Mike Houston was hired as James Madison University’s seventh head football coach on January 18, 2016.
In his two seasons at the helm, he has guided the Dukes to a 28-2 overall record, with back-to-back 14-1 seasons in 2016 and 2017. The 14 wins set a program record for single-season victories. JMU set a CAA- and program-record 26-game win streak between the two seasons, which ranks second all-time in FCS history.
In his first season, Houston and the Dukes won the NCAA Division I Football Championship with a 28-14 win against Youngstown State. JMU made a return trip to the national title game in 2017, falling 17-13 to North Dakota State.
In year two at JMU, Houston led the team to its first-ever undefeated and untied regular season, going 11-0, which included its second straight 8-0 Colonial Athletic Association record to earn a second straight outright championship and a program-record third consecutive CAA title. The Dukes earned the No. 1 seed for the FCS Playoffs for just the second time and earned home playoff wins against Stony Brook (26-7), Weber State (31-28) and South Dakota State (51-16) before falling in the title game to NDSU.
The Dukes led the country in scoring defense, holding teams to just 11.1 points per game. They also paced the FCS in interceptions (31), takeaways (44) and team pass efficiency defense (83.12 rating).
JMU ranked in the top 10 nationally in 14 categories, as it was also third in total defense (252.0), turnover margin (1.47), defensive touchdowns (5) and first downs (325), fourth in punt-return defense (3.33), fifth in sacks (3.4), seventh in rushing defense (90.5), eighth in fumble recoveries (13), ninth in completion percentage (64.9%) and net punting (38.77) and 10th in passing defense (161.5), third-down defense (30.1%), punt-return average (13.0) and blocked punts (2).
Eight players were voted All-Americans in 2017, including Andrew Ankrah, who was named a Consensus All-American after being tabbed to six different All-America First Teams. Ankrah won the FCS ADA Defensive Player of the Year award and finished third for the STATS FCS Buck Buchanan Award.
Joining Ankrah on the All-America list were Aaron Stinnie, Jordan Brown, Rashad Robinson, Raven Greene, Kyre Hawkins, Jahee Jackson and Harry O’Kelly. The Dukes also had 16 All-CAA honorees, which included three players garnering top-league awards. Ankrah was voted Defensive Player of the Year, John Miller tabbed Special Teams Player of the Year and Bryan Schor became JMU's first winner of the Chuck Boone Leadership and Excellence Award.
Following the season, Houston was voted state coach of the year from three organizations. He was voted Touchdown Club of Richmond Bobby Ross Coach of the Year, Virginia Sports Information Directors University Division Coach of the Year and the J. Roy Rodman Award from the Norfolk Sports Club, marking the second straight season he garnered each award. The team was also presented with its second straight ECAC Lambert FCS Division Cup.
JMU finished the 2016 season with a 14-1 record, setting a program record for wins. The Dukes won their final 12 games to end the year with the longest active win streak in all of Division I. During the regular season, Houston led JMU to a perfect 8-0 mark in Colonial Athletic Association play to clinch the outright conference title. It was the second time the Dukes went unbeaten in league play and won the CAA outright.
After going 10-1 in the regular season, JMU earned the No. 4 seed for the FCS playoffs and a first-round bye. The Dukes notched convincing victories at home against New Hampshire (55-22) and previously-unbeaten Sam Houston State (65-7) before conquering five-time defending national champion North Dakota State (27-17) in the national semifinals in Fargo, N.D. The win at NDSU ended the Bison’s 22-game playoff win streak and a string of 18 straight home playoff wins.
On Jan. 7, 2017, JMU completed its title run with a 28-14 triumph against Youngstown State in the national championship game at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas. Khalid Abdullah was named the Most Outstanding Player for the championship, and the Dukes limited a strong run team in YSU to only 21 rushing yards in the win.
2016 AFCA FCS National Coach of the Year
Houston reeled in numerous accolades in 2016, as he was named the American Football Coaches Association FCS National Coach of the Year. He also earned AFCA Region 1 Coach of the Year for the second straight year and was voted Colonial Athletic Association Coach of the Year, marking the fifth time in his six-year head coaching career that he was tabbed his conference’s top coach. Houston reeled in a trio of state coach of the year accolades, as he was named the Bobby Ross Coach of the Year, voted VaSID Coach of the Year and was presented the J. Roy Rodman Award. He was also presented with the Bob Ford FCS Coach of the year from the Metro New York Football Writers and the Washington Metro College Coach of the Year from the DC Touchdown Club.
He coached 14 players to All-CAA status, which included Bryan Schor being named CAA Offensive Player of the Year and Rashard Davis being recognized as CAA Special Teams Player of the Year. JMU had 10 of those 14 make the All-CAA First Team, while seven of the 14 eventually became All-Americans. That list included Abdullah, Schor, Davis, Raven Greene, Mitchell Kirsch, Taylor Reynolds and Aaron Stinnie.
JMU set several conference records, including marks for scoring (700), rushing offense (4,125), total offense (7,612) and first downs (380). Nationally, JMU led the FCS in winning percentage (93.3%), completion percentage (70.8%), team pass efficiency (181.69), first downs (380), defensive interceptions (21) and punt return average (26.65).
