Rich Rodriguez Announces Chris Haering as Assistant Special Teams Coordinator

West Virginia University head coach Rich Rodriguez rehires Chris Haering as assistant special teams coordinator

Wisconsin special teams coordinator Chris Haering will be sure to instruct his punt return troops to stay away from Michigan's long snapper Saturday. / Mark Hoffman, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel via Imagn Content Services, LLC

Tuesday afternoon, West Virginia University football coach Rich Rodriguez announced former Mountaineer linebacker Chris Haering has been rehired as the assistant special teams coordinator on the Mountaineer coaching staff.

“Chris has years of successful experience working with special teams,” Rodriguez said. “He was a standout linebacker during WVU’s national championship appearance in 1988 and has a passion for this University and the people in this state. I look forward to having him on our staff and helping make our special teams unit even stronger.”

He is entering his second season as WVU’s assistant special teams coach. In 2024, the WVU kickoff return defense was ranked No. 12 in Power Four, the kickoff return unit was ranked No. 17 among Power Four, the Mountaineers were ranked No. 44 nationally in net punting and the punt return defense was ranked No. 4 in the Big 12. Kicker Michael Hayes II was ranked No. 6 among Power Four in field goal percentage.

Haering came to WVU from Wisconsin, where he coached the special teams for seven seasons for Paul Chryst before transitioning to tight ends coach in 2022. 

His special teams units helped the Badgers post a combined 65-23 record, claim three Big Ten West Division titles and earn six bowl game wins — making three appearances in New Year’s Six bowls (Cotton, Orange, Rose).

The Badgers won a school-record 13 games in 2017, with junior kicker Rafael Gaglianone playing a key role. He converted 16 of 18 field goal attempts, ranking him No. 4 nationally and standing as the second-best mark in school history. Gaglianone also finished his career as UW’s all-time leader with 70 field goals and 216 extra points.

Haering oversaw a massive improvement in the Badgers’ kickoff unit. The trend began in 2016, with UW recording touchbacks on 63% of kickoffs. In the season prior to Haering’s arrival, only 30% of the Badgers’ kickoffs went for touchbacks.

That trend continued in 2017 when the Badgers led the Big Ten in kickoff average at 64.1 yards per kick and recorded touchbacks on 65.9% of them. In 2018, they delivered touchbacks on 81.8% of kicks, the nation’s No. 7 mark. In 2019, they averaged 64.2 yards per kick for No. 4 nationally and hit touchbacks on 77.5% of kicks.

The Badgers’ return game got a big boost in 2019 as UW ranked No. 3 nationally in kickoff returns, at 28.4 yards per runback. Aron Cruickshank scored a pair of touchdowns and finished No. 6 among FBS players, at 29.3 yards per kick return, while Jack Dunn led the Big Ten by averaging 8.3 yards per punt return.

Wisconsin also ranked No. 7 nationally in kick return defense (17.0 average) in 2019, the second time that unit finished among the nation’s top 10 under Haering (No. 5 in 2015).

He spent three seasons at Pitt under Chryst. After coaching linebackers in 2012 and 2013, Haering added the title of special teams coordinator and focused on outside linebackers in 2014. He helped Tyler Boyd lead the ACC in kickoff returns that season, averaging 27.6 yards per runback, and ranked No. 2 in punt returns at 10.1 yards per return. 

Haering was the head coach at Mt. Lebanon High (Pa.) for 17 seasons after his coaching career began as a graduate assistant at West Virginia in 1991 following his playing days with the Mountaineers.

He was a standout linebacker for the Mountaineers from 1986-89, helping lead WVU to three bowl games appearances, including the 1988 national championship game against Notre Dame. He currently is ranked No. 6 in school history in assisted tackles (175) and No. 11 in total tackles (340).