Football
Bam Hardmon
- Title:
- Outside Linebackers
Former Gator Bam Hardmon enters his first season as the team’s outside linebackers coach. Hardmon was a team captain and Second-Team All-SEC performer in 2002 for the Gators and was a three-time Academic All-SEC honoree.
Hardmon returns to Gainesville after spending the last two seasons as the run game coordinator and outside linebackers coach at Tulane from 2024-25. Prior to Tulane, Hardmon worked nine years at Troy, where he was a 2018 Broyles Award nominee and a 2020 finalist for Football Scoop’s Linebackers Coach of the Year. At Troy, Hardmon worked for five years coaching Troy’s outside linebackers and serving as the defensive run game coordinator following four years coaching the inside linebackers and bandits.
“Bringing Coach Hardmon back to Florida was a no-brainer,” Sumrall said. “Not only is he a former Gator standout, but he’s a great coach and better person. He has proven throughout his career that he can coach, develop and produce results. I can’t think of a better person to oversee our outside linebackers.”
The Green Wave earned a berth to the College Football Playoff in 2025 after capturing the American Athletic Conference (AAC) title. From 2022-25, Hardmon’s teams at Tulane and Troy made four-consecutive conference championship games, winning one AAC and two Sun Belt crowns.
“I couldn’t be more excited about being back with Gator Nation where I first started as a player,” Hardmon said. “Gainesville is a special place for me and my family. Coach Sumrall gave me a great opporutnity to join the staff and I can’t wait to hear The Swamp on game day.”
In 2024-25, Tulane finished second in the American in yards allowed per game (348.9), opponent passer rating (126.9), yards per completion (10.93) and TD-to-INT ratio (1.21). The Green Wave’s 69 sacks in that span rank first in the American and tied for 15th nationally.
In 2024, Tulane’s defense notched the No. 4 pass rush grade (90.5) per PFF and finished tied for the best defensive grade in the American (86.2).
Nineteen of Hardmon's players earned All-Sun Belt honors in his nine seasons with the Trojans and in 2018, former walk-on linebacker Carlton Martial earned Freshman All-America honors from the Football Writers Association of America, The Athletic and USA Today.
In 2023, the program set the school and the Sun Belt single-season record with 47 sacks, and the Trojans ranked in the top 15 nationally in sacks (3rd), scoring defense (10th), rushing defense (12th) and total defense (14th). The program had a streak of 10 consecutive victories including a 48-23 win over Appalachian State in the 2023 Sun Belt Championship Game.
Troy held eight of its 14 opponents to fewer than 300 yards of total offense on the season. Solomon ranked third in the country and led the Sun Belt with a Troy single-season record 16 sacks. He was drafted in the fifth round by the Buffalo Bills during 2024 NFL Draft.
Also in 2023, Troy allowed just 106.6 yards per game on the ground, the fewest by a Trojan squad since 2004 and the sixth lowest in program history, while Troy’s 308.1 yards per game allowed per game was its fewest since 2002 and the sixth-fewest in Sun Belt history.
In 2022, Troy held all 14 of its opponents to under their season average in scoring, including three of the top 25 scoring teams in the country – UTSA, Western Kentucky and App State. Additionally, Troy ranked eighth nationally in turnovers gained, 14th in sacks, eighth in scoring defense, 19th in total defense and 24th in rushing defense.
The Trojans posted a 12-2 record, won the Sun Belt Conference championship, ended the season on an 11-game winning streak – second only to National Champion Georgia – won the only bowl matchup pitting two conference champions by defeating UTSA in the Cure Bowl.
Troy finished the season ranked in a major poll for the first time in program history, checking in at No. 19 in the AP Top 25 and No. 20 in the USA Today/Coaches Poll. Additionally, Troy's appearance in the Coaches Poll and College Football Playoff Poll after its Sun Belt Championship Game victory were also firsts for the program.
In 2021, Javon Solomon earned Pro Football Network All-America honors and All-Sun Belt First Team distinction after he led the Sun Belt in tackles for loss (1.42 per game) and ranked 12th nationally in addition to ranking eighth nationally with 0.92 sacks per game.
In 2020, Troy posted one of the best defensive turnarounds in the country. The Trojans improved 63 spots nationally in scoring defense from 2019 to 2020 and 38 spots in total defense. Troy led the country with four defensive scores and the Trojans finished the season ranked as the nation’s No. 15 defense per PFF. Troy ended the season holding four of its final six opponents to 20 points or fewer.
