Football: Robby Discher and Austin Armstrong Are Named to Football Staff by Napier

Napier selects Toledo special teams coordinator Robby Discher for same role with Ragin’ Cajuns

Robby Discher

LAFAYETTE – Louisiana Football has added Robby Discher as Special Teams Coordinator and Defensive Assistant Coach, head coach Billy Napier announced on Monday. Discher received national acclaim in 2014, earning recognition as FootballScoop Special Teams Coordinator of the Year while at Oklahoma State.

Discher recently completed his fourth season as special teams coordinator and tight ends coach at Toledo. From 2016-19, the Rockets averaged more than eight wins per season, including an 11-3 season in 2017 that featured a win in the Mid-American Conference Championship Game over Akron.

"Robby Discher’s experience and successful track record as a special teams coordinator is well documented," Napier said. "We are thrilled to add him to our staff at Louisiana. He has a great pedigree and reputation in college football, and we look forward to his leadership of our Game Changers units. We are excited to welcome his family to Lafayette as we continue preparations for the 2020 season."

The Rockets’ special teams unit earned extensive praise during Discher’s tenure, including a No. 1 national ranking in efficiency from Phil Steele in 2018 and No. 2 ranking from ESPN.com. Toledo led the MAC in return touchdowns that season, taking three punts and one kickoff back for scores. Discher was also named Special Teams Coordinator of the Year by Phil Steele following Toledo’s 2018 campaign, which saw the Rockets lead the nation in blocked punts with six.

"My family and I are really excited for this opportunity," Discher said. "I have always had an immense amount of respect for Coach Napier and Patrick Toney. I’m thrilled to get to work with these student-athletes and to be a part of the Ragin’ Cajuns Family."

Discher helped head coach Jason Candle’s squad sit atop the MAC in punt return average and kickoff coverage in 2017, averaging 15.2 yards per return and 42.5 yards allowed per kickoff. In back-to-back seasons from 2017-18, Toledo ranked in the Top 25 nationally in both punt return average and kickoff touchbacks, with the Rockets leading the MAC in the latter category both years.

Prior to his time at Toledo, Discher spent two seasons as a graduate assistant at Oklahoma State (2014-15). Discher handled a variety of duties for head coach Mike Gundy, including coaching wide receivers, tight ends and serving as special teams coordinator. OSU’s special teams helped the Cowboys secure one of its biggest wins of the 2014 season, a 38-35 overtime win at Oklahoma in which Oklahoma State returned a punt 92 yards for a touchdown to knot the contest at 35-35.

Discher was FootballScoop’s first-ever graduate assistant winner of its Coach of the Year awards. Deservedly so, Discher’s unit tied for the national lead with six kicks or punts blocked in 2014.

A Kansas City, Missouri, native, Discher attended William Jewell (Mo.) College, where he played wide receiver for the Cardinals from 2006-08. He began his coaching career at Kearney (Mo.) High School in 2009, coaching quarterbacks and linebackers for the Class 4 state champions. From 2010-13, he was at Sam Houston State, where he began as a graduate assistant and eventually was named special teams coordinator.

At Sam Houston for head coach Willie Fritz, Discher was part of teams that won Southland Conference championships in 2011 and 2012. The Bearkats made it to the FCS Playoffs three times in Discher’s tenure, advancing to the FCS Championship Game in 2011 and 2012.

Discher earned a Bachelor’s degree in physical education from William Jewell College in 2009, and added a Master’s degree in exercise science from Sam Houston State in 2012.

Discher and the former Erin Wilson were married in July 2017. He has two stepchildren, Connor and Sydney. The couple has a baby girl, Quinn, who was born in February 2018.

Louisiana Football kicks off its 2020 campaign on Saturday, Sept. 5, when it welcomes McNeese State to Cajun Field. Season tickets for the 2020 Louisiana Football season are on sale now. For more information, visit the Louisiana Athletics Ticket Office at the Cajundome or call the ticket office at (337) 265-2357.

* * * * *

Napier Adds Austin Armstrong to Coaching Staff

Austin Armstrong

LAFAYETTE – Austin Armstrong, who spent the 2019 season on staff at Georgia, will serve as Louisiana Football’s Inside Linebackers Coach, head coach Billy Napier announced on Monday.

Familiar with Napier and the program, Armstrong served as a defensive graduate assistant coach with the Ragin’ Cajuns for the 2017 and 2018 seasons. Louisiana claimed its first of back-to-back Sun Belt Conference West Division championships in 2018, played in the Sun Belt’s inaugural football championship game and earned a berth in the AutoNation Cure Bowl in Orlando, Florida.

"We’re extremely excited to have Austin Armstrong back at Louisiana on our coaching staff," Napier said. "His experience working alongside some of the best coaches in the nation will serve him well going forward. He is familiar with our #cULture and process, and that will certainly help him hit the ground running as we continue to work hard on improvement. I am looking forward to seeing his impact on the Ragin’ Cajuns’ inside linebackers, and their growth and development this season."

Armstrong worked as a quality control assistant with Georgia Football’s defense this past season, assisting head coach Kirby Smart’s squad as they climbed as high as No. 3 in the national rankings. The Bulldogs finished the 2019 season with a 12-2 record and a win in the Allstate Sugar Bowl in New Orleans.

"My fiancé, Tiffany, and I are extremely excited and grateful to be back in Acadiana," Armstrong said. "It is certainly a tremendous opportunity to work for Coach Napier and Patrick Toney. I want to thank Coach Smart, Dan Lanning, Glenn Schumann and everyone associated with Georgia Football for making my time there very special."

Prior to his first stint with the Ragin’ Cajuns, Armstrong was an assistant defensive line coach at West Georgia (Div. II) for the 2016 season.

Armstrong earned his Bachelor’s degree from Huntingdon College in Montgomery, Alabama, in 2014, after playing linebacker for the Hawks for four seasons.