Cornell University Men's Football

Bhakta Assistant Coach Twitter: @CoachSatBhakta Recruiting Areas: Louisiana, New Mexico, New York (Section 10), Oklahoma, Texas Satyen Bhakta begins his fourth season as an assistant coach at Cornell and will work with the teams defensive line and take over responsibilities as the team's recruiting coordinator. As part of a defense that made significant strides across the board in 2015, the middle linebacking corps of Jackson Weber and Miles Norris ranked first and fourth, respectively, in tackles and combined for three sacks and two forced fumbles. Bhakta's charges, particularly Norris and Weber. were among the team's most impactful defenders in 2014. Norris led the Big Red and ranked ninth in the Ivy League in tackles (71), was 10th in the circuit with his 7.0 tackles for loss and fifth with 4.5 sacks (both team-highs) during a breakout sophomore campaign in 2014. Weber, a two-year starter already, has 94 career stops and ranked among the team leaders in tackles (54) a year ago. He also added 1.5 tackles for loss, two pass breakups, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery. Bhakta played a large role in helping the Big Red transition from a 4-3 base to a 3-4 defense in 2013. His prized charge was two-time All-Ivy League selection Brett Buehler, a two-year team captain. Buehler led the team and ranked second in the Ivy League in stops with 103, twice as many as the Big Reds second-leading tackler. A second-team all-conference pick, he graduated among the schools top 20 career tacklers. Bhakta also worked with returning starter Taylor Betros and key playmaker JJ Fives, who combined for 79 tackles and six tackles for loss in 2013. Bhakta brought seven years of coaching experience at the Division I, II and III levels to Cornell. He spent the last two seasons at Division II Colorado School of Mines where he coached on the defensive line after spending two years with the defensive line at Susquehanna and three seasons at his alma mater, Temple, as the assistant defensive line coach. He has also spent two summers attending the Bill Walsh Minority Coaching Fellowship. He spent August of 2911 with the Kansas City Chiefs and August of 2012 with the Pittsburgh Steelers. In his two season at Colorado School of Mines, the Orediggers posted a 14-8 overall record and spent much of 2011 ranked nationally in Division II. The defense finished fourth in the RMAC in scoring defense (21.8 ppg), fourth in interceptions (18) and third in turnover margin after posting 24 total takeaways that season. In his second year, the defense posted 86 tackles for loss and 26 sacks in 11 games and created 31 turnovers. Prior to his time out west, Bhakta was part of the Liberty League Coaching Staff of the Year in 2009 at Susquehanna. He coached a pair of all-league defensive linemen during his time at the Division III school and helped the 2009 squad qualify for the NCAA playoffs for the first time in 18 years as part of an 8-3 campaign. Bhakta began his collegiate coaching career at Temple (2006-08) where he assisted in the development of seven defensive linemen who were either drafted of signed NFL contracts, including 2011 first round pick Muhammad Wilkerson. A 2005 graduate of Temple with a degree in broadcasting, telecommunications and mass media, he played quarterback for the Owls from 2001-04 and lettered during the 2003 season. He was a three-sport athlete at Wissahickon HS in Ambler, Pa., competing in football, track and field and wrestling. Bhakta and his wife Caroline reside in Ithaca. * Updated April 2016

Backus Associate Head Coach/The John B. and Ann M. Rogers '45 Defensive Coordinator Twitter: @JaredBackus1 Recruiting Areas: Michigan, Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, New York (Sections 1 & 9), Ohio, Tennessee Jared Backus enters his fourth season as Associate Head Coach and The John B. and Ann M. Rogers '45 Defensive Coordinator. Backus will continue to manage all aspects of the defensive gameplan. In implementing the teams 3-4 defensive scheme two years ago, Backus made much progress in his first two seasons with one of the leagues younger units. Cornell allowed fewer rushing yards and had more sacks and forced fumbles than in 2013 than the previous year while allowing touchdowns in the red zone less often. In 2013, the Big Red didnt allow an offensive touchdown in two games, including a 45-13 win over Bucknell in Backus first game on the Cornell sidelines. The