ARKANSAS TECH 2021 FOOTBALL JOSH LAWSON @jwlawson1
Defensive Coordinator 3rd Year Alabama (2003) Josh Lawson enters his third year at Arkansas Tech, after spending a pair of seasons at Stephen F. Austin, including his last season as defensive coordinator. In his final year in Nacogdoches, Lawson mentored all-Southland Conference safety Alize Ward, who ranked 17th in the league with 7.2 tackles per game. Aretavious Hendrix and Trenton Gordon were all-Southland Conference honorable mention picks under his tutelage. During Lawson’s first year in Texas’ oldest town, overseeing the Lumberjack linebackers and overseeing kickoffs on special teams, his linebacker corps featured a trio of talented players in junior Ryan Woods and sophomores Anthony Jacobs and Teddy Britton. The three combined for 160 total tackles, including 17 tackles for loss, providing a stout wall in the heart of defensive coordinator Jeff Byrd’s defensive scheme. Lawson’s linebackers played a pivotal role in helping SFA to rank fifth in the league in red zone defense as opponents scored less than 80 percent of time when reaching the Lumberjacks’ 20-yard line. The group also created quarterback pressure and contributed in pass coverage, aiding SFA to allow just 210 passing yards per game in conference play, which was fifthbest in the Southland Conference in that category. Lawson previously spent eight seasons at fellow GAC institution Southern Arkansas, including his last five as the Muleriders’ defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach. Under Lawson’s guidance, Southern Arkansas saw significant improvement defensively, allowing just 24.4 points per game and 319.9 yards per contest in 2016.
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In his first season as defensive coordinator in 2012, Lawson helped engineer a significant turnaround in the Southern Arkansas’ defensive efforts. The Muleriders ranked at least 50 spots higher in the national rankings in all five major defensive categories from 2011, including ranking sixth nationally in rushing defense per game, a rise of 120 spots. During his time in Magnolia, Arkansas, Lawson also worked with the Muleriders’ linebackers before making the transition to defensive backs prior to the 2015 season. In his eight seasons at Southern Arkansas, Lawson saw over a dozen of his players earn All-Great American Conference honors, including All-American defensive back Don Unamba, who spent time with the NFL’s St. Louis Rams and the CFL’s Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Saskatchewan Roughriders. Lawson was in charge of recruiting efforts in both the East Texas and Dallas areas for the Muleriders. Prior to his time at Southern Arkansas, Lawson spent two seasons at UAB, working with the Blazers’ linebackers. His two years in Birmingham, Alabama, were preceded by a one-year stint at fellow FCS institution Idaho State of the Big Sky Conference, where he served as the Bengals’ defensive line coach. Lawson also spent one year at Walker High School in Jasper, Alabama, filling the roles of cooffensive coordinator, special teams coordinator and wide receivers coach. Lawson began his coaching career at Alabama, his alma mater, in 2001, where he was a student assistant coach for two seasons before stepping into a graduate assistant position for the 2003 and 2004 campaigns. While in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Lawson assisted in two top-20 recruiting classes and was a part of the Crimson Tide’s 2001 Independence Bowl and 2004 Music City Bowl teams. A native of Berry, Alabama, Lawson earned both of his degrees from Alabama, achieving his bachelor’s degree in secondary education in 2003, followed by his master’s in sport management in 2004. He is married to the former Meredith Jones.
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