Matt Hanhold is set to begin his third season as the Golden Eagles' defensive coordinator and defensive line coach in 2021. It is the third year of Hanhold's second stint on the coaching staff, as he spent two years as a graduate assistant coach in 2006-07 before spending more than 10 years filling his coaching resume.
In 2019, the Golden Eagle defense boasted First Team All-PSAC West selection Saif Khan, who went on to earn Don Hansen Football Gazette All-America Honorable Mention honors. Khan and fellow lineman Vaughn Wallace became a fearsome pass-rushing duo, with the two combining for 10 sacks on the year. Sam Fareri became the first two-time CoSIDA Academic All-American in program history and ranked ninth in the PSAC in tackles at 7.6 stops per game. The Golden Eagles were one of the stingiest teams in the league on third down, allowing opponents to convert just 36.4 percent of the time.
Before coming back to Clarion, Hanhold was employed as the special teams coordinator, as well as outside linebackers and defensive line coach, at Baldwin Wallace University. The Yellow Jackets went 8-2 in Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) action this past year, with Jordan Leverette earning First Team All-OAC and Third Team D3 Football All-North Region honors as a kick returner. Before his stint in Berea Hanhold spent a year as the head coach at Cincinnati Country Day high school, as well as the associate athletic director and head strength & conditioning coach. He coached a pair of highly-touted players in Connor Pohl and Patrick Magarian, with the latter earning third team all-state honors as well as the Anthony Munoz Division VI Defensive Lineman of the Year award.
Before that, Hanhold spent five years at Colby College in Waterville, Maine, holding a number of titles including Associate Head Coach and Co-Defensive Coordinator from 2012-17. He coached three players to four total all-conference selections on the defensive line including Ryan Velliette, who in 2012 led the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) in sacks and was named a D3 Football Third Team All-Region selection. Hanhold previously worked at Buffalo State College from 2008-12 as a wide receivers coach.
Golden Eagle fans may remember Hanhold from his days in the Blue & Gold, as he was a graduate assistant coach during the 2006-07 seasons. Hanhold assisted the wide receivers and defensive backs, helping the 2006 pass defense rank second in the PSAC with an average of just 161.5 yards allowed per game. He helped coach Alfonso Hoggard, the 2007 PSAC West Freshman of the Year and an Honorable Mention All-American, as well as All-Region receiver Pierre Odom and all-conference defensive back Dawon Woodard.
Hanhold was a team captain and three-year letterwinner at Westminster and was a 2005 All-President’s Athletic Conference (PAC) selection on the defensive line. He graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science in 2006, and earned his Master’s in Rehabilitative Sciences from Clarion in 2008.
