UConn Football tabs Pittsburgh's Ryan Manalac as Defensive Coordinator
UConn Football’s search for a defensive play caller has come to an end on Saturday, as Pittsburgh linebackers coach Ryan Manalac will join Jason Candle’s staff over to Storrs, according to a report from Pete Thamel.
The 40-year old Pickerington, Ohio Native will join the program as the full time Defensive Coordinator after spending the past five seasons as the Panthers linebackers coach.
Manalac was hired by Pittsburgh Head Coach Pat Narduzzi prior to the 2021 season, and over the years he’s turned into one of program’s top assistant coaches, consistently producing and developing top tier linebackers.
During his time at Pitt, Manalac developed SirVocea Dennis into a two time All-ACC linebacker and he became the Panthers first linebacker drafted in over a decade after being selected in the fifth round of the 2023 NFL Draft.On top of that, he is also credited with developing 2024 All-American linebacker Kyle Louis and two-time All-ACC linebacker Rasheem Biles.
Prior to this time at Pittsburgh, Manalac was the defensive coordinator at Bucknell for technically two seasons, as one of those years was cancelled due to COVID. However in 2019, his defense ranked first in the Patriot League in sacks (32), turnovers gained (14), and defensive touchdowns (4). They also led all of FCS with six defensive touchdowns and were second in the conference in opposing yards per game (319.7ypg).
Before that, Manalac spent time at Ohio Dominican, Valparaiso, and Michigan State. He also played linebacker at Cincinnati for four years and had a small cup of coffee in the NFL with the Buffalo Bills from 2009-10.
Stay tuned right here for more on Ryan Manalac being hired as UConn Football’s next Offensive Coordinator right here on the UConn Report!
Previous Coaching Experience…
- 2011-15: Michigan State (Ops. Asst.)
- 2016: Valparaiso (LB)
- 2017-18: Ohio Dominic (DC)
- 2019-20: Bucknell (DC)
- 2021-25: Pittsburgh (LB)
- 2026: UConn (DC)
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