SAN ANTONIO — UTSA head football coach Frank Wilson announced Friday that he has hired Jason Rollins as associate head coach and defensive backs coach.
Rollins comes to San Antonio from Tulane, where he spent nine seasons as secondary coach, including serving as co-defensive coordinator in 2015 and special teams coordinator in 2014. He played a key role in the development of three All-Americans and four NFL players in draft picks Lorenzo Doss and Taurean Nixon, as well as free agents Derrick Strozier and Jordan Sullen.
“Jason is an outstanding teacher," Wilson said. "He has a tremendous overview of every aspect of defensive football. He has recently developed multiple NFL draft picks, because he cares about developing players on and off the field. If you look at his career, you see consistency in outstanding recruiting and outstanding player development achievements. Jason has been a highly successful defensive coordinator and as our associate head coach, he will be counted on in several capacities. I can’t wait for our players to meet with Coach Rollins. They will know right away how fortunate we are to have a coach of his caliber.”
“As long as I’ve been in the coaching profession, I’ve challenged myself to grow as a coach," Rollins said. "I’ve had great admiration for Coach Frank Wilson for many years because of his approach to recruiting and the way he develops relationships with his players. The underrated part about Coach Wilson is his leadership talent. He is a phenomenal leader and when he presented the opportunity for me to lock arms as his associate head coach, I knew this move would help me reach my ultimate goal of becoming a head coach. The best part is that we get to go to work every day in San Antonio. My wife, Danna, and I couldn’t be happier for this chapter to begin.”
In 2013, Rollins' secondary was a big reason why the Green Wave made their first bowl appearance since the 2002 season. Tulane ranked second nationally in turnovers forced with 35, including 19 interceptions with 15 by the defensive backfield. Doss, an All-America cornerback, picked off seven passes, returning a pair for touchdowns, and forced two fumbles. Additionally, Tulane allowed just 352.1 yards per game, which ranked 22nd in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS).
In 2014, Rollins helped lead the secondary to a combined 15 interceptions, seven fumble recoveries and a pair of forced fumbles, as the unit contributed to 22 of the team's 28 takeaways, which ranked 21st nationally. Parry Nickerson led the Green Wave and all FBS freshmen with six picks and garnered Freshman All-America accolades.
Rollins' impact on Tulane's secondary was immediate from the time he joined the staff prior to the 2008 campaign. In his first season in New Orleans, the group combined for 23 pass breakups, five interceptions, five forced fumbles and five recoveries.
During the next four years, his defensive backs combined for 31 interceptions and 120 pass breakups while helping the Green Wave defense consistently rank near the top of Conference USA in most major statistical categories.
Prior to his tenure at Tulane, Rollins was co-defensive coordinator and secondary coach at his alma mater, McNeese State, for three seasons (2005-07). He helped the Cowboys to a 23-10 record, two Southland Conference championships and back-to-back Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) playoff appearances in 2006-07.
Rollins got his coaching start as a graduate assistant at McNeese State. He was an assistant coach in the Texas prep ranks at Galveston Ball (1999-2002) and La Marque (2003).
A native of Lake Charles, La., he spent two seasons as the defensive backs coach at Northwestern State, where he helped the Demons to the 2004 Southland title on the strength of the top defense in the FCS.
Rollins was an all-state and all-district performer at Newton High School and he went on to play safety at McNeese State in 1994-96.
Rollins earned his bachelor's degree in health and human performance from McNeese State in 1996.
He and his wife, Danna, have one son, Tieler.