Jeff Mills
Assistant Coach
Second Season
(Western Washington, 1988)

   Defensive coordinator and secondary coach Jeff Mills has brought a strong togetherness to his unit that had a major impact last season.
    In Mills' first campaign, the Guins allowed just 318.5 yards per contest, the fewest since the 2002 campaign. That number was an impressive 42 yards fewer than 2006. The Penguins allowed just 18.5 points per game in 2007 - the second fewest since 2002. Also, the unit surrendered just 189 first downs, the lowest since 2002 as well.
    The secondary was staunch allowing just 10 passing touchdowns for the year. Since 1996, the Guins have allowed just 10-or-less touchdown passes three times -- 2007 (10), 2003 (9) and 2002 (8).
    Six individuals earned All-Gateway accolades last year as linebacker James Terry and defensive tackle Mychal Savage took home first-team honors.
    Before joining the Penguins, he had served as either an assistant head coach or defensive coordinator the past nine years at the Football Bowl Subdivision level.
    Mills, who joined the program after three seasons at Idaho, has coached on the defensive side of the football the past 16 years. In that span he spent eight seasons with the Vandals, four with Nevada, three at Montana State and one at YSU.
    Mills was the defensive coordinator and safeties coach under Dennis Erickson at Idaho in 2006. In 2004 and 2005 he was the assistant head coach and safeties coach for Nick Holt in what was Mills' second stint with the program. He also assisted with the punt-return teams in '04 and '05.
    Prior to returning to Moscow, Mills spent four years at Nevada serving as the defensive coordinator while coaching the linebackers in some capacity. He worked with the outside backers in 2000 and 2001 before coaching the entire group in 2002 and 2003.
    During his tenure with the Wolf Pack, it beat a Pac-10 team for the first time in 55 years and knocked off a top-25 ranked FBS team for the first time in school history. The program increased its win total in each of his four seasons.
    In his first stint with the Vandals, he worked under Coach Chris Tormey, whom Mills later followed to Nevada. Mills was part of a coaching staff that helped the program move from Division I-AA status to Division I-A.
    During his first two years (1995 and 1996) the program competed on the I-AA level before achieving Division I status in 1997. He spent his first four campaigns coaching the secondary before taking over the defensive line responsibilities his final year. He served as coordinator in 1998 and 1999.
    In 1998, the program posted a 9-3 mark winning the Big West Conference and Humanitarian Bowl championship. Mills' unit led the Big West in scoring defense and sacks. In 1999, the group posted a 7-4 mark. On the I-AA level, the program reached the playoffs in 1995 - his first year with the program.
    Before joining the Idaho staff, he spent three years as the secondary coach at Montana State (1992-94). The Bobcats led the Big Sky Conference in total interceptions and pass efficiency defense his second year while leading I-AA in turnover margin and the conference in total interceptions in 1992.
    Mills had two successful campaigns as a graduate assistant at Washington for Coach Don James. In 1991, the Huskies earned a share of the national championship and won the Rose Bowl posting a 12-0 record. In 1990, UW won the Rose Bowl finishing with a 10-2 mark.
    He had one-year coaching stops at Drake and Western Washington where he handled a variety of duties.
    A native of Urbandale, Iowa, Mills played quarterback and outside linebacker at then NAIA Division II Western Washington, graduating in 1988 with a degree in broadcast communication.
    Jeff and his wife Karmen have two children, Amanda and Tyler. His brother, Jay, is the head coach at Charleston Southern.