Life-Long Learner Chad Wilt Ready to Face New Challenges at IU

Image: Indiana University Athletics

Written by Sammy Jacobs (@Hoosier_Huddle)

On Sunday afternoon Indiana head coach Tom Allen introduced Chad Wilt as the Hoosiers new defensive coordinator and linebackers coach. Wilt has 26 years of coaching experience with much of it coming at the defensive line position, which begged the question, how will he adjust to coaching a new position, let alone being a coordinator.

“Coach Allen and I had those conversations. Being a coach's kid, I've grown up -- my dad has coached offense, defense, and special teams. And really good coaches are coaches. They're teachers. They're motivators. They're developers. They're instructors.” Wilt said. “And it is not really a major departure when you look at the front seven and run fits and understanding those things. I've never considered myself a guy -- you know, when we got to pass skeleton film, I was taking off to go watch 1 on 1s. No. I was sitting in there, preparing, watching, studying, learning to become the best coach that I could be, not just defensive line coach, become the best coach I could be.”

Wilt received a master’s degree from the University of Virginia where he coached the Cavaliers defensive line in 2009 and he took away the lessons of being a life long learner. At UVA, they don’t classify students as freshmen or sophomore or seniors. They call them first-year learners and so on.

“That's where I am right now.” Wilt said. “Now, in the coaching world, I'm now a 22nd year learner and continue to try to grow, learn, develop, push myself and challenge myself. And that's the beauty of this for me. It is another opportunity to accept the challenge, embrace a challenge, you know, to become a better coach. And that's what I'm really excited about.”

Wilt will be Allen’s right hand man, although Allen will be calling the defense in 2022 and he is ready to coach and deliver.

“You look at the word coach” Wilt explained, “it goes back to the 1500s and France and Hungary of, literally, the definition is to carry, to take, to transport. You look at into the Wild West, right. The stage coach, what did they do? They helped deliver, take somebody from point A to point B where they wanted to go. Take them from where they are to where they want to go. That's all of our jobs as a coach is to help take these young men from where they are to where they want to go. And then you've got to understand who that young man is. Everybody is different. You can't coach every young man the exact same. You have to find, as Coach alluded to and talked about those relationships, taking the time to get to know them and what is going to motivate them, what is going to push them, what is going to challenge them.”

Wilt is entering his 26th year as a learner and is facing his tallest task yet. The Hoosiers and Tom Allen are counting on him to deliver the results in 2022.