Who is Scottie Hazelton? All about Wake Forest's new defensive coordinator from Texas

The Wake Forest Demon Deacons named Scottie Hazelton as their new defensive coordinator this morning. Hazelton spent this season as a special assistant to Texas Longhorns’ head coach Steve Sarkisian.

Hazelton will be joining Jake Dickert’s staff in Winston-Salem. Dickert was named head coach on Dec. 18 after Dave Clawson stepped down. The Deacons finished 2024 with a 4-8 record.

“This is a program with a clear vision and a deep commitment to excellence, and I’m excited to contribute to its growth. Coach Dickert’s leadership and the culture he is just at the beginning of building will be truly special,” Hazelton said in a press release.

Wake Forest’s gain might come at the expense of the Longhorns, as Hazelton joined the Demon Deacons’ staff despite Texas advancing to the College Football Playoff Semifinals on New Year’s Day.

Texas will face the high-powered Ohio State offense at the Cotton Bowl Classic on Jan. 10 for a spot in the National Championship Game.

Scottie Hazelton has 29 years of college coaching experience. Before joining Sarkisian’s staff in Texas for the 2024 season, he spent three years at Michigan State, where he was a defensive coordinator/linebackers coach. The coach held the same position at Kansas State in 2019.

In 2017, he joined the Wyoming Cowboys where he was defensive coordinator for three seasons. He also worked with the NFL's Jacksonville Jaguars for three years, working on Gus Bradley's defensive staff. He met Bradley and Bob Babich, both former NFL defensive coordinators while working at Fargo in 2000.

The former Fort Lewis College player is well-regarded as a defensive coach in college football. He usually works with linebackers and has coached players who later went to the NFL like Logan Wilson and Chase Muma.

Hazelton has worked with Jake Dickert before. They were part of the defensive staff at North Dakota State from 2008 to 2010. Before taking the Wake Forest job, Dickert had a 23-20 record at Washington State. The Cougars made it to the Holiday Bowl in San Diego, where they lost to the Syracuse Orange 52-35.

Scottie Hazelton has a tough task in Winston-Salem

Scottie Hazelton spent four years at Michigan State before joining the Texas staff this season. - Source: Imagn

Scottie Hazelton will face a tall order at Wake Forest. He will be tasked with turning around a defense that was among the bottom units in college football. Wake Forest finished 119th in total defense and 115th in points allowed per game.

Wake Forest's secondary battled all season, allowing 289.3 passing yards per game finishing No. 131 in the nation. They allowed over 30 points in three of the final four games of their season.

He's expected to inherit an experienced roster with seven senior starters on the defensive side.

The Demon Deacons will look to get back into the postseason after back-to-back 4-8 seasons. Wake Forest made seven straight bowl trips before the two-season slide.