Sean Coughlin enters his 13th season at Missouri State and his first as associate head coach, after serving as the Bears' co-offensive coordinator over the last two seasons.
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Coughlin, who also oversees the Bears’ offensive line, came to Missouri State from Iowa State where he worked as a graduate assistant and offensive line assistant. He worked with the Bears’ tight ends and fullbacks his first two years and took over offensive line coaching duties in 2008.
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During his tenure, Coughlin’s linemen have earned MVFC Offensive Lineman of the Week honors 14 times, with 12 all-conference selections and five NFL players.
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In 2010, standout lineman David Arkin earned consensus All-America and second-team Academic All-America honors before being picked by Dallas in the 2011 NFL Draft. Former Bears Jake Duron, and Riley Shantz also inked free agent contracts during Coughlin's tenure.
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Coughlin also mentored Clay Harbor, a consensus All-American tight end and NFL Draft pick to the Eagles in 2009-10, as well as Randy Richards, an AP and AFCA All-America selection. Richards enjoyed NFL stints with the Chargers and Buccaneers before catching on in the CFL with Saskatchewan and Calgary.
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The 2001 Drake University graduate was a standout offensive lineman from his playing days. A three-time All-Pioneer Conference offensive guard at Drake, he was a first-team all-conference choice from 1998-2000 and earned All-America honors from Football Gazette his final two seasons. He was team captain in 2000.
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Coughlin coached three seasons at his alma mater, working the 2001 and 2002 seasons as assistant offensive line coach and tight ends coach for the Bulldogs while mentoring two all-conference first team linemen.
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He joined the Iowa State offensive staff in 2004 and spent two seasons there while pursuing his master’s in higher education (2006).
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The Kildeer, Ill., native earned his bachelor’s degree in history from Drake in 2001. He is MSU’s NFL liaison. He and his wife, Haley, have daughters Natalia and Maddie.
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