In 2018, the Trojans ranked third nationally in turnovers gained, 10th in sacks and 16th in tackles for loss. Since the start of the 2016 season, Troy ranks 13 nationally forcing a sack, tackle for loss or turnover on 12.8 percent of its opponent snaps. Over that same time period, Troy ranks sixth nationally with 117 forced turnovers.
In addition to mentoring Martial to an All-America season, Hardmon was instrumental in developing another former walk-on as Hunter Reese was twice named to the All-Sun Belt First Team from the bandit position.
In 2017, Troy finished fourth nationally with a school record 112 tackles for loss (third with 8.62 per game), while also finishing seventh with 3.23 sacks per game. Reese would go on to earn First Team All-Sun Belt honors.
Troy led the nation in red zone defense in 2017 as the Trojans set a school record for wins (FBS), won the Sun Belt Championship and ended LSU’s 49-game non-conference home winning streak.
The Trojans established a new school record as they held eight opponents under the 100-yard rushing mark. Troy finished the season having allowed just 18.5 points, 105.3 rushing yards and 336.5 total yards per game.
Dillard was named the Sun Belt Conference Defensive Player of the Year in 2016, becoming Troy’s first player to win the award since DeMarcus Ware in 2004. Troy finished the 2016 season 10-3 with a victory in the Dollar General Bowl, the first top-25 ranking in school and Sun Belt Conference history and the best win-improvement in the country.
In his first season, Hardmon helped transform the Troy defense into one of the top units in the Sun Belt Conference and the country. The Trojans finished the 2015 season with the second-best turnaround nationally in opponent 3rd-down percentage, the fourth-best turnaround in yards per play allowed, the fifth-best improvement in tackles for loss per game and 16th-best improvement in total defense.
Bandit Tyler Roberts earned first team All-Sun Belt honors and finished sixth nationally with 1.55 tackles for loss per game, while ranking 41st nationally with 0.64 sacks per game.
Hardmon joined the Troy staff after two seasons as the defensive line coach at Idaho.
The native of Jacksonville, Fla., was a four-year letterwinner as a linebacker at Florida and was the team’s captain in 2002 as a senior. During that season, Hardmon was named second team All-SEC and helped lead the Gators to the Outback Bowl.
Hardmon not only excelled on the field but also off it as well. He was a three-time Academic All-SEC honoree and won the Betty Capaldi GPA Award. He ranked second in the SEC and fourth in the nation in tackles and also won Florida’s coveted Ferguson Leadership award in 2002.
Hardmon spent the 2003-06 seasons on three NFL rosters: the Miami Dolphins (2003), the Seattle Seahawks (2004) and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2005). He also played three seasons in NFL Europe, winning a World Bowl title in 2007 with Hamburg.
Hardmon returned to football in 2009 after two years in the private business sector. He worked as the co-owner of S & S Trucking in Jacksonville, Fla., while also establishing a very successful real estate career.
He spent three seasons (2009-11) as a graduate assistant at Illinois. In 2011, Hardmon helped tutor a defensive line that broke the school record with 41 sacks and ranked fourth nationally in tackles for loss and sixth nationally in sacks. Defensive end Whitney Mercilus had a breakout year, earning consensus first team All-America honors after leading the nation in sacks and forced fumbles. Mercilus was drafted in the first round of the 2012 NFL Draft by the Houston Texans.
Hardmon helped guide a budding star in 2010 in defensive tackle Corey Liuget, who was a first-round pick of the San Diego Chargers in the 2011 NFL Draft. Liuget and Akeem Spence combined for 108 tackles, the most by a pair of Illini defensive tackles since 1993, and Phil Steele and Rivals.com named Spence a Freshman All-American.
Prior to his stint at Idaho, Hardmon served as the special teams coordinator and outside linebackers coach at Charleston Southern.
Hardmon graduated from the University of Florida in 2003 with a degree in sociology and earned his master’s degree in organizational leadership from the University of Illinois in 2011.
Hardmon and his wife, Danerica, have two children, Bryson and Brynlee.
