 Golden in 2025 | |
| Cincinnati Bengals | |
|---|---|
| Position: | Defensive coordinator |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | (1969-07-04)July 4, 1969 (age 55) Colts Neck, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Career information | |
| College: | Penn State (1988–1991) |
| Career history | |
As a player: | |
As a coach: | |
| |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Head coaching record | |
| Career: | NCAA: 59–59 (.500) |
| Coaching profile atPro Football Reference | |
Alfred James Golden Jr.[1] (born July 4, 1969) is an American professionalfootball coach and formertight end who is thedefensive coordinator of theCincinnati Bengals of theNational Football League (NFL). He served as the head football coach for theTemple Owls from 2006 to 2010 and theMiami Hurricanes from 2011 to 2015.
Prior to head coaching, he was the defensive coordinator for theVirginia Cavaliers from 2001 to 2005. Golden playedcollege football for thePenn State Nittany Lions and professionally for theNew England Patriots of theNational Football League (NFL).
Golden was a three-year (1989–1991) letter winner andtight end forPenn State,[2] where he received the 1991 Ridge Riley Award, given annually to a player who displays excellence in scholarship, sportsmanship, friendship, and leadership. As a junior in 1990, Golden played a key role in Penn State's nationally televised 24–21 upset of #1-rankedNotre Dame inSouth Bend. Histouchdown reception late in the fourth quarter tied the score at 21 as Penn State rallied from a 21–7 deficit. Golden was namedcaptain of the Nittany Lions his senior year and helped lead them to a 42–17 win overTennessee in the1992 Fiesta Bowl, an 11–2 record, and a #3 ranking in the final 1991AP Poll.
Golden spent the1992 season in theNational Football League with theNew England Patriots as a tight end.[3][4]
Golden began his coaching career in 1993 asoffensive coordinator atRed Bank Catholic High School inRed Bank, New Jersey. He then served as a graduate assistant underGeorge Welsh atVirginia from 1994 to 1996, where he worked primarily with thelinebackers andspecial teams.[2] He helped develop All-ACC linebackersJames Farrior andJamie Sharper, both of whom were chosen in the1997 NFL draft. He then coached linebackers atBoston College from 1997 to 1999 underTom O'Brien.[2] While at Boston College, Golden coached All-Big East linebackersFrank Chamberlin and Erik Storz. TheEagles finished the 1999 regular season with an 8–3 record and a top-25 national ranking, while making their first postseason bowl appearance since 1994.
Nameddefensive coordinator by Virginia head coachAl Groh in 2001, Golden became the youngest defensive coordinator inDivision I-A.[2] He had spent the previous season at his alma mater,Penn State, serving aslinebackers coach and recruiting coordinator under head coachJoe Paterno.[2] From 2001 to 2004, the Cavaliers' defense improved under his tutelage, ranking 108th in total defense in his first year to ranking 18th in total defense in 2004. In the same time period, Virginia's scoring defense went from 74th in the nation (27.6 ppg) to 17th (17.7 ppg) utilizing Golden's3–4 defense.
Golden was named head football coach atTemple University in December 2005,[2] as the second-youngest head coach inNCAA football at that time, behindNorthwestern'sPat Fitzgerald. Temple had a record of 3–31 during the three years before Golden was hired and had just been thrown out of theBig East Conference for non-competitiveness. In Golden's first three years at the helm, Temple recorded 1–11 in 2006, 4–8 in 2007 and then 5–7 mark in 2008. The 2008 record was the best for the program since a 7–4 mark in 1990.
The Owls finished the2009 regular season at 9–3, their first winning season since 1990. It was also their best record since 1979, the last time they appeared in a postseason game, before facing theUCLA Bruins in theEagleBank Bowl on December 29, 2009. After leading for three quarters, the Owls fell to the Bruins 30–21.
