Troy Finalizes On-Field Coaching Staff with Addition of Hardmon

TROY, Alabama – Byron 'Bam' Hardmon, an All-SEC linebacker and three-year NFL veteran, has been named Troy's defensive line coach, head coach Neal Brown announced Sunday.

Hardmon's hire finalizes Troy's on-field coaching staff for Brown's first season as the Trojans' head coach. The offensive staff consists of Kenny Edenfield, Matt Moore, Sean Reagan, Shayne Wasden and Cornelius Williams, while the defensive staff is comprised of Hardmon, Vic Koenning, Jon Sumrall and Al Pogue.

"I'm excited about bringing Bam on board," Brown said. "He has great knowledge of our conference from being in the league and has a good understanding of Coach Koenning's defense as they worked together at Illinois. He is a guy that Vic trusts and has had tremendous results at each stop along his career. Bam is very well thought of as a recruiter, and being from the Jacksonville area it gives us a strong presence in central Florida."

Hardmon comes to Troy after two seasons as the defensive line coach at Idaho. While with the Vandals, Hardmon helped transform defensive end Quayshawne Buckley into a force behind the line of scrimmage. In 2014, Buckley ranked 17th nationally with 1.4 tackles for loss per game after checking in at 25th in the country following the 2013 season.

"I'm glad to be back down South and happy to be part of this staff," Hardmon said. "I'm really excited to get back to working with Coach Koenning. It's obvious that Coach Brown has a really good plan for this program and has some great ideas to move Troy forward. With Coach Koenning coming here and being over the defense, I think it will add a really good mix to what Coach Brown does with this team."

The native of Jacksonville, Fla., was a four-year letterwinner as a linebacker at Florida and was the team's captain in 2002 as a senior. During that season, Hardmon was named second team All-SEC and helped lead the Gators to the Outback Bowl. Hardmon not only excelled on the field but also off it as well. He was a three-time Academic All-SEC honoree and won the Betty Capaldi GPA Award. He ranked second in the SEC and fourth in the nation in tackles and set a Florida single-season tackle record. Hardmon also won Florida's coveted Ferguson Leadership award in 2002.

Hardmon spent the 2003-06 seasons on three NFL rosters: the Miami Dolphins (2003), the Seattle Seahawks (2004) and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2005). He also played two seasons in NFL Europe, winning a World Bowl title in 2007 with Hamburg.

Hardmon returned to football in 2009 after two years in the private business sector. He worked as the co-owner of S & S Trucking in Jacksonville, Fla., while also establishing a very successful real estate career.

He spent three seasons (2009-11) as a graduate assistant at Illinois, including the final two years under Koenning, who is Troy's defensive coordinator.

In 2011, Hardmon helped tutor a defensive line that broke the school record with 41 sacks and ranked fourth nationally in tackles for loss (7.9 per game) and sixth nationally in sacks (3.2 per game). Defensive end Whitney Mercilus had a breakout year, earning consensus first team All-America honors after leading the nation in sacks (16.0) and forced fumbles (9). Mercilus was drafted in the first round of the 2012 NFL Draft by the Houston Texans.

Hardmon helped guide a budding star in 2010 in defensive tackle Corey Liuget, who was a first-round pick of the San Diego Chargers in the 2011 NFL. Liuget and Akeem Spence combined for 108 tackles, the most by a pair of Illini defensive tackles since 1993, and Phil Steele and Rivals.com named Spence a Freshman All-American.

Prior to his stint at Idaho, Hardmon served as the special teams coordinator and outside linebackers coach at Charleston Southern. Hardmon helped transform the Buccaneers from an 0-11 team to the prior year to a 5-6 squad.

Hardmon graduated from the University of Florida in 2003 with a degree in sociology and earned his master's degree in organizational leadership from the University of Illinois in 2011. He is married to the former Danerica Wright and the couple has one son, Bryson (1).

Troy University Athletics

Related News

Troy Finalizes On-Field Coaching Staff with Addition of Hardmon

Related Videos