Bam Hardmon Coaching History
Bam Hardmon NFL Draft Picks
Hardmon returns to Gainesville after spending the last two seasons as the run game coordinator and outside linebackers coach at Tulane from 2024-25. Prior to Tulane, Hardmon worked nine years at Troy, where he was a 2018 Broyles Award nominee and a 2020 finalist for Football Scoop’s Linebackers Coach of the Year. At Troy, Hardmon worked for five years coaching Troy’s outside linebackers and serving as the defensive run game coordinator following four years coaching the inside linebackers and bandits.
“Bringing Coach Hardmon back to Florida was a no-brainer,” Sumrall said. “Not only is he a former Gator standout, but he’s a great coach and better person. He has proven throughout his career that he can coach, develop and produce results. I can’t think of a better person to oversee our outside linebackers.”
The Green Wave earned a berth to the College Football Playoff in 2025 after capturing the American Athletic Conference (AAC) title. From 2022-25, Hardmon’s teams at Tulane and Troy made four-consecutive conference championship games, winning one AAC and two Sun Belt crowns.
“I couldn’t be more excited about being back with Gator Nation where I first started as a player,” Hardmon said. “Gainesville is a special place for me and my family. Coach Sumrall gave me a great opporutnity to join the staff and I can’t wait to hear The Swamp on game day.”
In 2024-25, Tulane finished second in the American in yards allowed per game (348.9), opponent passer rating (126.9), yards per completion (10.93) and TD-to-INT ratio (1.21). The Green Wave’s 69 sacks in that span rank first in the American and tied for 15th nationally.
In 2024, Tulane’s defense notched the No. 4 pass rush grade (90.5) per PFF and finished tied for the best defensive grade in the American (86.2).
Nineteen of Hardmon's players earned All-Sun Belt honors in his nine seasons with the Trojans and in 2018, former walk-on linebacker Carlton Martial earned Freshman All-America honors from the Football Writers Association of America, The Athletic and USA Today.
In 2023, the program set the school and the Sun Belt single-season record with 47 sacks, and the Trojans ranked in the top 15 nationally in sacks (3rd), scoring defense (10th), rushing defense (12th) and total defense (14th). The program had a streak of 10 consecutive victories including a 48-23 win over Appalachian State in the 2023 Sun Belt Championship Game.
Troy held eight of its 14 opponents to fewer than 300 yards of total offense on the season. Solomon ranked third in the country and led the Sun Belt with a Troy single-season record 16 sacks. He was drafted in the fifth round by the Buffalo Bills during 2024 NFL Draft.
Also in 2023, Troy allowed just 106.6 yards per game on the ground, the fewest by a Trojan squad since 2004 and the sixth lowest in program history, while Troy’s 308.1 yards per game allowed per game was its fewest since 2002 and the sixth-fewest in Sun Belt history.
In 2022, Troy held all 14 of its opponents to under their season average in scoring, including three of the top 25 scoring teams in the country – UTSA, Western Kentucky and App State. Additionally, Troy ranked eighth nationally in turnovers gained, 14th in sacks, eighth in scoring defense, 19th in total defense and 24th in rushing defense.
The Trojans posted a 12-2 record, won the Sun Belt Conference championship, ended the season on an 11-game winning streak – second only to National Champion Georgia – won the only bowl matchup pitting two conference champions by defeating UTSA in the Cure Bowl.
Troy finished the season ranked in a major poll for the first time in program history, checking in at No. 19 in the AP Top 25 and No. 20 in the USA Today/Coaches Poll. Additionally, Troy's appearance in the Coaches Poll and College Football Playoff Poll after its Sun Belt Championship Game victory were also firsts for the program.
In 2021, Javon Solomon earned Pro Football Network All-America honors and All-Sun Belt First Team distinction after he led the Sun Belt in tackles for loss (1.42 per game) and ranked 12th nationally in addition to ranking eighth nationally with 0.92 sacks per game.
In 2020, Troy posted one of the best defensive turnarounds in the country. The Trojans improved 63 spots nationally in scoring defense from 2019 to 2020 and 38 spots in total defense. Troy led the country with four defensive scores and the Trojans finished the season ranked as the nation’s No. 15 defense per PFF. Troy ended the season holding four of its final six opponents to 20 points or fewer.
In 2018, the Trojans ranked third nationally in turnovers gained, 10th in sacks and 16th in tackles for loss. Since the start of the 2016 season, Troy ranks 13 nationally forcing a sack, tackle for loss or turnover on 12.8 percent of its opponent snaps. Over that same time period, Troy ranks sixth nationally with 117 forced turnovers.
