William Green begins his third season as Rich Rodriguez’s Defensive Line Coach at Jacksonville State and his seventh overall with the Gamecocks after a four-year stop earlier in his career.
Rodriguez brought a familiar face to him and to Jax State on staff when he hired former Gamecock assistant William Green, who also coached with him at ULM.
Three defensive linemen made the All-Conference USA lists in 2023 as the Gamecocks led the league in sacks with 39 during a 9-4 season which saw the program win their first FBS Bowl Game in their first year of FBS play. Tackle Jeff Marks was helped solidify Jax State as one of the top run stopping teams and also recovered a pair of fumbles to go with his 34 tackles during an honorable mention All-CUSA campaign.
His return to Jax State saw immediate success, as the Gamecocks posted a 9-2 record in 2022 that included a perfect 5-0 record in ASUN play and a conference championship. His defensive line played a huge role in the nation’s 12th-best Red Zone Defense, as well as a stingy unit that led the nation with 15 fumble recoveries.
Green returned to Jax State after helping former Defensive Coordinator Zac Alley guide the ULM defense in 2020, when his defensive line unit set the tone for a rushing defense that improved 56 spots in the FBS national rankings from 2020 before he joined the staff. His unit was also strong when it counted, holding opposing offenses to a .353 success rate on fourth downs, the eighth-best mark in the nation.
Prior to going to ULM, Green coached the Gamecocks’ defensive line and was also their run game coordinator. In four seasons, JSU went 28-13 (.683), including an 18-6 record (.750) in Ohio Valley Conference games, won back-to-back league titles in 2017-18 and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision those same two seasons.
Prior to being hired as JSU’s defensive line coach in 2017, Green was a graduate assistant for his alma mater, Florida, in 2016 after serving as a graduate assistant with the Gamecocks under Todd Bates in 2014 and 2015.
Green’s first season saw the Gamecock defense dominate the opposition as one of the best units in the nation. The 2017 unit ranked second nationally in total defense, third in run defense, sixth in scoring defense and fifth in pass efficiency defense. The front line played in its opponent’s backfield for much of the year, leading the OVC and ranking eighth nationally in tackles for loss.
Randy Robinson grabbed All-OVC honors on the defensive line in Green’s first season, one that saw his defense lead JSU to a 10-2 record and the No. 3 national seed in the FCS Playoffs. It was the third-straight year that JSU had earned a top three seed in the playoffs, while the Gamecocks’ 8-0 record in OVC play led to their fourth-straight league title and extended the longest active conference win streak in Division I football to 32 games.
Green’s second season saw similar success, with Robinson grabbing All-America honors and All-OVC honors once more. He wasn’t alone, as fellow tackle Connor Christian also grabbed All-OVC accolades up front. JSU led the OVC and ranked seventh nationally in tackles for loss and was 15th in FCS in total defense. The defensive front set the tone for a unit that ranked second nationally in third-down conversion defense and led the Gamecocks to their OVC-record fifth-straight conference title.
Green played for the Gators from 2008-11, seeing action in 53 games. He recorded 53 tackles, 11 for a loss, 2.5 sacks and a career-best 21 tackles in his senior season. He was a member of Florida’s National Championship team as a freshman in 2008.
Green prepped at Spain Park High School in Hoover, where he was an All-American linebacker and defensive end for John Grass and the Jaguars in 2007.
Green was also a first team all-state selection and named to the Alabama Sports Writers Association’s Super 12 Team in a senior season that saw him register 114 tackles, four sacks and a fumble recovery in SPHS’s AHSAA Class 6A runner-up season before signing with Florida.
Following his playing days at Florida, Green went to training camp with the Cleveland Browns and then played in the Arena Football League.
