Robert Wright - Football Coach - Syracuse University Athletics

Robert Wright

Title:
Co-Defensive Coordinator/Linebackers
Email:
rwrigh09@syr.edu

Robert Wright enters his second season with the Syracuse football program as the co-Defensive Coordinator/Linebackers coach after being part of Fran Browns inaugural staff in 2024.

A rising star in the coaching world, Wright was named an American Football Coaches Association’s 35-under-35 winner for 2024. In his first season with the Orange, Wright helped lead the team to a 10-3 mark and finish the season inside the top-20 of the final Associated Press Poll. Primarily responsibile for the linebackers, both starters at the position - Justin Barron and Marlowe Wax - earned All-ACC honors.

Wright came to 'Cuse after spending the 2023 season as the Defensive Coordinator at Buffalo. In his one season with the Bulls, his defensive unit ranked in the top-25 nationally of numerous defensive categories, including passing defense (18th), defensive touchdowns (25th) and third down defense (23rd). The Bulls were also top-10 nationally in total defense during conference play. Additionally, Devin Grant (interceptions) and Max Michel (forced fumbles) led the MAC in their respective takeaways category. Grant was named a First Team All-MAC selection this season.

Wright spent the 2022 campaign at Duke as the senior defensive analyst, working with linebackers. He helped the Blue Devils to their best season in nearly a decade, finishing 9-4 with a victory over UCF in the Military Bowl. The 2022 Blue Devils squad finished fifth in the ACC in scoring defense (22.1 points per game) and ranked ninth nationally in takeaways (26). They also finished 22nd in sacks.

Prior to his stint in Durham, he spent the 2021 campaign at Iowa State as a special teams quality control coach, where he helped mentor kicker Andrew Mevis, who was a semifinalist for the Lou Groza Award. The Cyclones finished 7-6 and made an appearance in the Cheez-It Bowl.

He previously spent two seasons at Texas A&M as a graduate assistant, where he worked with linebackers. The Aggies posted an overall record of 17-6 in his tenure there, including consecutive bowl victories over No. 25 Oklahoma State (2019 Texas Bowl) and No. 13 North Carolina (2020 Orange Bowl). Texas A&M finished ninth nationally and led the SEC in total defense in 2020, surrendering just 317.3 yards per game. Their rushing defense was second nationally (92.0).

Seven defensive players off A&M’s defenses have been drafted that were on the teams Wright worked with, including Justin Madubuike (Ravens), Bobby Brown III (Rams), Buddy Johnson (Steelers), DeMarvin Leal (Steelers), Michael Clemons (Jets), Antonio Johnson (Jaguars) and Jaylon Jones (Colts).

Before his time in College Station, he spent three seasons at Illinois in various roles. He joined the Illini as a defensive graduate assistant (2016-17) before being elevated to a defensive quality control analyst in 2018. While in Champaign, Wright worked primarily with the linebackers and nickelbacks.

Wright got his coaching start as a special teams quality control coach at his alma mater, the University of Miami. He spent the 2015 season helping coach punter Justin Vogel, who was a Ray Guy Award semifinalist and recorded 67 punts for 2,846 yards (42.5 avg.) that year. He also mentored Michael Badgley from a walk-on placekicker to an NFL career, and is the leading scorer in Miami history (403 points). The Hurricanes finished the season with an 8-5 mark, including an appearance in the Sun Bowl.

Before his coaching stint with the Hurricanes, Wright was a member of the football program at Miami for the 2011 season. He later went on to earn a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University in 2015. He also obtained his Master’s degree in sport administration from Illinois in 2017.