Bob Ligashesky will run the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' special teams, assisted by Phil Galiano. Jay Butler will head up the team's strength and conditioning program, with help from assistant Joe Vaughn. Kevin MacConnell will serve as the Buccaneers' director of football operations.
And with that, Head Coach Greg Schiano's first Tampa Bay staff is complete.
The Buccaneers introduced their entire offensive staff on Tuesday, after revealing the defensive group the previous Thursday. Schiano, who was named the ninth head coach in franchise history on January 26, 2012, also hired Offensive Coordinator Mike Sullivan, Defensive Coordinator Bill Sheridan and Senior Offensive Assistant Jimmy Raye earlier in the month.
The final additions to Schiano's staff continue his trend of surrounding himself with a significant amount of coaching experience, as well as some helpful ties to his very successful program at Rutgers.
Ligashesky has coached the special teams at three other NFL stops, and Galiano becomes the 10th different person added to the Bucs' 2012 staff who has been a head coach and/or a coordinator on the NFL or NCAA level. Butler's 20 years of college coaching experience include the full 11 seasons that Schiano ran the Rutgers program (2001-11) and Vaughn comes to the Bucs after working for several Big 12 programs. MacConnell's 25-plus years in the Rutgers athletic department included his most recent post as the school's deputy director of athletics.
Ligasheskywill enter his ninth NFL season after coaching on the collegiate level for 19 years. He has previously served as special teams coach for Jacksonville (2004), St. Louis (2005-06) and Pittsburgh (2007-09), and was special teams assistant in Oakland last season. Ligashesky spent the 2010 campaign as the Rams' tight ends coach.
During his tenure in Pittsburgh, Ligashesky's units played a pivotal role in the team's 2008 championship season, which culminated in a victory over Arizona at Raymond James Stadium in Super Bowl XLIII. That year, the Steelers led the NFL in kickoff return average allowed and were fourth in the league in punt return average allowed. The following season the Steelers ranked eighth in the NFL in kickoff return average.
Ligashesky has also had marked success with his kickers at each of his stops in the professional ranks. Last season, Oakland's Sebastian Janikowski ranked fifth in the NFL with a field goal success rate of 88.6% and sixth with 31 field goals made overall. During the three years Ligashesky coached with the Steelers, kicker Jeff Reed was successful on 88.5 percent (77-87) of his field goal attempts, which led the NFL over that span. In Reed's six other NFL seasons, he converted 79.1 (136-172) of his attempts.
In St. Louis, Ligashesky helped Jeff Wilkins make 59 field goals in two seasons, the second-highest total in the NFL during that span. Wilkins' 86.8 success rate was also fourth best in the league over those two years. That percentage is more than six points higher than Wilkins' career average during his other 12 NFL seasons.
In 2004, Ligashesky helped rookie kicker Josh Scobee make 24 field goals, which ranked eighth in the NFL that season, and finish seventh in the league with 11 touchbacks. That year, the Jaguars also ranked 10th in punt return average and punt average, and eighth in punts inside the 20-yard line.
Ligashesky, a Pittsburgh native, graduated from Indiana University of Pennsylvania, where he was a defensive back. He served as a graduate assistant at Arizona State and Wake Forest and coached at Kent State, Bowling Green and Pittsburgh before entering the NFL.
Galiano spent the past two seasons at Rutgers – his second stint with the Scarlet Knights – where he coached tight ends in 2010 and, most recently, the defensive line in 2011.
Prior to his return to Rutgers, Galiano served as the defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at Florida International. While at FIU, Galiano helped the Panthers improve dramatically on defense. Between the 2007 and 2008 seasons, FIU jumped up 74 spots in the national rankings in turnover margin, 45 spots in defensive pass efficiency, 36 spots in scoring defense, 34 spots in total defense and 25 spots in rush defense. The team also ranked 25th nationally in tackles for loss average, improving 37 spots.
In his first stint with the Scarlet Knights, Galiano began as a defensive assistant in 2003 before being elevated to linebackers coach in 2004, later moving over to coach defensive ends from 2005-06.
In 2006, Galiano's defensive ends were major contributors on a defensive unit that ranked fourth nationally. Rutgers' defense was fifth in the NCAA in both sacks and tackles for loss per game and produced first-team All-America and All-Big East defensive lineman Eric Foster, as well as second-team All-Big East defensive lineman Jamaal Westerman, both current players in the NFL. That season, Rutgers earned just the second bowl berth in school history and its first ever bowl victory with a 37-10 win over Kansas State in the Texas Bowl.
