TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — Florida State University head football coach Mike Norvell announced Monday three-time national champion Randy Shannon has been named a senior defensive analyst.
“Randy Shannon is a tremendous addition to our staff,” Norvell said. “I have all the respect in the world for the person and coach Randy Shannon is. His unique perspective will be valuable to Coach Fuller and the rest of our defensive staff, while his relationships in Miami and throughout the state of Florida will be a great benefit for our entire program.”
Shannon, the 2001 Frank Broyles Award winner, has 29 years of coaching experience and has directly coached nine first-team All-Americans, 78 all-conference performers and 52 NFL Draft picks, including 19 first-round selections. He most recently was the defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at UCF and also has served as head coach at the University of Miami and defensive coordinator at Miami and Florida, as well as linebackers coach at Arkansas, TCU and the Miami Dolphins.
In his three years coordinating the UCF defense, Shannon developed 15 all-conference honorees while helping the Knights to a 28-8 overall record, including the 2018 AAC championship and a berth in the 2019 Fiesta Bowl. The 2018 defense ranked fifth in the nation with an average of 8.2 tackles for loss per game and was sixth nationally with 28 takeaways. In 2019, the Knights led the country with 9.0 tackles for loss per game and also ranked third in passing efficiency defense and fifth in third-down defense. Last season, their 13 fumble recoveries were tops nationally while their 22 total takeaways ranked sixth.
Shannon went to UCF following three seasons at Florida, where he helped the Gators win 33 games and two SEC Eastern Division titles. In 2016, he coached a defense that ranked second in the country in pass defense and fifth nationally in total defense. Linebacker Jarrad Davis was a finalist for the Butkus Award and the Lott IMPACT Trophy before being picked 21st overall in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft. Shannon coached linebackers at Arkansas for two seasons after spending the 2012 season as linebackers coach at TCU.
Shannon spent 20 years coaching in Miami, beginning his career as a graduate assistant at the University of Miami for the 1991 national champions before coaching the defensive line in 1992 and linebackers from 1993-97. After three seasons on staff with the Miami Dolphins, Shannon returned to the University of Miami as defensive coordinator for six seasons and head coach for four. As head coach, he led the Hurricanes to 28 wins and three bowl appearances while also ranking in the top 10 nationally in APR each season. In five of his six seasons as defensive coordinator, Miami ranked in the top-10 nationally in total defense, including the 2001 national championship team that led the NCAA in points per game, turnover margin and passing efficiency defense.
Shannon was a four-year letterman at linebacker for the University of Miami and a starter on the 1987 national championship team. He was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in 1989 and became the first rookie to start at outside linebacker for Dallas since 1963. Shannon earned his bachelor’s degree in liberal arts from Miami in 1989.
