Scott Lakatos hired as secondary coach

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Bryant University football head coach Chris Merritt is pleased to announce the addition of long-time FBS coach Scott Lakatos to his staff for the upcoming season.

Lakatos will serve as the secondary coach. He has coached in 10 FBS Bowl games and 14 of his former players have landed in the National Football League.

"Scott has a very impressive resume having coached at Georgia, UConn, Rutgers and Virginia Tech," Merritt said. "He's coached several NFL-caliber players and his knowledge and experience will be a tremendous benefit to our secondary as we try to win our first NEC title."

Lakatos most recently worked at Towson but also has spent two seasons on the staff at Monmouth, four at the University of Georgia and seven at the University of Connecticut. His units have ranked inside the top 25 nationally in passing defense and passing efficiency defense seven times during his coaching career.

"I'm excited to get things going here at Bryant," Lakatos said. "It's a chance for me to be around some coaches that I've known over the years, as well as some new young coaches that I'm excited to get to know. I'm looking forward to getting to know all the players here, helping them improve their technique to be better as football players, while also helping them meet the academic commitment in order to earn a degree from this fine institution."

Prior to coming to Bryant, Lakatos spent the 2018 season on the staff at Towson, helping the Tigers reach the NCAA Tournament. The secondary allowed just over 200 passing yards per game and posted eight interceptions on the year.

Lakatos spent the 2017 season at Red Bank Regional High School after two seasons on the coaching staff at Monmouth. With the Hawks, Lakatos mentored Mike Basile who went on to become one of the best defensive players in Monmouth history, finishing his career with 433 tackles.

Lakatos worked as a defensive consultant at Virginia Tech in 2014 following a four-year stint at Georgia. He helped the Bulldogs to a pair of Southeastern Conference East Division titles in his four seasons in Athens. In 2011, Lakatos coached All-American safety Bacarri Rambo and Paul Hornung Award winner Brandon Boykin as Georgia boasted a top-10 defense nationally. Georgia's pass defense ranked second in the SEC in 2012 with three members of that unit going on to play in the NFL.

Lakatos came to Georgia after seven seasons at UConn, where the Huskies ranked top-10 in passing defense on two occasions. Five of the seasons he was in Storrs, the Huskies ranked in the top-25 nationally in either pass defense or passing efficiency defense. Lakatos mentored five players at UConn that would go on to play in the NFL, including Tevrin Brandon who is currently with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League. He also coached UConn in four bowl games, culminating in a win over South Carolina in the 2009 PapaJohns.com Bowl.

The New Jersey native spent three seasons as the secondary coach at Rutgers before heading to then BIG EAST rival UConn. In 2003, Rutgers ranked second in the BIG EAST in passing defense, yielding 216.42 yards per game, a total surpassed in the conference only by national-leader Miami.

No stranger to the FCS level of competition, Lakatos spent the 1995-2000 seasons at Maine under Jack Cosgrove, serving first as secondary coach for the 1995 season before adding the title of special teams coordinator for the 1996-99 campaigns. In 2000, Lakatos was named the Black Bears' defensive coordinator and linebackers coach. A Maine defensive back earned All-Conference honors in each of his five years coaching that position group and, in 1998, Aaron Dashiell was named an All-American after he finished 11th in the nation in interceptions. Dashiell was a Bryant employee for 14 years, serving as the director of undergraduate advising for six years before moving to Holy Cross.

Lakatos graduated from Western Connecticut in 1988 after earning four varsity letters on the gridiron, under the tutelage of former Syracuse head coach Paul Pasqualoni. The 1985 Colonial squad went 10-2 and advanced to the NCAA Division III Playoffs. Immediately after earning his degree in Justice & Law Administration from WCSU, Lakatos began his coaching career at the Danbury school, working with the Colonials' defensive backs during the 1988 and 1989 seasons.

A native of Long Valley, N.J., Lakatos graduated from West Morris Central High School in 1983 where he played both linebacker and fullback, earning All-County honors on defense. 
He and his wife, Amanda, have a daughter, Sarah Bailey and a son, Cole.