Carolina Ties: Oliver in as SU Defensive Coordinator

Nearly two months ago the Southern University football coaching staff experienced a state of flux, as three coaches were fired and one coach resigned. Defensive line coach Myron Jackson, cornerbacks coach Chris Scott, and linebackers coach Lorick Atkinson were all terminated; while co-offensive coordinator Chad Germany resigned. Football for the Jaguars will be out of season for a while, as there will be no spring practice. With things pretty quiet in A.W. Mumford Stadium now is the perfect time to fill some of those key roles.
That’s certainly what the Jaguars did. As of January 13th, there will be a new person calling the defense via the sidelines; Trei Oliver. Oliver hails from North Carolina A&T University, where he served as the defensive end and linebackers coach. Oliver’s defense was in the top five in the whole country; not only in total defense, but in run defense and pass defense as well. In addition, Oliver and N.C. A&T also posted the best defense in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. Certainly numbers SU would like to post in the SWAC. “They’ve always played really, really good defense over there,” said Odums. “They’ve been in the top five in the country in total defense, run defense, and pass defense the majority of his career. We have the talent that fits that system.”
Odums gave up the task of calling plays for the defense after the season ended. He expressed his desire to focus more on the team as a whole. He knew just the person to hand the keys over to. Head Coach Dawson Odums certainly has a bond with and trusts Oliver with running his scheme. That bond and trust comes from more than a decade ago when Odums and Oliver shared the playing field together at North Carolina Central University. They also shared signals as both were assistant coaches on the defensive side of the ball at N.C. A&T under current defensive coordinator Sam Washington.
Oliver played safety and punter for the Eagles of NCCU, and was an assistant coach for N.C. Central for three years with the defense; 2003-2006. He also coached receivers in 2004. From there he had a four year stint with archrival Grambling State as an outside linebackers coach, special teams coordinator, and recruiting coordinator. He started his coaching career as a defensive backs coach and also had control over special teams at Delaware State University.
Oliver has been in Greensboro, NC the last four seasons as the Aggies’ outside linebackers coach and the football team’s financial mediator. He became the defensive line coach prior to this season. Along with leading the conference in total defense and run defense, N.C. A&T finished second in scoring defense, third in pass efficiency, and fourth in total pass defense. Under Oliver, NCAT allowed just 86 rushing yards per game, 267 total yards per game, and 181 passing yards per game.
Oliver’s defense also led the Aggies to a 41-34 defeat of SWAC rival Alcorn State in the Celebration Bowl a month ago. An Alcorn team who was shut down for nearly the duration of the game until the fourth quarter. The same Alcorn team who is 5-0 against SU under coach Odums. The Braves have averaged a shocking 41 points in those five wins, including a 48-7 rout in conference play this past season; and 38-24 SWAC Championship victory over the Jaguars in 2014. Coach Odums also mentioned that he and Oliver will collaborate about filling the other open defensive positions on the staff as well. We will be looking forward to the combo duo of the Big O on the sidelines, Odums and Oliver, as they look to get the Jags over the hump.