Golden was interviewed for the vacant head coach position atUCLA in December 2007.[5] However, he withdrew his name from consideration on December 26, 2007, choosing to stay with the up-and-coming Temple program. Following the2009 season, he was a candidate for the head coaching position atCincinnati vacated byBrian Kelly, who departed forNotre Dame. He later asked that his name be withdrawn from consideration from that position.[6] That same offseason, he was also a candidate for the job atTennessee vacated byLane Kiffin, who went toSouthern California. In May 2010, Golden signed a contract extension with Temple through 2014.[7] He led the Owls to an 8–4 record in 2010.
On December 12, 2010,ESPN reported that Golden was offered and accepted the head coaching job at theUniversity of Miami.[8]
In press conference remarks upon his hiring on December 13, 2010, Golden emphasized the importance of the University of Miami football legacy. "It's the most recognizable brand in college football," he said. "I go back to the former players that are here, the five national championships, 20 national award winners, countless All-Americans, incredible tradition. It's a dream job."[9] Golden signed a five-year contract at an undisclosed salary on December 14, 2010. However, due to NCAA rules, Golden did not coach the football team in Miami's bowl game against Notre Dame but instead focused on recruiting players for 2011.[10][11]Despite fielding teams with multiple future NFL draft picks, Golden was unable to defeat Florida State, his in state rival, in 5 attempts.[12] Golden began his tenure hampered by probation from a previous booster scandal, and self-imposed bowl bans during Golden's first two years with the program.[13]
Golden posted a 6–6 record in his first year at the University of Miami. The2011 season was only the third time since 1979 that the program had failed to register a winning record.[14] Despite being bowl-eligible, Miami announced on November 20 that it was withdrawing from bowl consideration due toan ongoing investigation into the program's ties to convictedPonzi schemerNevin Shapiro.[15]
The Hurricanes registered a 7–5 record in2012 and were in contention for a Coastal Division title for much of the year. However, with the NCAA investigation still not resolved, on November 19, Miami announced it was withdrawing from bowl consideration for a second consecutive season. Reportedly, school officials remembered howOhio State opted to play in a bowl in the 2011 season with an NCAA investigation still underway only to be banned from bowl consideration the following year.[16]
Golden'sthird season at Miami saw more improvement from the previous two. The Hurricanes got off to a 7–0 start, including a win over rivalFlorida, and were ranked as high as #7 in theAP Poll. Their first loss came to eventual national championFlorida State, which started a 3-game losing streak for Miami. The Hurricanes ended the regular season at 9–3 (5–3 ACC), good for 2nd place in the Coastal Division. Golden's team was invited to the2013 Russell Athletic Bowl, which the Canes lost 36–9 at the hands of future ACC foeLouisville.
Golden'sfourth season at Miami was seen as a disappointment by many. The Hurricanes began the season with a 6–3 record, but lost their next four games beginning with a heartbreaking home loss to defending national championsFlorida State and concluding with an uninspired defeat at the hands ofSouth Carolina in theDuck Commander Independence Bowl. Golden's Hurricanes finished the season 6–7 despite being picked by many experts to win the ACC Coastal Division Championship and seven of its players being drafted by NFL franchises which was tied withAlabama for 4th most by a school, behind only Florida State (11), Louisville (10) and Florida (8).