In addition to mentoring Martial to an All-America season, Hardmon was instrumental in developing another former walk-on as Hunter Reese was twice named to the All-Sun Belt First Team from the bandit position.
In 2017, Troy finished fourth nationally with a school record 112 tackles for loss (third with 8.62 per game), while also finishing seventh with 3.23 sacks per game. Reese would go on to earn First Team All-Sun Belt honors.
Troy led the nation in red zone defense in 2017 as the Trojans set a school record for wins (FBS), won the Sun Belt Championship and ended LSU’s 49-game non-conference home winning streak.
The Trojans established a new school record as they held eight opponents under the 100-yard rushing mark. Troy finished the season having allowed just 18.5 points, 105.3 rushing yards and 336.5 total yards per game.
Dillard was named the Sun Belt Conference Defensive Player of the Year in 2016, becoming Troy’s first player to win the award since DeMarcus Ware in 2004. Troy finished the 2016 season 10-3 with a victory in the Dollar General Bowl, the first top-25 ranking in school and Sun Belt Conference history and the best win-improvement in the country.
In his first season, Hardmon helped transform the Troy defense into one of the top units in the Sun Belt Conference and the country. The Trojans finished the 2015 season with the second-best turnaround nationally in opponent 3rd-down percentage, the fourth-best turnaround in yards per play allowed, the fifth-best improvement in tackles for loss per game and 16th-best improvement in total defense.
Bandit Tyler Roberts earned first team All-Sun Belt honors and finished sixth nationally with 1.55 tackles for loss per game, while ranking 41st nationally with 0.64 sacks per game.
Hardmon joined the Troy staff after two seasons as the defensive line coach at Idaho.
The native of Jacksonville, Fla., was a four-year letterwinner as a linebacker at Florida and was the team’s captain in 2002 as a senior. During that season, Hardmon was named second team All-SEC and helped lead the Gators to the Outback Bowl.
Hardmon not only excelled on the field but also off it as well. He was a three-time Academic All-SEC honoree and won the Betty Capaldi GPA Award. He ranked second in the SEC and fourth in the nation in tackles and also won Florida’s coveted Ferguson Leadership award in 2002.
Hardmon spent the 2003-06 seasons on three NFL rosters: the Miami Dolphins (2003), the Seattle Seahawks (2004) and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2005). He also played three seasons in NFL Europe, winning a World Bowl title in 2007 with Hamburg.
Hardmon returned to football in 2009 after two years in the private business sector. He worked as the co-owner of S & S Trucking in Jacksonville, Fla., while also establishing a very successful real estate career.
He spent three seasons (2009-11) as a graduate assistant at Illinois. In 2011, Hardmon helped tutor a defensive line that broke the school record with 41 sacks and ranked fourth nationally in tackles for loss and sixth nationally in sacks. Defensive end Whitney Mercilus had a breakout year, earning consensus first team All-America honors after leading the nation in sacks and forced fumbles. Mercilus was drafted in the first round of the 2012 NFL Draft by the Houston Texans.
Hardmon helped guide a budding star in 2010 in defensive tackle Corey Liuget, who was a first-round pick of the San Diego Chargers in the 2011 NFL Draft. Liuget and Akeem Spence combined for 108 tackles, the most by a pair of Illini defensive tackles since 1993, and Phil Steele and Rivals.com named Spence a Freshman All-American.
Prior to his stint at Idaho, Hardmon served as the special teams coordinator and outside linebackers coach at Charleston Southern.
Hardmon graduated from the University of Florida in 2003 with a degree in sociology and earned his master’s degree in organizational leadership from the University of Illinois in 2011.
Hardmon and his wife, Danerica, have two children, Bryson and Brynlee.
Bam Hardmon Coaching History
| Year | Position, School |
|---|---|
| 2026-pres. | Outside Linebackers Coach, Florida |
| 2024-25 | Run Game Coordinator/OLB, Tulane |
| 2020-23 | Defensive Run Game Coordinator/OLB, Troy |
| 2015-19 | Inside Linebackers/Bandits, Troy |
| 2013-14 | Defensive Line, Idaho |
| 2012 | Special Teams Coordinator/OLB, Charleston Southern |
| 2008-11 | Graduate Assistant, Illinois |
Bam Hardmon NFL Draft Picks
| Year | Round | Player | Position | Team | School |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 5 | Javon Solomon | DE | Buffalo Bills | Troy |
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