The Miami Hurricanes agreed to new multi-year deals with offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson and defensive coordinator Corey Hetherman.
Sources: Miami has agreed to a new multi-year contract with defensive coordinator Corey Hetherman. In his first year at Miami, he led a turnaround to the nation’s No. 5 scoring defense from the No. 70 in the year before he arrived. pic.twitter.com/Ez1EypsWIv
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) April 13, 2026
The timing is perfect as both coordinators helped drive Miami to the 2025 College Football Playoff national championship game.
Sources: Miami offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson has agreed to a new multi-year contract with the school. Dawson just completed his third year at Miami, where he helped develop Cam Ward to the No. 1 overall pick and coordinatoed the No. 1 scoring and total offense in 2024. pic.twitter.com/pDFPwJuC0k
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) April 13, 2026
Shannon Dawson and Corey Hetherman sign deals with Miami
Dawson is entering his fourth season at Miami in 2026 after coordinating an offense that took a major jump in 2023, led the nation in points and total yards in 2024, and then helped push the Hurricanes through their first-ever CFP run in 2025. The 2025 offense averaged 5.8 yards per play and produced eight All-ACC selections, while 2024 was even better statistically at 43.9 points and 537.2 yards per game, both No. 1 nationally.
Dawson helped guide Cam Ward through a monster 2024 campaign that ended with Ward winning the Davey O'Brien Award and becoming the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL draft.
Hetherman is entering his second season as defensive coordinator in 2026 after engineering one of the nation's best year-over-year defensive turnarounds in his first season. The Hurricanes finished No. 12 nationally in total defense, No. 5 in scoring defense, No. 6 in rushing defense and No. 4 in sacks in 2025, all while leading the ACC in each of those categories. Hetherman was also a finalist for the 2025 Broyles Award, which goes to the nation's top assistant coach.
Miami hired Hetherman from Minnesota in January 2025, and one season later the defense had gone from one of the biggest questions around the program to one of its biggest strengths. Hetherman's defense fueled the CFP run, and he helped Rueben Bain Jr. win ACC Defensive Player of the Year and the Ted Hendricks Award. The squad from last season produced 10 All-ACC selections, with multiple players headed to the NFL.