Kyle Krantz - Co-Defensive Coord./Secondary Coach - Staff Directory

Staff Directory

Kyle Krantz

Title:
Co-Defensive Coord./Secondary Coach
Email:
Start Date:
01/01/2023

Kyle Krantz helped Liberty to unprecedented heights during his first season on the Mountain as Special Teams Coordinator/Co-Defensive Coordinator/Outside Linebackers Coach in 2023.

Liberty entered bowl season with a perfect 13-0 record and was one of four undefeated teams in the country, joining Florida State, Washington and eventual national champion Michigan.

Krantz helped the Flames to an unblemished 8-0 regular season record in Conference USA and a 49-35 win over New Mexico State in the CUSA Football Championship game.

The team’s success positioned the Flames to receive their first-ever invitation to play in a New Year’s Six bowl game. Liberty squared off against No. 8 Oregon in the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl on January 1 at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz.

Liberty’s defense proved to be very opportunistic during the 2023 season as the Flames led the nation with 21 total interceptions and ranked No. 9 in the country in turnovers gained (25).

Each turnover resulted in a viral celebration with the player who recorded the turnover wearing the famed Liberty Flames’ Joker mask while celebrating with his teammates and coaches on the sidelines.

The Flames returned two of their national-leading 21 interceptions for a touchdown in 2023, allowing Liberty to rank No. 29 nationally in defensive touchdowns scored (2).

While Liberty’s offense led the country in rushing offense (293.3 yards per game), the Flames’ defensive counterparts were just as tough against the run. Liberty finished the 2023 season ranked No. 24 in the country in rushing defense (116.7 yards allowed per game).

Multiple defensive players were honored for the Flames during the 2023 season, including one of Krantz’s top defensive end/outside linebacker CJ Bazile, who was named to the Conference USA all-conference first team. Bazile led the team in 2023 with 10.5 tackles for a loss.

Along with his defensive coaching duties, Krantz also guided Liberty’s special teams efforts in 2023 as the Flames’ Special Teams Coordinator.

Under Krantz’s leadership, kicker Nick Brown set a school record with 65 extra points, while Conference USA all-conference first team kick return specialist Aaron Bedgood ranked No. 35 in the country in combined kick returns (463 yards).

Liberty’s defense on special teams was tough in 2023. The Flames ranked No. 7 in the country in kickoff return defense (allowing 15.24 yards per return) and No. 21 in punt return defense (allowing 4.50 yards per return).

Krantz brought Power Five coaching experience to Liberty Mountain in 2023 after spending the previous 12 seasons coaching at five different SEC programs.

Krantz spent the last two years working as a special teams analyst at Missouri. The Tigers blocked three kicks during the 2022 season (two kicks and one punt) and did not allow a kick or punt block. Missouri also ranks No. 1 in the country in fewest kickoff return yards allowed per return (13.64).

Krantz spent five seasons at South Carolina (2016-20), including the 2020 season where he served as special team coordinator.

During the 2018 season, his first as an on-field coach, Krantz shared in the responsibility for the development of true freshman defensive back Jaycee Horn. Horn earned a spot on the SEC All-Freshman team and was recognized by 247Sports as a midseason true freshman All-American.

In 2019, Krantz mentored Jammie Robinson, who earned SEC All-Freshman accolades, along with SAM linebacker Sherrod Greene, who showed tremendous improvement over the course of the season. The Gamecocks’ special teams boasted a school record-holder in punter Joseph Charlton, while ranking in the top-20 in net punting for a third-straight year. Placekicker Parker White was successful on 81.8 percent of his field goal attempts.

The Gamecocks’ special teams boasted a school record holder in punter Joseph Charlton, while ranking in the top 20 in net punting for a third-straight year. Placekicker Parker White was successful on 81.8 percent of his field goal attempts.

A 2009 graduate of the Northern Colorado with a degree in sociology, Krantz began his career as a student assistant for the defense at North Carolina from 2007-08 before becoming the linebackers coach at his alma mater from 2009-10. During the summer of 2011, he worked as an offensive quality control volunteer at Northwestern.

Krantz joined the Kentucky staff just prior to the start of the 2011 season, serving as a graduate assistant for the Wildcats. After two seasons in Lexington, he moved on to Florida, where he was placed in charge of quality control for the offense in 2013, working primarily with the wide receivers, and for the defense in 2014, working with the defensive backs under head coach Will Muschamp.

Krantz spent the 2015 season as a defensive analyst on Gus Malzahn’s staff at Auburn, working again with Coach Muschamp and secondary coach Travaris Robinson, before reuniting with Muschamp and Robinson in Columbia.

A native of Denver, Colo., Krantz is married to the former Brittany Hauck.

Krantz at a Glance
Coaching Experience: