Texas A&M football head coach Mike Elko has found his new defensive coordinator.
Jay Bateman joins the Aggies after spending the past two seasons as the linebackers coach for the Florida Gators. He helped deliver two draft picks in the 2023 draft in linebackers Ventrell Miller and Amari Burney, who were drafted in the fourth and sixth round, respectively.
Prior to his short stint with in Gainesville, Florida, Bateman was a co-defensive coordinator for coach Mack Brown at North Carolina — where in 2019, he helped to turn a Tar Heel defense into one of the nation’s top five most improved units in total defense, scoring and rushing defense.
Before his time in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, Bateman spent five seasons as the defensive coordinator for Army. The Black Knights won 29 games during his tenure, but their defense ranked top-10 in total defense two times in his last three seasons at West Point. Army also increased its interception total from six in 2015 to 17 in 2016 under Bateman.