Memphis Tigers football hires Scott Symons as inside LBs coach

Memphis coach Mike Norvell has completed his football staff for 2018, with Scott Symons being hired as his inside linebackers coach. The school announced the hire Friday afternoon.

Symons spent the past four seasons as defensive coordinator and safeties coach at West Georgia before being hired by University of the Incarnate Word in January to be  defensive coordinator/defensive backs coach.

"Scott is one of the nation’s brightest defensive minds and his experience as a coordinator six of last seven years will be a great addition to the staff we have in place,” Norvell said in a statement.

Symons is the 10th assistant coach on Norvell's staff after a new NCAA rule went into effect this year allowing Football Bowl Subdivision schools to add a 10th assistant.

While at West Georgia, Symons coached under current Memphis associate head coach Will Hall from 2014-16 and also served alongside new Tigers wide receivers coach Desmond Lindsey from 2014-15. 

Symons' four seasons at West Georgia saw him coach six All-Gulf South Conference defenders, including three current NFL players in Dylan Donahue, Marcus Sayles and Tyrell Adams. Donahue and Sayles were Division II All-Americans.

In 2012, after four seasons as an assistant coach at Harding University, he joined Arkansas State and worked current Auburn coach Gus Malzahn as a defensive quality control coach. The following season, he became defensive coordinator at Arkansas Tech and turned around a defense that finished last in in the Great American Conference to finishing seventh in one year.

Norvell's statement also noted that Symons' extensive ties to the Mid-South will help in recruiting. Like Norvell, Symons is a Texas native.

Symons is the fifth new assistant hired since the end of last season. In addition to hiring Hall and Lindsey in January, Norvell also hired Anthony Jones Jr. (running backs coach) and TJ Rushing (defensive backs coach). He also previously announced that quarterbacks coach Kenny Dillingham was promoted to offensive coordinator and offensive line coach Ryan Silverfield was promoted to assistant head coach

2018 Memphis football coaching staff

Head coach: Mike Norvell
Offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach: Kenny Dillingham
Defensive coordinator: Chris Ball
Associate head coach/TE coach: Will Hall*
Assistant head coach/run game coordinator/offensive line coach: Ryan Silverfield
Special teams coordinator/outside linebackers coach: Joe Lorig
Wide receivers coach: Desmond Lindsey*
Inside linebackers coach: Scott Symons*
Defensive line coach: Paul Randolph
Running backs coach: Anthony Jones Jr.*
Defensive backs coach: TJ Rushing*

*New staff hire