Cory Sanders is in his second season as Western Michigan’s defensive back coach. Sanders comes to Western Michigan after serving as the University of West Florida’s first defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach beginning in 2014.
Sanders comes to WMU with 11 years of coaching experience at the college level, including four as a Division II head coach.
In 2016, Sanders' attacking defense ranked 11th in the country with 3.6 sacks per game and 26th with 8.2 tackles for loss. The Argonauts' front four was particularly strong against the run, yielding 130 yards per game to rank fourth in the Gulf South Conference and 50th nationally.
UWF totaled 21 turnovers with 16 interceptions and five fumble recoveries. The Argos ranked 31st in Division 2 in INTs.
UWF finished its inaugural season with a 5-6 mark - the most for a first-year Division 2 program in a decade. The Argonauts also collected a pair of shutouts and held opponents to four scores or less four times.
Safety Trent Archie was named the GSC Defensive Freshman of the Year and later grabbed a spot on the All-Super Region 2 second team.
Prior to his arrival in Pensacola, Sanders spent the previous five years with the coaching staff at his alma mater, Saint Joseph’s College in Rensselaer, Ind. He was the team’s defensive coordinator in 2010 before being promoted to head coach in 2011. During his four years as head coach, the Pumas went 24-19 with a mark of 15-8 in the Great Lakes Valley Conference. In his second year in 2012, he led the team to a 6-5 record to mark the team’s first winning record since 2006.
Sanders finished his time at Saint Joseph’s on a high note, leading the team to eight wins in each of his last two seasons. The team boasted one of the top defenses in Division II over those last two years, ranking 15th in scoring defense in 2014 (17.9 points allowed per game) and 14th in total defense in 2013 (305.4 yards allowed per game). The Pumas also broke the school record for total offense (4,594 yards) in 2013 and ranked 14th in the nation in rushing offense (242.6 yards per game) in 2014. During his time as head coach, he had 36 players earn All-GLVC awards.
Sanders started his coaching career in 2007 as a defensive backs coach at North Central College, a Division III school in Naperville, Ill. After one season at North Central, he moved on to coach defensive backs at Elmhurst College, a Division III school in Elmhurst, Ill. At both of those stops he helped develop weekly game plans with the defensive coordinator, and he was also Elmhurst’s video coordinator.
As a student-athlete at Saint Joseph’s, Sanders was a three-time captain and four-time selection to the All-Great Lakes Football Conference Team as a defensive back. He helped lead the Pumas to two conference championships, and he was the team’s Defensive Most Valuable Player in 2005. He appeared in 44 games in his career, totaling 240 tackles and 10.5 sacks. He ranks fifth in school history with 30.5 tackles for loss.
Sanders received his bachelor’s degree in business administration with a minor in mass communications from Saint Joseph’s College in 2007.
