1. Al Golden served as the head football coach for the Temple Owls from 2006 to 2010 and the Miami Hurricanes from 2011 to 2015.
25 Facts About Al Golden
1. 2.
Al Golden was a three-year letter winner and tight end for Penn State, where he received the 1991 Ridge Riley Award, given annually to a player who displays excellence in scholarship, sportsmanship, friendship, and leadership.
3.
Al Golden spent the 1992 season in the National Football League with the New England Patriots as a tight end.
4.
Al Golden began his coaching career in 1993 as offensive coordinator at Red Bank Catholic High School in Red Bank, New Jersey.
5.
Al Golden then served as a graduate assistant under George Welsh at Virginia from 1994 to 1996, where he worked primarily with the linebackers and special teams.
6.
Al Golden helped develop All-ACC linebackers James Farrior and Jamie Sharper, both of whom were chosen in the 1997 NFL draft.
7.
Al Golden then coached linebackers at Boston College from 1997 to 1999 under Tom O'Brien.
8.
Al Golden had spent the previous season at his alma mater, Penn State, serving as linebackers coach and recruiting coordinator under head coach Joe Paterno.
9.
Al Golden was named head football coach at Temple University in December 2005, as the second-youngest head coach in NCAA football at that time, behind Northwestern's Pat Fitzgerald.
10.
Al Golden was interviewed for the vacant head coach position at UCLA in December 2007.
11.
Al Golden later asked that his name be withdrawn from consideration from that position.
12.
In May 2010, Al Golden signed a contract extension with Temple through 2014.
13.
On December 12,2010, ESPN reported that Al Golden was offered and accepted the head coaching job at the University of Miami.
14.
In press conference remarks upon his hiring on December 13,2010, Al Golden emphasized the importance of the University of Miami football legacy.
15.
However, due to NCAA rules, Al Golden did not coach the football team in Miami's bowl game against Notre Dame but instead focused on recruiting players for 2011.
16.
Al Golden began his tenure hampered by probation from a previous booster scandal, and self-imposed bowl bans during Al Golden's first two years with the program.
17.
Al Golden announced after his firing that "On behalf of my family I want to thank the University of Miami for a tremendous opportunity," Al Golden said in a release.
18.
On February 1,2016, Al Golden was named tight ends coach of the Detroit Lions.
19.
On February 7,2018, Al Golden was named linebackers coach of the Lions.
20.
Al Golden was hired by the Cincinnati Bengals as their linebackers coach on January 20,2020.
21.
Al Golden missed the team's week 10 game in 2020 against the Pittsburgh Steelers due to COVID-19 pandemic protocols.
22.
On February 16,2022, Al Golden was announced as the new defensive coordinator at Notre Dame, serving under recently promoted head coach Marcus Freeman.
23.
Al Golden signed a contract extension with Notre Dame in the offseason leading up to the 2024 campaign.
24.
On January 23,2025, Al Golden was named Defensive Coordinator of the Cincinnati Bengals.
25.
For most of his head coaching career, Al Golden wore a dress shirt, slacks, and a tie in school colors on the sidelines, unlike most coaches of his generation.