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Graham Fills 8 Coaching Vacancies At Pitt

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - The Pittsburgh Panthers' search for a new head coach came to an end last week with the hiring of Todd Graham.

Graham has been the head coach at Tulsa for the last four years where he earned a 36-17 record. He also had three bowl game wins during his tenure.

This will be Graham's third head-coaching job. Before Tulsa, he spent one season at Rice. Back in 2001 and 2002, he was an assistant under Rich Rodriguez at West Virginia.

On Tuesday, Graham filled eight of the nine coaching vacancies with the program.

Read the full press release below and for more information on Pitt Panthers athletics go to www.pittsburghpanthers.com

PITTSBURGH — New Pitt head football coach Todd Graham has filled eight of the nine vacancies on his coaching staff. The current members of Graham's staff, and their positional assignments, include:

Paul Randolph: executive associate head coach, co-defensive coordinator, defensive line

Calvin Magee: assistant head coach, co-offensive coordinator, running backs

Mike Norvell: co-offensive coordinator, wide receivers, director of recruiting

Keith Patterson: defensive coordinator, linebackers

Tony Dews: tight ends

Todd Dodge: quarterbacks

Tony Gibson: cornerbacks, recruiting coordinator

Spencer Leftwich: offensive line

Additionally, Graham named Shawn Griswold the director of strength and conditioning for Pitt football.

"I make it a priority to hire people who will make me a better coach and professional through my work with them," Graham said. "I am incredibly pleased with the staff we have hired thus far. Not only are they excellent football coaches, but they're also tremendous men who are honored to be part of the University of Pittsburgh."

The following are brief bio capsules of the Pitt coaching staff:

Paul Randolph spent the past five seasons working with Graham, including four years at Tulsa (2007-10) and one at Rice (2006). He previously was the defensive ends coach at Alabama (2003-05), where he helped develop one of the nation's top defensive units. In 2005, the Crimson Tide led the country in scoring defense (10.7 points/game) and ranked second in total defense (255.1 yards/game). Randolph has also distinguished himself as a recruiter. In 2004 he was named one of the country's top 25 recruiters by Rivals.com. Randolph's additional collegiate coaching stops include West Virginia, Toledo, Illinois State, Valdosta State and Tennessee-Martin. Randolph is a 1990 graduate of Tennessee-Martin, where he was an all-conference linebacker. He went on to an accomplished 10-year career in the Canadian Football League and was elected to the Winnepeg Blue Bombers' Hall of Fame.

Calvin Magee served at Michigan the past three years as associate head coach and offensive coordinator. The 2010 Wolverines featured one of the nation's most dynamic offensive talents in quarterback Denard Robinson, who ranked second nationally in total offense (328.62 yards/game) and was named the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year. Prior to Michigan, Magee spent seven seasons as the running backs coach at West Virginia, where he produced an All-Big East performer each year of his tenure. Steve Slaton was a first team All-American under Magee's watch in 2006. The Mountaineers won or shared four Big East titles during his time in Morgantown. An All-American himself at Southern University, Magee played tight end in the NFL for five seasons (1985-89) and was a Pro Bowl alternate selection as a member of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in '87. He graduated from Southern in 1984.

Mike Norvell spent the past four years on the staff at Tulsa, including the 2010 season as passing game coordinator, receivers coach and director of recruiting. Norvell oversaw the development of All-America receiver Damaris Johnson, who led the country in all-purpose yards for the second consecutive year (202.2 yards/game in 2010) and set the all-time NCAA record for that category with 7,796 career yards. The Golden Hurricane had five 1,000-yard receivers during Norvell's Tulsa tenure. Tulsa twice led the country in total offense (2007 and 2008) and ranked fifth this past year. In 2007, the Golden Hurricane became the first team in NCAA history to have a 5,000-yard passer, a 1,000-yard rusher and three 1,000-yard receivers in a single season. A 2005 graduate of Central Arkansas, Norvell was a four-year starter and finished his career as the school's all-time leader in receptions (213).

Keith Patterson spent the past eight years at Tulsa, including five as co-defensive coordinator. He also tutored the linebackers at Tulsa and oversaw the development of Nick Bunting, the 2006 Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year, and Chris Chamberlain, one of the top tacklers in school history and a member of the St. Louis Rams the past three seasons. Tulsa ranked third in the country in turnovers forced this past season with 36, including a national-best 24 interceptions. Before joining Tulsa in 2003, Patterson was an accomplished coach on the prep level in Oklahoma and Texas. A 1986 graduate of East Central (Okla.) University, he was a four-year letterman at defensive back for ECU.

Tony Dews joins Pitt after a three-year tenure at Michigan as wide receivers coach. Dews tutored Roy Roundtree this past year, an All-Big Ten selection by the media after he had 72 receptions for 935 yards and seven touchdowns. Dews' Pitt appointment marks his return to the Big East. He coached the receivers at West Virginia in 2007, including All-Big East performer Darius Reynaud. Dews' other coaching stops include UNLV, Central Michigan and Holy Cross. Dews is a 1996 graduate of Liberty University, where he starred as a wide receiver.

Todd Dodge comes to Pittsburgh after establishing himself as one of the country's most accomplished high school coaches over the past decade. Called a Texas "high school coaching legend" by The Dallas Morning News, Dodge led Southlake Carroll High to four Texas Class 5A state championships in his final five seasons and a 79-1 record during that span. Dodge's quarterback protégées include former Missouri star Chase Daniel, now of the New Orleans Saints, and Alabama's Greg McElroy, who led the Crimson Tide to the 2009 national title. Dodge most recently served as head coach at the University of North Texas from 2007-10. A 1987 graduate of Texas, he was a standout quarterback for the Longhorns and still ranks among the school's all-time most prolific passers.

Tony Gibson was the assistant head coach and defensive backs coach at Michigan the past three years. He added special teams coordinator to his duties in 2010. Prior to his time in Ann Arbor he coached West Virginia's defensive backs for seven seasons (2001-07) and was the Mountaineers' recruiting coordinator his final year. Gibson's secondary standouts at West Virginia included first team All-American Adam Jones, who played with the Cincinnati Bengals this past season. Gibson is very familiar with Western Pennsylvania, having productively recruited this area while at WVU. The Mountaineers won or shared four Big East titles during his tenure. Gibson is a 1994 graduate of Glenville State, where he was a defensive back under coach Rich Rodriguez.

Spencer Leftwich is a 20-year veteran of coaching offensive lines. He most recently served at Tulsa during the 2010 season, overseeing an offensive front that helped the Golden Hurricane rank fifth nationally in total offense (505.62 yards/game). This past season marked his second appointment at Tulsa as he previously coached its offensive line from 2003-06. From 2007-09 he worked at North Texas, where his final offensive line ranked 10th nationally in fewest sacks allowed (1.00 sacks/game). A 1988 graduate of Stephen F. Austin, Leftwich was a three-year starter at offensive guard for the Lumberjacks and twice earned all-conference honors.

Shawn Griswold previously served as Tulsa's director of strength and conditioning from 2004-10. He is a 1996 graduate of Utah State, where he was a member of the Aggies' football team. Coach Todd Graham readily credits Griswold as being a highly instrumental figure in Tulsa's revival on the football field, calling him "the best strength and conditioning coach I've ever been around."

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