Tim Bennett is in his second season as assistant defensive backs coach and fourth season overall. He served as Toledo’s director of player development from 2023-24 and was a graduate assistant for the Rockets in 2021, working primarily with the secondary.
In his first season working with the defensive backs, Bennett helped coach two All-MAC players: safety Maxen Hook (first team) and cornerback Avery Smith (second team). As a team, the Rockets tied for first in the league with 13 interceptions.
Bennett returned to Toledo in 2023 after spending the 2022 season as the defensive coordinator at Tiffin University.
Bennett spent the 2020 season as the defensive coordinator at Woodville (Texas) High School. Prior to that he was the defensive backs coach at Dodge City (Kansas) Community College in 2019, and served as a graduate assistant at Findlay in 2018, working primarily with the cornerbacks. He began his coaching career as a volunteer assistant at his high school alma mater, Northside High School in Columbus, Ga.
Bennett played three seasons as a cornerback at Indiana, where he was a two-year starter and was named honorable mention All-Big Ten as a junior in 2013. Bennett led the nation with 20 pass breakups that season, adding 73 tackles. For his career at Indiana, Bennett played in 35 games and had 157 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss, 32 pass breakups and one interception. He played one season of junior college, earning all-region honors at Ellsworth (Iowa) C.C.
Bennett was born in Atlanta and grew up in Columbus, Ga. He earned his bachelor’s degree from Indiana in 2015.
