KALAMAZOO, Mich. - WMU Football welcomes a pair of new coaches to the staff and announces the promotion of Rich Nagy to the position of defensive coordinator along with other staff changes.
Head coach Bill Cubit welcomes Tim McGarigle and Thad Ward to the staff for 2012. McGarigle will coach the linebackers, a position left vacant when Dave Cohen accepted a position at Rutgers, and Ward will coach the Bronco wide receivers, replacing Josh Gattis who is now at Vanderbilt.
Along with the two additions, Cubit announced that Nagy will move into the role of defensive coordinator in 2012 after serving as the safeties coach for the Broncos over the past two seasons. Lou Esposito, who remains the defensive line coach and recruiting coordinator, is now also the assistant head coach for the defense, while Amp Campbell will coach the entire secondary and serve as the defensive passing game coordinator.
Offensively, A.J. Ricker will add run game coordintor to his list of duties, while continuing to coach the offensive line and Ryan Cubit will enter 2012 as the co-offensive coordinator of WMU's high-powered attack.
McGarigle comes to Western Michigan has the college games greatest tackler, holding the FBS career record at 545 total tackles during his time as a Northwestern Wildcat. He was semifinalist for both the Dick Butkus and Chuck Bednarik Awards in 2005, while earning All-Big Ten honors in 2004 and 2005.
The Chicago native was drafted in the seventh round of the 2006 NFL Draft by the St. Louis Rams and played three seasons. During that time he was named NFL Special Teams Player of the Week against the Arizona Cardinals on Oct. 7, 2007 and was named the team's Iron Man following the 2007 off-season for superior achievement and dedication during team workouts. McGarigle also played two seasons in the United Football League for the Florida Tuskers.
McGarigle, a 2006 Northwestern graduate with a bachelors in communications studies, returned to his alma mater in 2011 and served as the defensive quality control assistant and graduate assistant for the Wildcats as he pursued his masters in sports administration. He assisted in all phases of coaching the Northwestern linebackers as well as aided the special teams units.
Ward joins the Broncos after building his resume at nearly every level of the game. The 2001 Central Florida graduate began his coaching career as a graduate assistant and safeties coach at Florida A&M (2002). From 2003-05 he was the passing game coordinator, wide receivers, defensive backs and special teams coordinator at Tallahassee Rickards High School as well as the DB coach and recruiting coordinator at Independence Community College in 2005.
During the summer of 2005, Ward served as a graduate assistant at Illinois before joining Western Illinois as the running backs coach. There he spent six seasons helping build an offense that would rank second in the FCS in points per game (35.6) and third in yards per game (457.23) during the 2010 campaign. He also helped Walter Camp All-American Herb Donaldson to Missouri Valley Offensive Player of the Year and Walter Payton finalist in 2008.
During his time at Western Illinois, Ward participated in the NCAA Football Coaches Academy in May of 2009 as well as the NFL's Minority Internship Program with the Baltimore Ravens from May to August of the same year.
Ward joined Gardner-Webb in 2011 as the passing game coordinator and wide receivers coach. He helped James Perry become the all-time receptions leader in the Big South Conference.
The spring football season gets under way on March 16. The 2012 campaign opens with the Broncos traveling to Illinois on Sept. 1.
