Another former Cougar is joining new BYU defensive coordinator Jay Hill’s coaching staff.
The program announced Monday that former Cougar linebacker Justin Ena is hired as a defensive assistant coach.
He joins a group of new assistants that includes Sione Po’uha and Kelly Poppinga, and Ena’s hiring completes the defensive staff under Hill, the school said.
Ena will serve as linebackers coach, Poppinga as special teams coordinator and coach defensive ends, Po’uha will coach defensive tackles, Jernaro Gilford will continue to serve as cornerbacks coach and Hill will coach safeties, in addition to his role as defensive coordinator and associate head coach.
“I am super excited to have Justin join our coaching staff,” BYU coach Kalani Sitake said in a statement. “Justin and I played together at BYU, and I’ve followed closely his coaching career over the years.
“He has worked with many defensive-minded head coaches and gained valuable experience as both a defensive coordinator and special teams coordinator in addition to coaching several different positions on defense. He’s a great fit. He’s a BYU guy and complements well the strengths of our defensive staff.”
Ena, who played for BYU from 1997-2001 and played four seasons in the NFL, has 16 years worth of coaching experience.
He has coached at every other Utah school that sponsors Division I football, including Southern Utah (2008-2013), Weber State (2014), Utah (2015-18), Utah State (2019-20) and Utah Tech (2021).
He was most recently coaching the defensive line at San Diego State in 2022.
“I am excited to be working with Justin Ena again,” Hill said in a statement. “He brings great toughness and discipline to our defensive staff. He was a great player here at BYU and has been an outstanding coach throughout his career. He has worked with many elite coaches during his career and will bring great knowledge to our staff. I’m elated to have him coaching our players here at BYU.”
Ena coached inside linebackers at Utah State for two seasons and served as the Aggies’ defensive coordinator in 2019. Prior to that, he coached linebackers at Utah in 2015, then retained that role and added co-special teams coordinator duties the next three years.
He has served as defensive coordinator during seven different seasons for four different teams.
“I am excited to join Coach Sitake at our alma mater and cannot wait to work with him and Coach Hill and their outstanding coaching staff,” Ena said in a statement. “I am beyond blessed to be able to come back home to BYU and win conference championships in the Big 12.”