@CoachColemanRMU
Robert Morris University head football coach
John Banaszak announced the hiring of
Cornelius Coleman as an assistant coach in January 2014. Coleman primarily works with the defensive line. He also serves as an academic advisor for the athletic department as a whole.
Making impressions across multiple levels, Coleman received an invitation to join the Pittsburgh Steelers coaching staff through the NFL Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellowship for the 2017 preseason camp at St. Vincent College in Latrobe.
The defensive lines have excelled under Coleman's tutelage and 2016 was no exception. Defensive end Ryan Lewis earned All-Northeast Conference accolades. Playing in the team's base 3-4 setup, he got to the quarterback 4.5 times and tallied 6.5 tackles for loss. He led the team with six quarterback hurries. In all, his defensive line accounted for 9.5 sacks and 22.5 tackles for loss, helping a defense that finished in the top-30 nationally in seven different statistical categories.
Coleman’s defensive linemen were a continuous pest for opposing offenses in 2015 as RMU led the league and ranked seventh nationally in sacks per game (3.09). The Colonials tied their single-season school record with 34 sacks and also topped the NEC in tackles for loss (7.7/game), sitting 14th nationally. His unit helped RMU rank among the top 25 nationally in seven defensive categories, including third-down defense and fourth-down defense, two categories in which the Colonials led the league.
Coleman’s work with Forrest Mason continued to pay dividends in 2015 as the latter was named All-NEC First Team. Under Coleman’s guidance, Mason set career highs in tackles (60), tackles for loss (11.0) and sacks (6.5) as he was second in the league in tackles/game among defensive linemen.
Coleman helped Mason earn All-Northeast Conference honors in the former’s first season with the Colonials. Making the honor more impressive was the fact that the league coaches honored Mason despite his playing in only seven games. Coleman also guided Austin Trgovcich to 53 tackles in his first season competing collegiately, a mark that led the defensive line corps. Ryan Lewis posted 7.5 tackles for loss in 2014 under Coleman in his first season of significant collegiate action.
Before arriving at RMU, Coleman most recently served as the assistant head coach and recruiting coordinator at Averett University. He was a member of the Cougars’ staff for seven seasons and worked with both the defensive line and linebackers in his time there.
Coleman had an impact on the Averett defense almost immediately as his work with the unit helped the Cougars break their single-season school record for sacks in 2008 while leading their league in sacks per game. In both 2009 and 2010, Averett led the USA South Conference in turnover margin with Coleman’s help. The Cougars actually ranked sixth nationally in that category in 2009, an attribute that helped three linebackers earn all-conference honors while playing under Coleman that season.
Coleman guided his group of defensive linemen to a standout season in 2011 as the Cougars ranked 15th nationally in tackles for loss per game, and a trio of Cougars earned all-league honors along the defensive line. Coleman guided both Albert Brown, a postseason All-American honoree, and Corey Scruggs, who broke the school’s single-season sack record, to invitations to the Division III Senior Classic Game in 2011.
While at Averett, Coleman assisted with strength and conditioning and video aspects of the team. He also served as a liaison for the football program to various administrative departments on campus.
Coleman has served for multiple years on the American Football Coaches Association Minority Committee. He has also been selected to participate in the NFL-NCAA Coaches Academy on two occasions (2012, 2015), a unique opportunity that provides former NFL players and college coaches with tools and networking opportunities for careers as football coaches. Coleman also authored an article (“The Five Most Important Drills for Defensive Line Play”) that appeared in an issue of
Gridiron Strategies in 2012.
Prior to his position at Averett, Coleman worked in multiple roles at Robert Morris. He worked in the undergraduate enrollment office at RMU from 2003 to 2007, first as a manager and then as an assistant director. He was also an assistant in the athletics compliance office from 2005 to 2007.
Coleman was a four-year letterwinner at defensive end for Waynesburg University. He claimed an All-America honorable mention accolade along with All-Presidents Athletic Conference First Team honors after the 1999 season when he tied for the team lead in sacks and topped the squad in tackles for loss. Coleman was also a member of the first Yellow Jackets squad to claim a PAC Championship in 1998.
Coleman went on to compete professionally in multiple leagues. He led the Dayton Skyhawks in sacks and tackles for loss while starting all 18 games with the squad in 2000. He also started 10 games for the Roanoke Steam in 2002 and played both defensive end and tight end.
A native of Washington, D.C., Coleman earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in communication from Waynesburg in 1999. He proceeded to earn a Master of Business Administration degree from Waynesburg (2003) and a Master of Science degree in sport management from Robert Morris (2006). He completed his Doctorate of Education in educational leadership from Argosy University in the 2014-15 academic year.
