Breaking: Indiana Assistant Mark Hagen Taking Job at Texas

Reports say the former Indiana player and longtime coach is leaving for Texas to coach the defensive line for the Longhorns.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Multiple sources in Texas and Indiana have confirmed to Sports Illustrated Indiana that longtime Indiana assistant and former IU player Mark Hagen is leaving Bloomington to take a similar position at the University of Texas.

Hagen, who is currently Indiana's defensive line coach and co-defensive coordinator, is set to join Tom Herman's staff at Texas. Hagen has been at Indiana since 2016, and also coached the Hoosiers in 2011-12, He coached at Texas A&M for three years in between, and his family is still living in College Station, sources said.

Both sources told me that the deal is done at Texas, and that the announcement will come soon once all the various human resources items are complete. 

Hagen, a Carmel, Ind., native, played for the Hoosiers during their heyday under Bill Mallory from 1987 to 1991. He was a team captain, a two-time second-team all-Big Ten selection and he was a Big Ten Medal of Honor recipient as well.  

He coached at Purdue for several years before coming home to Indiana. 

Hagen and his wife, Denise, have four daughters, Abby (22), Emma (18), Ellie (15) and Ava (10). Because his girls are older and had ties to many things in College Station, they moved back there after a year in Bloomington. The family has been living apart for the better part of three years, and that's been difficult on them all. Taking the Texas job would put Hagen just a few hours away from most of his family now. 

Texas struggled in 2019 and Herman, a former Ohio State assistant, kept only three coaches from last year's staff. Texas finished its disappointing 2019 season with an 8-5 record, and was just  5-4 in Big 12 play.

Indiana had a record-setting season in 2019, going 8-5 overall and 5-4 in the Big Ten. 

Hagen returned to Indiana in 2016, hired by Kevin Wilson to join Tom Allen on the defensive side of the ball. Allen was the new defensive coordinator in 2016, and became the head coach at year later.