The Eastern Michigan University football defense will be led by the coordinator duo for the first time when the Eagles play their first game of the season on August 29, 2026, against Sacramento State, the newest team to the Mid-American Conference.
On December 22, 2025, Eastern Michigan head coach Chris Creighton announced the promotion of Tate Omli and Kasey Teegardin to co-defensive coordinators. The move came after Ben Needham, who led the Eagles' defense for three seasons, left the program. Rather than hire from outside, Creighton turned to two coaches already on his staff and handed them the defense together.
A new approach
Instead of naming one coordinator, Creighton offered Omli and Teegardin the idea of building the defense as a pair. The two coaches sat down, planned out what each would run on his own, and combined their ideas into one system. Both have described the partnership as a smooth one so far.
"Honestly, it's been seamless," Omli said in a written statement. "It's been really smooth. It's been a blast."
The two coaches bring different styles to the field, according to senior defensive back Bryce Llewellyn.
“Coach T is more of the aggressive, intense guy," Llewellyn said in a written statement. "And then Coach Omli comes back and then kind of chill, kind of thinking more intuitively and making sure everybody's on the right line of communication.
Coach Omli
Omli enters his fourth season at Eastern Michigan. Before arriving in Ypsilanti, he spent three seasons as the defensive coordinator at Hutchinson Community College in Hutchinson, Kansas. His time there was a successful one, as his teams went 28-3, won two league titles, reached multiple national championship games, and won the NJCAA National Championship in 2020-21.
That success carried over to Eastern Michigan's secondary in 2025. Bryce Llewellyn led the team with 103 tackles, two interceptions, and 5.0 tackles for loss, and became the first Eastern Michigan defensive back to earn all-conference honors since 2020. Along with Llewellyn, Barry Manning added 73 tackles in a hybrid safety-linebacker role, while Jason Marshall finished with 64 tackles of his own.
Coach Teegardin
Teegardin begins his third year at Eastern Michigan, adding to his already-experienced coaching background. He spent 10 seasons at Indiana University and has more than 18 years in college coaching from previous jobs at Valparaiso University, Northwood University, and the University of Charleston in West Virginia. At Charleston, he became the youngest defensive coordinator in the NCAA at age 24, leading a defense that ranked 19th in the nation against the run.
At Indiana, Teegardin coached 10 All-Big Ten players and built special teams units that blocked 10 kicks over four years. That development has continued with Eastern Michigan's defensive line, which is led by Carter Evans and freshman Quincy Byas. Byas made an early impact in 2025, finishing with a team-high six tackles for loss.
Looking ahead
Eastern Michigan finished the 2025 season with a record of 4-8 and now turns its defense over to two new leaders. The Eagles return key pieces in the secondary and a young defensive line that is set to keep improving.
Llewellyn has said the defense will have a different look in 2026.
"There's a lot of differentiation between last year's defense and this year's defense," he said in a written statement.
With Omli and Teegardin sharing the role, Eastern Michigan is set up to grow as a team and to improve upon last season's record.
