Middle Tennessee set to hire former Vanderbilt coach, Auburn DC Derek Mason, reports say
Middle Tennessee State is expected to hire Derek Mason as its new head football coach, according to multiple reports Tuesday.
The 54-year-old Mason was head coach at Vanderbilt from 2014-2020 and defensive coordinator at Auburn in 2021 and at Oklahoma State in 2022. He spent the 2023 season as a college football analyst for ESPN.
At Middle Tennessee, Mason would replace Rick Stockstill, who was fired Nov. 27 after 18 seasons. The Blue Raiders reached bowl games in both 2021 and 2022, but fell to 4-8 this past season.
Mason went just 27-55 at Vanderbilt, where his team never finished with a winning record. The Commodores went 6-6 during the 2016 and 2018 regular seasons before losing bowl games.
In addition to his stints at Vanderbilt, Auburn and Oklahoma State, Mason has also coached at Utah, New Mexico State, Ohio, Stanford and with the NFL’s Minnesota Vikings. He was assistant head coach and defensive coordinator at Stanford from 2011-13 before landing the Vanderbilt job.