Galiano began his coaching career at Dickenson College working with the outside linebackers (2000) and also had stops at the University of New Haven as outside linebackers coach (2001) and Villanova as an offensive assistant (2002), working primarily with the tight ends.
A captain and three-year starter at safety for Shippensburg University, Galiano helped the Raiders to three consecutive winning seasons from 1997-99, posting a 21-11 mark over that span.
Butler brings more than 20 years of strength and conditioning experience in the collegiate ranks with him to Tampa. He served as the Scarlet Knight's head football strength and conditioning coach throughout his 11 years in Schiano's program, while also adding the duties of assistant athletic director for strength and conditioning over the last seven years.
During his tenure at Rutgers, Butler designed the school's state-of-the-art, 15,500-square-foot strength and conditioning facility where he incorporated the latest technologies, including digital video analysis, a 60-yard FieldTurf track and other amenities to complete one of the nation's premier facilities. In March of 2007, Butler was recognized as Samson's Division I-A Strength and Conditioning Coach of the Year.
Butler's program helped develop 16 eventual NFL Draft picks, including 13 in the last five years (2007-11). The Scarlet Knights produced three first-round picks in the last three drafts, who are among 21 former Butler pupils in the NFL.
Prior to joining the Scarlet Knights, Butler served as the Director of Speed, Strength and Conditioning at Dartmouth College for five years (1996-2000). Before his stint at Dartmouth, Butler worked four years at East Carolina University in the strength and conditioning program. He began his coaching career as a graduate assistant for three years at ECU while earning his master's degree. He was soon promoted to Assistant Director of Strength and Conditioning in 1995. Butler also earned a degree in Mechanical Engineering from Bucknell University in 1991, where he was a three-year starter and two-time All-American tackle before playing two seasons on the professional level.
Vaughn joins the Buccaneers from the University of Kansas, where he has been assistant strength and conditioning coach since 2007. Prior to his latest stint at Kansas, his alma mater, Vaughn worked in the same capacity at the University of Oklahoma.
As a player, Vaughn was a standout for the Jayhawks for two seasons, garnering second-team All-Big 12 honors and Kansas' Offensive Most Valuable Player Award as a senior in 2004. He earned his bachelor's degree in Applied Behavioral Science before serving as a graduate assistant strength coach at Kansas.
MacConnell joins the Buccaneers after serving in a variety of roles for Rutgers for more than 25 years, including the deputy director of athletics position he assumed in 2005. In that role, MacConnell oversaw the day-to-day operation of the Rutgers Athletic Department and worked closely with the associate athletic directors who handled areas such as facilities; events and operations; student services and compliance; administration and finance; communications; and development and marketing. MacConnell will also worked closely with the football and men's and women's basketball programs while continuing as the administrator for men's soccer and men's lacrosse.
MacConnell graduated from Rutgers College in 1980 and returned to his alma mater in 1986 when he was named director of sports media relations. He also served as assistant athletic director for marketing and communications and associate athletic director for external affairs. Prior to his time at Rutgers, MacConnell worked for the Atlantic 10 Conference, the New Jersey Generals (USFL) and the New Jersey Nets.
MacConnell has been tournament manager for a number of Big East Conference and NCAA events hosted by Rutgers, including the 1996 NCAA Final Four at the Meadowlands and the 2001 and 2002 NCAA Men's Lacrosse Championships at Rutgers Stadium.
TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS 2012 COACHING STAFF
- Greg Schiano…Head Coach
- Bill Sheridan…Defensive Coordinator
- Mike Sullivan…Offensive Coordinator
- Bob Ligashesky…Special Teams Coordinator
- Jimmy Raye…Senior Offensive Assistant
- Brian Angelichio…Tight Ends Coach
- Bob Bostad…Offensive Line Coach
- Jay Butler…Head Strength and Conditioning Coach
- Earnest Byner…Running Backs Coach
- Ron Cooper…Defensive Backs Coach
- Bryan Cox…Defensive Front Seven Coach
- P.J. Fleck…Wide Receivers Coach
- Bob Fraser…Linebackers Coach
- Phil Galiano…Assistant Special Teams Coach
- Jeff Hafley…Assistant Defensive Backs Coach
- Steve Loney…Assistant Offensive Line Coach
- Tem Lukabu…Defensive Assistant
- Kevin MacConnell…Director of Football Operations
- Ben McDaniels…Offensive Assistant
- Randy Melvin…Defensive Line Coach
- Ron Turner…Quarterbacks Coach
- Joe Vaughn…Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach
