Mike Mickens / Notre Dame Cornerbacks Coach

Mike Mickens starts his third season as cornerbacks coach for Notre Dame and looks to continue his knack for developing solid performers in the secondary.

Mickens played collegiately at the University of Cincinnati and then began the first of two stints on the Bearcats’ coaching staff in 2011. He served as a defensive assistant during that campaign and then held the same position at Indiana State the following year.

In 2013, Mickens became cornerback coach for the University of Idaho before heading back to the Midwest in the same role for Bowling Green one year later. That four-year stretch ended after the 2017 season and led to him returning to his alma mater.

While tutoring Bearcats cornerbacks for two seasons, Mickens played a key role in helping Ahmad (Sauce) Gardner make an immediate impact that led to Freshman All-America honors. Those efforts laid the groundwork for Gardner to be selected by the New York Jets with the fourth overall pick in April’s NFL draft.

In Mickens’ first season on the Irish coaching staff in 2020, he helped Nick McCloud earn postseason accolades with some clutch performances. McCloud had a team-high eight pass deflections as well as two fumble recoveries in the overtime win against Clemson.

For the 2021 campaign, Mickens aided Cam Hart in collecting a team-high seven pass deflections, along with two interceptions in the big win over Wisconsin. On the other side, Clarence Lewis contributed four pass deflections and also added an interception while also forcing a fumble.