Defensive coordinator Bob Shoop returns for his second year with the Commodores after guiding one of the NCAA's most impressive defensive turnarounds in 2011.
The Vanderbilt coordinator and safeties coach directed the 2011 unit to staggering levels of improvement. Under Shoop's guidance, the Commodore defense ranked ninth in the NCAA in pass defense efficiency and 18th in total defense. It also ranked among the nation's top units in total interceptions, points allowed and rush defense.
A 24-year veteran in the coaching ranks, Shoop joined James Franklin in Nashville following a superb four-year tenure as defensive coordinator at William & Mary where the one-time Columbia head coach guided a remarkable transformation of the Tribe defense.
Shoop's 2011 unit at Vanderbilt was paced by All-America defensive back Casey Hayward, who tied the team career record with 15 interceptions, and senior linebacker Chris Marve, who earned All-SEC honors for the third straight year and concluded his career among the team's Top Ten career tacklers.
What made Shoop's coaching achievements in Nashville even more impressive was how quickly he improved the Commodore defense. The one-year difference was staggering: in 2010, the Commodores ranked 10th or worse among SEC teams in virtually every defensive statistic; in 2011, Vanderbilt ranked seventh or better in 12 of 13 top defensive statistical categories. The 2011 Commodore defense allowed 9.6 fewer points and 96.4 less yards than a year earlier.
Shoop's unit also nabbed 19 interceptions, 10 more than in 2010, helping the Commodores to a plus-5 improvement in turnover margin.
Shoop's 2011 defense limited three BCS-level teams - Ole Miss, Kentucky and Wake Forest - to eight points or less. The unit also held five opponents to under 100 rushing yards.
At William & Mary, Shoop's defenses ranked among the top defenses in NCAA FCS football. In 2009, W&M ended the year first nationally in rush defense (61.1 ypg) and second in scoring defense (12.1 ppg.). The performance
helped earn Shoop the 2009 FootballScoop NCAA FCS Coordinator of the Year Award. He was also nominated for FootballScoop's 2011 Defensive Back Coach of the Year Award after his first season at Vanderbilt.
Shoop's résumé spans two decades, including three stints as a defensive coordinator (Yale, 1994-96; Villanova, 1997; William & Mary, 2007-10) and three years as the head coach at Columbia (2003-05).
Before becoming Columbia's head coach, Shoop served as secondary coach at Boston College from 1999-2002.
As an assistant, Shoop has been on the winning sideline of three classic college rivalries: Army-Navy, Harvard-Yale and Boston College-Notre Dame.
Shoop played collegiate football at Yale. He earned honorable mention
All-Ivy accolades in 1987 as a receiver and was recognized with Yale Football's prestigious Robert Gardner Anderson Memorial Award for team spirit, dedication and leadership. He also earned four letters in baseball. A native of Oakmont, Pa., Shoop was inducted into the Allegheny-Kiski Valley Sports Hall of Fame.
Shoop and his wife, Maura, have two children, Tyler and Jay. Shoop's brother, John, is regarded as a top offensive mind and served as offensive coordinator at the University of North Carolina last year.
The Shoop File Personal Date of Birth: Aug. 18, 1966 Hometown: Oakmont, Pa. Alma Mater: Yale (1988) Education: Bachelor of Arts, economics, Yale (1988) Family: wife, Maura; two sons, Tyler and Jay
Shoop's Coaching Career
2011-current - Vanderbilt (defensive coordinator/safeties)
2007-10 - William & Mary (defensive coordinator, secondary) 2006 - University of Massachusetts (defensive backs) 2003-05 - Columbia (head coach) 1999-2002 - Boston College (defensive secondary) 1998 - Army (defensive secondary) 1997 - Villanova (defensive coordinator) 1994-96 - Yale (defensive coordinator) 1991-93 - Northeastern (defensive backs) 1990 - Virginia (graduate assistant) 1989 - Yale (graduate assistant)
