Football | January 22, 2019

KALAMAZOO, Mich.- Western Michigan head football coach Tim Lester has completed his coaching staff with the hiring of Joe Palcic (Pal-sick) as special teams coordinator. Palcic comes to Western Michigan from Miami (Ohio), where he spent the last five seasons, including the 2018 season as the RedHawks' special teams coordinator.
 
Palcic will fill WMU's final assistant coaching position and will be the first special teams only coach in the Lester era at Western Michigan. Earlier this month, Western Michigan announced its other staff changes, which included Lou Esposito's promotion to defensive coordinator, as well as the hiring of four new position coaches - James Adams (cornerbacks), Trevor Andrews (linebackers), Mike Bath (running backs), and Keith Gaither (wide receivers).
 
"We felt it was important to have a person dedicated solely to special teams to complete all three phases of our game - offense, defense and special teams," Lester said. "Joe won a MAC title in 2003 as a defensive backs coach, has been a coordinator in the Big Ten and has led Miami's special teams units, which were the best in our league last year. He brings a ton of experience to our staff and will really make an impact on our special teams."
 
Miami led the Mid-American Conference and ranked No. 12 nationally for special teams S&P+ Ratings in 2018. S&P+ Ratings are derived from the play-by-play and drive data of all 800-plus of the season's FBS college football games (140,000-plus plays). The ratings take into account efficiency, explosiveness, and factors related to field position and finishing drives. In regards to special teams, the ratings are measured play-for-play special teams efficiency and weighted for overall importance.
 
Palcic's special teams were dominate throughout the MAC in 2018, finishing first in the conference in both kick return average (25.7) and kick coverage average (45.3). The RedHawks produced a pair of All-MAC performers in Maurice Thomas and Kyle Kramer. Thomas finished first in the MAC in kick return average (26.7), while Kramer had 30 of his 65 punts downed inside the opponent's 20-yard line.
 
Prior to focusing on Miami's special teams, Palcic coached safeties from 2015 to 2017 and the RedHawk linebackers in 2014. In 2017 Miami ranked third in the MAC in scoring defense, third in total defense and fourth in pass defense. The RedHawks were ranked first in the MAC in total defense in 2016 and fourth in pass defense. 
 
Palcic spent the 2013 season with Alabama as a defensive analyst. Prior to joining the Crimson Tide, he was the defensive backs coach at Ashland University for one season, helping the Eagles to a perfect 11-0 regular season and was part of a defensive unit that led the GLIAC in scoring and total defense.
 
Palcic spent six seasons as the co-defensive coordinator/defensive backs coach at Indiana from 2005-10, helping the Hoosiers advance to their first bowl game in 13 years (2006 Insight Bowl). Palcic's defense led the Big Ten in sacks (47), turnovers (31) and interceptions (19) in 2007.
 
In his time with the Hoosiers, Palcic mentored two former National Football League draft picks: Tracey Porter (2008, second round) and Ray Fisher (2010, seventh round). Porter would go on to intercept Peyton Manning in the fourth quarter of Super Bowl XLIV, securing a victory for the New Orleans Saints.
 
Before coaching at Indiana, Palcic was also at Miami from 1999-2004. In his first season he coached linebacker Dustin Cohen, who was named the 1999 Mid-American Conference Defensive Player of the Year. Palcic oversaw defensive backs and special teams from 2000-03 and was named the team's defensive coordinator in 2004. The 2003 RedHawks won the MAC Championship and finished the season 10th in the AP poll.
 
Palcic began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Eastern Michigan in 1998. He was an outside linebacker at Miami from 1994-97, completing his degree in sociology in 1998.
 
Palcic and his wife, Courtney, have one son, Nicholas and a daughter, Gabrielle.