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The Big Ten has become a landing spot for Utah State football coaches

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Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald, right, leads the team onto the field for the team’s NCAA college football game against Miami (Ohio) on Saturday, Sept. 24, 2022, in Evanston, Ill.

Matt Marton, AP

Spring camp is closer than ever for Utah State — head coach Blake Anderson said last month that it will start on March 14 — but before that, the Aggies have another coaching vacancy to fill.

According to ESPN’s Pete Thamel, USU cornerbacks coach LaMarcus Hicks is leaving Logan and taking the same job at Northwestern.

Hicks’ departure creates a fifth coaching vacancy for Utah State this offseason, after the Aggies also lost their offensive and defensive coordinators, defensive tackles coach and offensive line coach.

The former OC — Anthony Tucker — took a job at Indiana and Hicks will follow him into the Big Ten at Northwestern. Other former Aggies coaches have left for the NFL (Ephraim Banda to the Cleveland Browns) and the SEC (Micah James to Tennessee).

A former NFL defensive back with the Detroit Lions, Hicks spent two seasons with Utah State as part of a 12-year coaching career which has included stints at Division 1 schools in Eastern Michigan, Bowling Green, Jackson State and North Texas.

Northwestern is led by long-time coach Pat Fitzgerald, head coach of the Wildcats since 2006.

Utah State has moved quickly to replace its lost coaches this winter, hiring Joe Cauthen as defensive coordinator, promoting wide receivers coach Kyle Cefalo to offensive coordinator — Anderson will call the offensive plays — hiring Cooper Bassett as the offensive line coach and former Utah Ute Tevita Finau as defensive tackles coach.