Randy Bates

Randy Bates (born July 3, 1960) is an American football coach who is currently the defensive coordinator for the Pittsburgh Panthers.

Early life

A retired Naval lieutenant, Bates received a bachelor's degree in physical education from Ohio State in 1983 and earned a master's degree in education from Miami University in 1985.

Coaching career

In 1982, Bates began his coaching career at Division III Muskingum College. From there he spent the 1983 season as a graduate assistant at Miami University. From 1984 to 1988 he served as defensive coordinator and recruiting coordinator for the Saint Joseph's College Pumas. He spent the next three seasons coaching linebackers and defensive backs for the Navy Midshipmen. Bates coached linebackers at New Hampshire from 1992 to 1997.

In 1998 and 1999, Bates was the linebackers coach and recruiting coordinator at Kent State. While with the Golden Flashes, he coached future NFL Defensive Player of the Year James Harrison.

From 2000 to 2005, Bates spent six seasons at Louisiana Tech under head coach Jack Bicknell Jr.. He coached nearly every defensive positional group while with the Bulldogs before ascending to defensive coordinator for his final season, replacing John Lovett. Under Bates, the Louisiana Tech defense forced 31 turnovers to lead the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) and rank ninth nationally. The Bulldogs surrendered their fewest points since 1994 and finished among the WAC's top three teams in rushing defense, pass defense, total defense and scoring defense.

From 2006 to 2017, Bates spent 12 seasons coaching linebackers for the Northwestern Wildcats and head coach Pat Fitzgerald. Bates' linebacker unit helped the No. 17 Wildcats post a 10-3 record in 2017, which included a win over the Kentucky Wildcats in the Music City Bowl. He coached back-to-back All-America linebackers, in Anthony Walker Jr. and Paddy Fisher. Walker Jr., who was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts, was a consensus All-Big Ten selection who earned All-America accolades from the Associated Press and Sports Illustrated. Fisher was named a 2017 Freshman All-American by the Football Writers Association of America and honored as the Big Ten Network's Defensive Freshman of the Year.

On January 13, 2018, Bates was hired by the Pittsburgh Panthers and head coach Pat Narduzzi as the defensive coordinator, a position left vacant by Josh Conklin.