HOT SPRINGS, Ark. — Following a historic season that saw the Indiana University Hoosiers capture their first-ever national championship, defensive coordinator Bryant Haines was honored Thursday night as the nation’s top assistant coach, winning the 30th Annual Broyles Award.
The ceremony, held at the Oaklawn resort in Hot Springs, recognized Haines for orchestrating one of the most dominant defensive turnarounds in modern college football history. Haines was selected from a nationwide pool of roughly 1,500 assistant coaches and five elite finalists.
Haines, 40, led a unit that anchored Indiana’s perfect 16-0 season. Under his “attacking” philosophy, the Hoosiers’ defense finished the 2025 campaign ranked at the top of nearly every major statistical category.
2025 Indiana Defensive Statistics:
- Scoring Defense: 11.1 points allowed per game (No. 2 in FBS)
- Total Defense: 260.9 yards allowed per game (No. 4 in FBS)
- Tackles for Loss: 128.0 (No. 1 in FBS)
- Sacks: 45.0 (T-No. 2 in FBS)
- Turnover Margin: +22 (No. 1 in FBS)
The Hoosiers’ discipline was particularly evident in the red zone, where they allowed the fewest opponent trips in the country (26) and never permitted a single opponent to score more than three touchdowns in a game.
Haines’ victory marks the first time an Indiana assistant has won the prestigious award. He is also the first assistant since Joe Brady (LSU, 2019) to win both a national title and the Broyles Award in the same season.
This year’s selection process featured a new fan-voting component, which saw nearly 90,000 votes cast nationwide. Haines ultimately beat out a high-profile group of finalists that included:
- Mike Bobo (Offensive Coordinator, Georgia)
- Matt Patricia (Defensive Coordinator, Ohio State)
- Corey Hetherman (Defensive Coordinator, Miami)
- Shiel Wood (Defensive Coordinator, Texas Tech)
The win caps off a whirlwind year for Haines, who recently signed a new three-year contract extension worth approximately $3.1 million annually, making him one of the highest-paid coordinators in the sport. Despite significant interest from other programs, Haines opted to remain in Bloomington alongside head coach Curt Cignetti, with whom he has coached for over a decade across multiple programs.
“This award is so much bigger than me,” Haines said during his acceptance speech. “To hold this trophy and bring it back to Bloomington means the world. I’m so proud of the way these players competed for each other.”
