Brian Polian '97 was named the Head Football Coach at John Carroll on January 20, 2026. Polian serves as the JCU's Vice President for Athletics, as well.
Polian brings more than 25 years of NCAA Division I coaching experience to the role, including four seasons as head coach at the University of Nevada. He also served as special teams coordinator at the University of Notre Dame, Stanford University, and LSU, among other stops. Polian has been recognized as one of the top recruiters in the country across multiple seasons and by numerous media outlets, including ESPN and Rivals. Polian’s college football coaching resume is quite extensive. The Buffalo native’s last stop was at Louisiana State University, where he served as Special Teams Coordinator in 2022 before transitioning to Associate Athletics Director and General Manager. Previously, Polian served as the Special Teams Coordinator at the University of Notre Dame from 2017-21. He coached the all-time leading scorers in both Notre Dame (Justin Yoon) and LSU (Damien Ramos) history.
From 2013-17, Polian guided Nevada as head football coach. Polian coached the Wolfpack to two bowl games and two victories over Power 5 opponents. He coached three future NFL players (including Browns guard Joel Bitonio and Panthers center Austin Corbett) and three future CFL players. As the head coach, he steered the Wolf Pack Football program to a perfect 1,000 APR score during the 2016-17 academic year, the only team in the Group of Five to accomplish the feat in that season.
Polian worked his way up the coaching ranks after starting his career in 1997 at Michigan State under the legendary Nick Saban. Polian spent stints at the University of Buffalo 1998; 2001-03), Baylor University (1999-2000), University of Central Florida (2004), Stanford University (2010-11), and Texas A&M (2012). Before heading to Nevada, Polian worked as the Special Teams Coordinator at Notre Dame from 2005-09.
A football legacy, Brian’s father, Bill, gained induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2015. Brian’s brother, Chris ’93, works for the Cleveland Browns as Special Assistant to the General Manager.
Polian graduated from JCU in 1997 with a B.A. in History following a four-year stint on the JCU Football Team. The linebacker earned All-OAC Second Team honors in 1996 playing alongside College Football Hall of Famer London Fletcher. Polian graduated from St. Francis High School in Buffalo. Polian and his wife, Laura, have two children.