The Dukes also ranked second in scoring (46.7), fourth in third down conversions (50%), fifth in both rushing (275.0) and turnovers gained (30), sixth in fumbles lost (4), eighth in turnover margin (1.13) and 10th in turnovers lost (13). Offensively, JMU produced 18 100-yard rushing performances from it strong rushing attack, including Abdullah, who had a team-high 11 games with more than 100 yards.
Defensively, JMU saw a drastic improvement from the previous two seasons, as it ranked 17th in scoring defense (21.2) and 30th in total defense (344.3). The Dukes allowed 7.5 fewer points per game this season and nearly 60 yards fewer per outing from 2015 to 2016. JMU forced seven more turnovers and nearly doubled its interception production, going from 11 in 2015 to a nation-leading 21 in 2016.
During conference play, JMU completed its road gauntlet with victories at Maine, New Hampshire, Richmond and Villanova. Those four teams finished second through fifth in the CAA standings and three made the postseason in UNH, UR and VU. It was JMU’s first win at New Hampshire since 2006 and the first at Villanova since 2008.
Possessing 10 years of collegiate coaching experience, including five as a head coach, Houston came to Harrisonburg after serving two years as head coach at The Citadel (2014-15). He led the Bulldogs to a 14-11 record in his two seasons and is the only coach in The Citadel's history to win a Southern Conference championship within his first two seasons.
Houston’s offense produced 27 individual 100-yard rushing performances, including a program-record 14 in 2015. The 27 100-yard rushers was a two-year record for The Citadel.
In 2015, he guided the Bulldogs to the program’s fourth winning season since 1995 with a 9-4 record and a share of the 2015 SoCon title. The Citadel boasted a conference-best +117 scoring margin, including a +100 edge during league play, and Houston went on to be named SoCon Coach of the Year and AFCA Region 2 Coach of the Year. They also defeated Southeastern Conference member South Carolina 23-22 in the regular-season finale and advanced to the second round of the FCS playoffs after upsetting ninth-ranked Coastal Carolina.
In the first-round playoff victory, Houston’s run game broke a school record with four 100-yard rushers as it piled up 524 yards on the ground, the most in a NCAA playoff game since 2012 and the second-highest in 2015 for FCS, only behind the Bulldogs’ nation-best 535 rushing yards in the season opener.
The Citadel broke school records for all-purpose yards, total offense, rushing yards and interception return yards. The Bulldogs led the nation with a school-record 515 interception return yards and five interception return touchdowns. The Citadel led the Southern and ranked second nationally with 346.9 rushing yards per game, an average of 17.21 yards per completion and just 0.62 sacks allowed per game. The Bulldogs also led the league in interceptions, tackles for loss allowed, turnovers forced, yards per rush, rushing touchdowns, punt return defense, passing touchdowns allowed, fumble recoveries, third-down defense, tackles for loss and kickoff return defense.
Four players earned All-America status and 13 garnered All-Southern Conference honors. Senior defensive lineman Mitchell Jeter was named the SoCon Defensive Player of the Year and junior defensive lineman Joe Crochet was The Citadel’s first CoSIDA First Team Academic All-American since 1989.
In his first season at the helm, he led the Bulldogs to a 5-7 record, which was tied for the second-highest win total for a first-year coach at The Citadel. Three of the Bulldogs’ losses came by a total of nine points, including two in the final seconds. The Citadel rushed for over 4,166 yards, ranking third-best in single-season program history, and their 347.2 rushing averaged led the SoCon and ranked second nationally. Coach Houston with his wife, Amanda, and two sons, Owen (left) and Reid (right). Prior to The Citadel, Houston was head coach at Lenoir-Rhyne, an NCAA Division II school in the South Atlantic Conference, for three seasons. He accumulated a 29-8 record at the helm and directed the Bears to three consecutive SAC championships, a stretch that included a school-record 13 wins in his final year. Houston was named SAC Coach of the Year each season and was also the Don Hansen Super Region II Coach of the Year in 2013. In his final season at LRU, the Bears advanced to the Division II national championship game and ranked No. 2 in the final polls.
Before his elevation to head coach, Houston served as Lenoir-Rhyne's defensive coordinator and secondary coach from 2007-10. He spent the 2006 year as associate head coach and defensive coordinator at Brevard College.
Houston began his coaching career in the high school ranks. He coached for a decade at T.C. Roberson High School in Ashville, N.C., including the last five as head coach, where he went 42-18 and guided the team to its first-ever conference championship. He spent his first five seasons at T.C. Roberson as the defensive coordinator after leading the defense at Forbush High School in East Bend, N.C. in his first two years out of college.
Houston is a 1994 graduate of Mars Hill University, where he played tight end for the Lions and earned a bachelor's degree in biology. In 2014, Houston was inducted into the Franklin High School Athletic Hall of Fame.
He is married to the former Amanda Owen and they have two sons, Owen Michael and Reid Wilson.
Mike Houston Collegiate Coaching File:
James Madison – Head Coach – 2016-pres.
The Citadel – Head Coach – 2014-15
Lenoir-Rhyne (D2) – Head Coach – 2011-13
Lenoir-Rhyne (D2) – Defensive Coordinator – 2007-10
Brevard College (D2 Transitional) – Defensive Coordinator – 2006
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