Oklahoma to Hire Former SDSU Special Teams’ Coordinator Doug Deakin: Report
Oklahoma is set to hire San Diego State special teams coordinator Doug Deakin to serve as their senior special teams analyst, according to a report from 247Sports on Thursday evening.
Deakin will replace Jay Nunez at the position, who is leaving after two seasons in Norman to become the special teams coordinator on Kalen DeBoer’s staff at Alabama.
The Sooners’ special teams weren’t exactly a strength with Nunez in charge, but his departure to become the Crimson Tide’s Special Teams Coordinator was still surprising, leaving OU to pivot quickly to secure one of their key analysts ahead of the 2024 season.
The transition to Crimson and Cream might take a minute for Deakin, as he’s spent each of the last 17 years as an Aztec, starting with his collegiate career as an Aztec from 2007-2010.
Deakin then spent all 13 years of his coaching career at San Diego State, starting out as a grad assistant for the Aztecs from 2011-14 and then transitioning to a football operations role from 2015-17. In 2018, Deakin got back on the sidelines in a coaching role, serving as the special teams coordinator and tight ends coach.
In 2019, he dropped his role with tight ends and focused on the special teams, where his units have excelled since then, ranking top ten nationally in efficiency in each of the past three seasons.
When San Diego State hired Sean Lewis as its new head coach this offseason, they opted not to retain Deakin, leaving him free to look around for the first time in his career.
Deakin will join one of America’s most prestigious football programs, but the luster hasn’t rubbed off on the Sooners’ special teams unit in recent years.
Most recently, Oklahoma ranked 127th in special teams efficiency in 2023, with several examples of muffed punt returns, missed field goals, and miserable punts helping the Sooners’ opponents in each of their three losses.
Deakin will inherit some good pieces, though, as the Sooners will return senior long snapper Ben Anderson and punter Luke Elzinga, who averaged 45.1 yards per punt over the back half of the season. The Sooners also brought in Tyler Keltner and five-star freshman Liam Evans to challenge Zach Schmit for kicking duties. In an area of the game that is all about efficiency, Oklahoma’s addition of Deakin shouldn’t be understated as it transitions into the SEC in 2024.
