Marc Yellock was hired as the defensive line coach in the summer of 2020. Yellock comes to Titletown from the University of North Texas where he served as defensive line coach since 2017. Yellock helped coach the Mean Green to nine wins in both 2017 and 2018 and a pair of bowl game appearances.
“I am very excited about the addition of Marc to our coaching staff,” VSU head football coach Gary Goff said. “Marc has coached alongside great coaches and brings some valuable experience to our staff. I look forward to watching him coach and mentor our defensive line.”
In 2018, Yellock’s position group helped anchor a much-improved defense that allowed 10.8 points per game less than it did in 2017. Defensive end LaDarius Hamilton (33 tackles, 11 tackles for loss, 7.5 sacks and three quarterback hurries) was named First Team All-Conference USA. Fellow starters Ulaiasi Tauaalo (41 tackles, 4.0 tackles for loss and a sack) and Roderick Young (30 tackles, 6.0 tackles for loss and 3.0 sacks) as well as key fixture Dion Novil (34 tackles, 7.0 tackles for loss and a half sack) performed very well for North Texas.
Prior to North Texas, Yellock spent season seasons on staff at East Carolina under former head coach Ruffin McNeil, working with the defensive line from 2010-15. Just a head of the 2016 National Football League season, Yellock worked with the New Orleans Saints defensive line and special teams during the preseason.
While at ECU, he oversaw a unit that played a huge part in being ranked 13th nationally in rushing defense in 2013 and 2014. In 2013, the team finished 13th in sacks per game at 2.9, while six of his linemen earned all-conference honors and another earned a spot on the all-freshman team. During 2012, the duo of Michael Brooks and Lee Pegues were the key components of the Pirate defensive line. The pair earned All-Conference USA honors at defensive end and, along with Terry Williams and fellow nose tackle Terrell Stanley combined to tally 149 stops and 175 TFLs.
In just his second year in charge of the ECU defensive line, the Pirates saw a staggering turnaround, vaulting 64 spots on the Football Bowl Subdivision total defense rankings, holding opponents to 102.5 fewer yards per game than the year before. Yellock guided Brooks to a 55-tackle effort during the 2011 campaign – the most among all Pirate linemen. He gained additional experience during the summer of 2009, completing an internship with the New Orleans Saints where he worked with the organization’s defensive line and special teams unit.
Before ECU, Yellock was the defensive line coach at Elon in 2006 where he coached First Team All-Southern Conference honorees Andre Campbell and Eric Ludwig, helping lift the Phoenix to the No. 11 ranking in total defense and No. 15 in rushing defense in the country at the Football Championship Subdivision level.
Yellock began his coaching career with his first stint at ECU as a defensive staff assistant in 2004 and 2005. He played for the Pirates from 1997-2000 for then-head coach Steve Logan. Yellock appeared in 26 games across four seasons, starting 18 and was a component of two ECU bowl teams.
He earned a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from ECU in 2000. Yellock worked for two years at Metric, Inc., of Greenville, N.C., serving as a lab analyst for one year and as an analytical chemist for one year before returning to football as a linebackers coach at J.H. Rose High School in 2002. He followed his one-year prep stint by joining the Pirate staff as a video intern in 2003, before being elevated to a staff assistant a year later.
Yellock and his wife Rashida have five children; Hunter, Taylor, Ariel, Chloe and Sage.