Big Red forced six Bison turnovers and scored a pair of defensive touchdowns that afternoon. In its final two weekends, both wins, Cornell opponents averaged just 329.5 yards per game, including just 106 total rushing yards on 47 carries (2.3 yards per carry) to signal massive improvements in those categories. Year two saw significant improvement defensively, allowing fewer points and yards allowed (rushing, passing and total yards), forcing more turnovers, registering more sacks and shoring up its third down conversion defense. Freshman safety Nick Gesualdi took over a starting role in week two and earned Ivy League Rookie of the Year accolades. The 2015 campaign saw even more improvement, as the Big Red cut down its scoring defense by four points per game over 2014, allowed 20 fewer yards of offense and held opponents out of the end zone in the red zone more often. Over the final three weekends of the season, the Big Red defense allowed just 18.3 points per game and 364.7 yards per game despite playing Ivy League co-champs Dartmouth and Penn on the road. The team's 3-0 win over Columbia on Senior Day was the team's first shutout in 22 seasons and the first game where a field goal was good for a win in 29 years. Senior JJ Fives developed into an All-Ivy pass-rusher, ended his final season with 52 tackles, ranking fourth in the Ivy League in sacks (4.5) and fifth in tackles for loss (8.0). Backus has coached several NFL players, including former first-round pick Muhammad Wilkerson, third-round pick Terrance Knighton, fifth-round pick Caraun Reid and seventh-rounder Mike Catapano. Backus spent three seasons prior to arriving at Cornell as defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at Princeton after three seasons as defensive line and linebackers coach at Temple. He also served as defensive coordinator and special teams coordinator for three seasons (2003-05) at Bucknell University and has stops at Maine, Pace, Lebanon Valley, Rutgers, Springfield and King's College. His 2012 defense ranked in the top 20 nationally in rushing defense, scoring defense, sacks and red zone defense while sitting in the top 30 in tackles for loss. He was also instrumental in the development of Bushnell Cup Award winner Mike Catapano, an All-American defensive lineman. During his tenure at Princeton, Backus coached four All-Ivy linebackers. His first defense moved from seventh in 2010 to third in 2011 in rushing defense. In 2012, the Tigers ranked second in the Ivy League in sacks and third in scoring defense (17th nationally at 19.9 ppg.). Among the players he tutored was Bushnell Cup Award winner Mike Catapano and fellow All-America defensive lineman Caraun Reid, the Bushnell Cup runner-up in 2011. While at Temple, he was part of the 2009 team that went 10-3 and earned the school's first bowl bid in 30 years. That squad ranked in the top 20 nationally in forced fumbles, passes defended, rushing touchdowns allowed, opponents rushing yards per carry, sacks, turnovers and rushing defense. He coached three All-MAC linebackers (Alex Joseph, Amara Kamara and Peanut Joseph) and held opponents to 20 points or less five times. In his first season at Temple, Backus was part of a defense that led the MAC in five defensive statistical categories, including red zone defense; that statistic also ranked first nationally. In 2006, as Bucknells defensive coordinator, he was instrumental in the biggest turnaround in Division I-AA, as the Bison improved to 6-5 after posting a 1-10 record in 2005. He also helped develop multiple all-conference players at Bucknell, including defensive lineman Sean Conover, who spent three seasons with the Tennessee Titans and now plays with the Detroit Lions. Prior to Bucknell, Backus was the defensive line coach and special teams coordinator at Maine from 1999 to 2001, helping the team to an Atlantic 10 title and top 10 national ranking 2001. The Saugatuck, Conn., native began his collegiate coaching career at King's College (strength and conditioning intern, 1994), before moving on to Springfield College (graduate assistant, 1995), Rutgers (graduate assistant, 1996-97), and Pace (secondary/kickoff coverage, 1998). Backus is a 1993 graduate of Springfield College and earned his Master's in Physical Education there in 1998. He was a two-year letter winner at his alma mater while playing inside linebacker. He and wife Amanda have two young sons, Garrett and Gavin, and a daughter, Grace. * Updated April 2016