Kyle Whittingham adds former Air Force assistant to Wolverines staff

The Michigan Wolverines continue to round out their 2026 coaching staff under a new head coach Kyle Whittinghamwith another veteran addition confirmed on Wednesday. Michigan hires longtime Air Force assistant Brian Nore, who is expected to work with special teams along with coordinator Kerry Coombs, according to Matt Zenitz of CBS Sports.

Knorr arrives in Ann Arbor after serving as Air Force’s defensive coordinator for four seasons from 2022 to 2025. In his first year calling the defense in 2022, Air Force ranked No. 1 nationally in total defense, No. 2 in passing defense and No. 3 in scoring defense. The Falcons followed that season by finishing sixth in total defense in 2023 and 40th in 2024 before falling to 118th in 2025.

Last year may not have been ideal, but Knorr has spent more than 30 years coaching in college and advancing into leadership roles along the way. He spent the last eight seasons at Air Force, returning to his alma mater in 2018 as the assistant head coach and inside linebackers coach before being promoted to defensive coordinator in 2022. During his third stint with the Falcons, he devoted his efforts to coaching both linebackers and the program’s position, the hybrid linebacker position at Spur.

Knorr’s coaching endeavors extend far beyond Colorado Springs. He was the head coach at Ohio University from 2001 to 2004, compiling an 11–35 record over four seasons. Previously at Ohio, he coached the running backs from 1995-1998 and served as defensive coordinator from 1999-2000. His Power Five experience includes time at Wake Forest, where he coached the running backs from 2008-2010 and worked on defense from 2011-2011, and from 2011-2010. he was the coordinator in India. 2014 to 2015 while also coaching the defensive linemen and outside linebackers.

Knorr also held special team-related roles on major programs. He served as a special teams quality control assistant at Ohio State in 2016 under Urban Meyer, overlapping with Coombs, and followed that up with the 2017 season at Arizona as the special teams and tight ends coach. That background is in line with his expected role assisting Coombs, who was hired to oversee the Wolverines’ special teams shortly before the Dec. 10 firing of Sharon Moore. Under Coombs, Michigan’s special teams took a step forward, especially shining in the Citrus Bowl against Texas.

A former Air Force quarterback from 1982-85, Knorr recorded three 30-game seasons as a college player. He graduated from the Air Force Academy in 1986 with a degree in management and began his coaching career there in 1992. At Michigan, he joins a staff led by Whittingham and Jay Hill as the Wolverines’ new defensive coordinator, adding another experienced voice to a staff built on proven colleagues.