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Former Illinois head coach Ron Zook finds a home in AAF
Published:
Former Illinois head coach Ron Zook has landed a job in the AAF.
Thursday, the AAF announced that Zook had accepted a role as a defensive coach with the Salt Lake Stallions, serving as the secondary and special teams coach. He was most recently the special teams coordinator with the Green Bay Packers.
When Zook got the call, he was happy to accept the new position.
“Randy Mueller (general manager) called me and asked me what I was doing,” Zook said, per AAF.com. “I told him ‘well let me check my schedule.’ I was available, and he asked me if I was interested and I said absolutely. In the two days I’ve been here, it’s been a lot of fun.”
Zook had been with the Packers from 2014 through 2018, but was recently relieved of his duties after the franchise underwent a coaching change. Prior to arriving in Green Bay, Zook was the head coach at Illinois.
In seven seasons with the Illini, Zook compiled a 34-51 record, but led his teams to three bowl games. His best year came in 2007, when Illinois finished the regular season 9-3 and earned a trip to the Rose Bowl.
Before taking over at Illinois, Zook was also the head coach at Florida from 2002-04. He 23-14 in three seasons with the Gators.
Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB