Wisconsin Football Hires DL Coach E.J. Whitlow: Here’s What You Need to Know

The Wisconsin Badgers football program has found its new defensive line coach. 

UW is set to hire former Air Force defensive line coach E.J. Whitlow to replace Greg Scruggs, who departed the program for a job at Michigan. 

Here’s what you need to know about the newest Badgers coach.

Wisconsin Football Reels in Defensive Line Coach E.J. Whitlow

Before his coaching career, Whitlow played defensive line at the University of Findlay from 2006-2010. During his time with the Oilers, Whitlow was a two-time All-GLIAC honoree and the team MVP in 2009. 

Whitlow began his coaching journey at Division II Notre Dame College in 2010 as a graduate assistant before assuming the defensive line coach role in 2012. He would then move on to Grand Valley State in 2014, where he coached alongside Badgers outside linebacker coach Matt Mitchell, who was the Lakers’ head coach at the time. 

During his stint with GVSU, Whitlow oversaw a defensive line room that included current New England Patriots star Matthew Judon. Under Whitlow’s direction, Judon would win the Gene Upshaw Award for the nation’s top interior defensive lineman. The new Badgers coach also mentored nine all-conference honorees in three seasons.

Whitlow would then move on to Miami (Ohio), where he coached players like Dominique Robinson and Ivan Pace, who are now in the NFL, as well as Doug Costin (currently in the UFL) and Kameron Butler, who earned three-straight All-MAC honors from 2019-2021. 

During his most recent stint at Air Force, Whitlow was instrumental in helping a Falcons defense that was No. 1 in total defense (254.5 ypg), No. 3 in scoring defense (13.4 ppg), and the No. 6 rushing defense (95.3 ypg) in 2022. Last season, Whitlow’s group was No. 11 in the nation in rushing yards allowed per game and rushing yards per attempt.

What the Hire Means for Wisconsin Football

Whitlow comes to Madison with several years of experience coaching strong defensive line units, but this will be his first job at the Power 4 level. 

The new Wisconsin Badgers coach will have the task of rejuvenating a defensive line group that struggled last season by producing just 59 total pressures and 4.5 total sacks. Granted, it was always going to be difficult to replace a star like Keeanu Benton in the trenches, but the defensive line was an area of concern for much of the 2023 season. 

Though defensive line recruiting was a slow burn for the Badgers last year, Greg Scruggs was still able to reel in two four-star prospects in Ernest Willor Jr and Dillan Johnson. Whitlow has some recruiting ties in the Midwest, as he is credited as the primary recruiter for five 3-star prospects and one 2-star prospect hailing from states like Michigan, Ohio, Iowa, and Kentucky. 

Whitlow will inherit a defensive line room that includes contributors like James Thompson Jr, Gio Paez, and Ben Barten, as well as Albany transfer Elijah Hills. On top of that, he’ll have some rising underclassmen, including Jamel Howard, Will McDonald, Ernest Willor Jr, Dillan Johnson, and Hank Weber. 

With the last assistant coach set in place, the Wisconsin football program will now look toward spring camp, where some of those underclassmen could push for snaps.

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