Former University of Maine head football coach Joe Harasymiak has left the University of Minnesota to become the defensive coordinator at Rutgers, the school announced on Friday.
Harasymiak, who guided Maine to a 20-15 overall record (15-9 Colonial Athletic Association) in three seasons with the Black Bears, had been at Minnesota since December 2018 as the teams safeties coach and then was promoted in February 2020 to also coach the defensive backs and also serve as the co-defensive coordinator with the Golden Gophers. In his last season in Orono, the 35 year old Harasymiak led Maine to a 10-4 record (7-1 in CAA), a regular season conference championship, and an appearance in the FCS Playoffs in 2018 where they won two postseason games before a loss to Eastern Washington in the National Semifinals.
Harasymiak receives a pay raise with the Scarlet Knights getting a two year, $1.575 million dollar contract to leave Minnesota. He will receive $775,000 in 2022 and $800,000 in 2023. He made $410,000 with the Golden Gophers in 2021. Rutgers will also pay a buyout penalty of $25,000 to Minnesota for the hiring. Rutgers went 5-8, 2-7 in the Big 10 this past season.
