Butler University Athletics

Butler Head Coach Kevin Lynch is excited to announce the hire of new defensive line coach and run-game coordinator Preston Gordon. A former student-athlete at Rice and Texas Tech, Gordon has previously held coaching positions at Illinois and Purdue.
 
Gordon was a standout defensive lineman in college before signing a free agent contract with the Atlanta Falcons. The Texas native also played for the Frisco Fighters of the Indoor Football League before beginning his coaching career.
 
Gordon most recently coached at Purdue serving as the program’s senior defensive analyst. He was a pass rush specialist with the Boilers working with then head coach Ryan Walters and defensive coordinator Kevin Kane.
 
Prior to his time in West Lafayette, Gordon was a a defensive graduate assistant coach at Illinois. He helped coach one of the best defensive turnarounds in the nation in 2021, helping Illinois to a 5-7 record and ranked wins over #7 Penn State and #20 Minnesota. 
 
Illinois' scoring defense (31st from 97th), third down defense (31st from 89th), and total defense (52nd from 114th) all improved more than 50 spots in the nation rankings from 2020. The Illini made massive gains in the Big Ten defensive rankings, as well, jumping 9+ spots in scoring defense (4th from 14th), touchdowns allowed (t-3rd from 14th), yards allowed per game (5th from 14th), and passing yards allowed per game (1st from 10th).
 
Gordon played his first four seasons of college football at Rice before transferring to Texas Tech for his senior year in 2018. He had 21 tackles and 2.5 TFLs while playing in all 12 games and starting three at nose tackle.
 
Gordon ended his Rice career with 28 starts on the defensive line in three seasons, totaling 87 tackles and 17.5 TFLs. He came to Rice out of Frisco Heritage High School in Frisco, Texas, where he finished his career with 209 tackles, 28 sacks, and 34 TFLs.
 
Gordon earned a bachelor’s degree in sports management from Rice in 2018. He finished a master’s degree in interdisciplinary studies at Texas Tech in 2019 and added another master’s degree in health science while at Illinois in 2022.