The Hurricanes began their season with a 3–0 start, with wins overFlorida Atlantic,Bethune-Cookman, andNebraska.[17] However, in their fourth game they were defeated by theCincinnati Bearcats atNippert Stadium. Fans clamored to see his immediate dismissal, even flying anti-Golden banners before games,.[18] Even Florida State fans got in on the act, attempting to raise money for their own "Keep Al Golden" banner with aGoFundMe campaign.[19][20] Due to area banner planes being booked for the contest between thestoried rivals on October 10, 2015,[19] funds raised were instead donated to the Kidz 1st Fund charity organization in lieu of hiring a plane.[19] Other reports suggested that Florida State and Miami officials pressured the campaign's manager to not fly the banner out of respect for the coach.[21] On the day of the game itself, fans posted mock "Missing Persons" notices throughout Tallahassee questioning the whereabouts of the formerly fearedHurricanes program as they welcomed them for their biennial visit toTallahassee and FSU'sDoak Campbell Stadium.[22]
After being identified as a 7-point home underdog to Clemson in Week 8, many in national media picked Miami to have a good chance at covering thespread and possibly even upset the Tigers. Despite this, Clemson jumped out to a 45–0 lead before pulling out their starters. Clemson handed the Hurricanes their worst loss in the 90-year history of the program as the Hurricanes fell by a score of 58–0.[23] This then led the University of Miami athletic director Blake James to dismiss Golden as head coach, only a day after the loss. Golden was 32–25 (17–18 in the ACC) in over four seasons with the Hurricanes. Golden announced after his firing that "On behalf of my family I want to thank the University of Miami for a tremendous opportunity," Golden said in a release. "I believe in what we are doing and how we are doing it and we have some outstanding young men in our football program. Though this moment is difficult, we wish the Canes the best of luck going forward."[24]
On February 1, 2016, Golden was named tight ends coach of theDetroit Lions.[25] On February 7, 2018, Golden was named linebackers coach of the Lions.[26] He was fired December 31, 2019.
Golden was hired by theCincinnati Bengals as their linebackers coach on January 20, 2020.[27] He missed the team's week 10 game in 2020 against thePittsburgh Steelers due toCOVID-19 pandemic protocols.[28]
On February 16, 2022,[29] Golden was announced as the newdefensive coordinator atNotre Dame, serving under recently promoted head coachMarcus Freeman.[30] In 2023, the Irish ranked as the fifth-best defense in the nation by yards allowed.[31] Golden signed a contract extension with Notre Dame in the offseason leading up to the2024 campaign.[32]
On January 23, 2025, Golden was named Defensive Coordinator of theCincinnati Bengals.[33]
A native ofColts Neck, New Jersey,[2] Golden graduated fromRed Bank Catholic High School, Red Bank, New Jersey,[34] and earned his undergraduate degree inpre-law fromPennsylvania State University in 1991[2] before receiving his master's insports psychology from theUniversity of Virginia in December 1996.[2] A 2004 inductee of the Jersey Shore Sports Hall of Fame,[2] he is married to Kelly Elizabeth Hanna ofLock Haven, Pennsylvania, and has a son, A.J. (Alfred James) Golden III, and two daughters, Addison Elizabeth Golden and Grace Hanna Golden.
For most of his head coaching career, Golden wore a dress shirt, slacks, and a tie in school colors on the sidelines, unlike most coaches of his generation.
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Temple Owls(NCAA Division I FBS independent)(2006) | |||||||||
| 2006 | Temple | 1–11 | |||||||
| Temple Owls(Mid-American Conference)(2007–2010) | |||||||||
| 2007 | Temple | 4–8 | 4–4 | T–4th(East) | |||||
| 2008 | Temple | 5–7 | 4–4 | T–2nd(East) | |||||
| 2009 | Temple | 9–4 | 7–1 | T–1st(East) | LEaglebank | ||||
| 2010 | Temple | 8–4 | 5–3 | 3rd(East) | |||||
| Temple: | 27–34 | 20–12 | |||||||
| Miami Hurricanes(Atlantic Coast Conference)(2011–2015) | |||||||||
| 2011 | Miami | 6–6 | 3–5 | T–4th(Coastal) | ‡ | ||||
| 2012 | Miami | 7–5 | 5–3 | T–1st(Coastal) ‡ | ‡ | ||||
| 2013 | Miami | 9–4 | 5–3 | T–2nd(Coastal) | LRussell Athletic | ||||
| 2014 | Miami | 6–7 | 3–5 | T–5th(Coastal) | LIndependence | ||||
| 2015 | Miami | 4–3 | 1–2 | (Coastal) | |||||
| Miami: | 32–25 | 17–18 | ‡ Ineligible forAtlantic Coast Conference title,bowl game andCoaches Poll | ||||||
| Total: | 59–59 | ||||||||
| National championship Conference title Conference division title or championship game berth | |||||||||