Tyler Stockton Named U-M Safeties Coach
1/5/2026 4:46:00 PM | Football
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- University of Michigan J. Ira and Nicki Harris Family Head Football Coach Kyle Whittingham announced Monday (Jan. 5) the hiring of Tyler Stockton as the program's safeties coach. Stockton arrives in Ann Arbor with 12 years of coaching experience, including eight years in a coordinator or co-coordinator role prior to his hiring with the Wolverines.
Stockton is a three-time nominee for the Broyles Award (2020, 2022-23). He was named to the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) 35 Under 35 List in 2021 and ESPN's 45 minority coaches under the age of 45 list in 2022. He has helped four players reach the NFL, including two draft picks, and has coached five players to six all-conference honors, including first-team linebackers Jacob White (2019) and Brandon Martin (2020) at Ball State and safety Ty Benefield (2025) at Boise State. Martin was the Mid-American Conference Co-Defensive Player of the Year in 2020.
Before joining the staff at Michigan, Stockton was the Co-Defensive Coordinator and safeties coach at Boise State for two seasons (2024-25), where he helped the Broncos' defense rank 15th in pass defense (175.6 yards per game allowed) and 22nd in interceptions (14).
Stockton spent five seasons leading the defense at Ball State from 2019-23, including the final two as assistant head coach. He helped the program win its first MAC title in over two decades (2020), leading to its program's first-ever bowl win, and its first-ever appearance in the season-ending AP/Coaches polls. At that time, Stockton, 30, was the second-youngest coordinator in the FBS. The Cardinals had a top-25 ranking in total defense (21st) and rushing defense (20th) in his final season, along with the nation's No. 32-ranked pass defense.
Stockton began his coaching career as a two-year graduate assistant at UConn (2014-15), helping the 2015 Huskies rank 15th nationally in scoring defense in his second season with the program. His first opportunity as a position coach came during a four-year stint at Western Illinois (2016), first as a defensive line coach and run game coordinator, a position he held for two seasons. He was elevated to defensive coordinator in 2018 and coached outside linebackers in that role for his final two years with the Leathernecks.
Stockton played along the defensive line at Notre Dame from 2009-13, where he helped the Irish reach the 2013 BCS National Championship Game along with wins in the 2010 Sun Bowl and 2013 Pinstripe Bowl. After graduating with two degrees from Notre Dame, he worked in corporate finance before starting his coaching career.
Stockton and his wife, Haley, have two children: a son, Everett, and a daughter, Belle.
