DYLAN CHMURA Has 2 full seasons coaching at NMU

MARQUETTE — The Northern Michigan University football coaching staff has a new head man for the time being who has a name familiar to many Green Bay Packers fans.

Dylan Chmura, the son of Super Bowl-winning and Pro Bowl tight end Mark Chmura, was named the interim head coach of the Wildcats by NMU athletic director Rick Comley on Tuesday, according to a university news release.

Chmura replaces Kyle Nystrom, who resigned Monday after five years with Northern.

Like his father, Chmura has built a good football reputation himself, having played tight end and long snapper at Michigan State for four years, when the Spartans won two Big 10 championships.

He’s been in coaching since his playing days, along with earning a bachelor’s degree from MSU and master’s degree from Fresno State.

That includes being a member of the coaching staff at NMU for the past two seasons. He came to the Wildcats before the 2021 season as a coach on offense, specifically with the line, tight ends and fullbacks.

Last summer he was promoted to offensive coordinator.

He began his coaching career in 2016 as his alma mater, MSU, as a student coach after he gave up his final two seasons of eligibility due to multiple concussions, his NMU biography states. He assisted with the Spartans’ offensive line, tight ends and special teams’ long snapping.

He moved on to Fresno State in 2017 and worked with the offensive line for two seasons. Fresno won the Hawaii Bowl in ’17 after posting a 10-4 record, the biggest win-loss turnaround in college football after a one-win 2016.

Then Chmura went to the University of Iowa in the Big 10 in 2019 and 2020, again working with its offensive line. The Hawkeyes were 10-3 in 2019, including a win over USC in the Holiday Bowl, and were 6-2 in the coronavirus pandemic-shortened 2020 season and scheduled to play Missouri in the Music City Bowl before it was canceled.

The 2020 squad was nationally ranked in the top 20 with a statistically elite offense in the Big 10.

Comley said Chmura will serve as NMU head coach until a permanent head coach is hired, which the AD hopes will be early in 2023.

“Dylan has solid leadership skills,” Comley said in NMU’s announcement. “His guidance of the day-to-day operations during this transitional period will provide stability for the program and give current and incoming players confidence that they will continue to be supported regarding their football and academic endeavors.”

“Coaching changes are tough on players, but we’re committed to helping make sure that our team members stay on track to achieve their athletic and academic goals,” Chmura said in the announcement. “I appreciate AD Comley having faith in me to help the program navigate forward during this time.”

Information compiled by Journal Sports Editor Steve Brownlee. His email address is sbrownlee@miningjournal.net.