total career tackles, 15.5 sacks, eight interceptions and five fumble recoveries.
Utah State (USU) appeared in back-to-back Famous Idaho Potato Bowls (2011 and 2012). After winning the WAC in 2012, USU would make it to the Poinsettia Bowl in 2013, defeating Northern Illinois, 21-14, in Clune's last year in his inaugural stop at USU.
After a one-year hiatus in Hawai'i, where he also served as defensive coordinator, Clune returned to Utah State to serve as the Aggies' defensive coordinator, helping guide linebacker Kyler Fackrell to a semifinalist spot on the Butkus Award list. Fellow linebacker Nick Vigil ranked sixth in the NCAA that same season in tackles per game (11.1), and the Aggies defense ranked 17th nationally in total defense (332.5/ypg), 13th in passing yards allowed (180.5) and 21st in third-down percentage (33.8 percent). The Aggies again returned to the Idaho Famous Potato Bowl in 2015, and the Aggies ranked in the top four in the Mountain West in 12 defensive categories.
In January of 2016, Clune was named the defensive coordinator and inside linebackers coach at Oregon State. His 2016 defense allowed 52.3 yards per game fewer than the previous season and ranked fourth in the Pac-12 in pass defense (211.2 ypg) and fifth in pass efficiency defense, a seven-spot improvement from the previous year. In 2017, senior linebacker Manase Hungalu and freshman safety David Morris earned Pac-12 honorable mention honors. Hungalu ranked fifth in the Pac -12 with 97 tackles and was named one of five finalists for the Polynesian College Football Player of the Year.
Memphis football heads into its second week of spring camp this week, as the Tigers hold practices six, seven and eight. For practice number 10, the Tigers will travel to Nashville to hold a practice session at Brentwood Academy. The spring session culminates with a Friday, April 13th scrimmage, dubbed Friday Night Stripes, at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium. Tiger Walk for the spring game begins at 6 p.m. and the on-field activities begin at 7 p.m.
Season tickets and parking passes for the upcoming 2018 season, which includes seven home dates, are on sale now at www.GoTigersGoTix.com.
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