Jim Gush was named to the football coaching staff at Stony Brook in February 2009 as Assistant Head Coach of the Defense. In his role he serves as the defensive coordinator for the Seawolves. Gush[apos]s defense led the Big South in scoring defense in 2009, allowing a conference-low 15 touchdowns in six games. Senior linebacker Tyler Santucci was named Big South Defensive Player of the Year and four different players earned All-Big South honors.
Gush brings 28 years of coaching experience to the Seawolves, most recently serving on the staff at Southern Methodist University for six seasons (2002-07) as defensive coordinator. In addition to his coordinator duties, he also served as the position coach with the linebackers for one year and defensive backs for five seasons. While there he directed an SMU defense that led Conference-USA and ranked 24th in the nation against the run in 2006 and coached Joe Sturdivant to all-C-USA accolades at safety in 2005 and 2006. He also led Vic Viloria to first team all-WAC honors in 2002
Before joining the SMU program Gush spent three seasons at Kansas State. All three seasons he was with the Wildcats the program ranked among the top four in the nation in total defense, helping Kansas State to a bowl appearance in each of those seasons and a combined 28-10 record. In 2000 Kansas State ranked fourth in the nation in total defense while in 1999 the Wildcats were second in total defense and led the nation in pass efficiency defense. During the `99 season, Gush coached Butkus Award runner-up and consensus All-American Mark Simoneau
Prior to Kansas State, Gush spent 12 years at Garden City Community College in Kansas. After spending 10 seasons as the defensive coordinator for the program he took over as head coach in 1996, putting together a combined 29-7 record. Garden City CC was ranked seventh in the nation in 1996 (10-2), fourth in 1997 (10-2) and seventh in 1998 (9-3). In 1996 he led the team to a victory in the Real Dairy Bowl while the next year he led the squad to a Jayhawk Conference championship and a berth in the Red River Bowl, the national championship game. In 1998 the team also went to a bowl game, winning the Valley of the Sun Bowl. Garden City CC produced a first team JC All-American every season Gush was a coach there and played in the Jayhawk Conference Championship game in 10 of his 12 seasons with the Broncbusters.
Gush began his collegiate coaching career at Albany in 1983 where he coached defensive backs. He then moved to Iowa State as a graduate assistant in 1984, serving as special teams coordinator and assistant defensive backs coach until moving to Garden City CC
A 1981 graduate of Bucknell University with a BS in economics, Gush was a four-year starter for the Bison and also served as a student assistant. He earned his Master[apos]s in higher education from Iowa State in 1986. A native of Elmira, N.Y., he and his wife, Anne, have two children, Stephanie and Jordan.
