Jesse Bobbit begins his first season as WSU’s defensive coordinator/linebackers coach on Head Coach Jimmy Rogers staff, though it is not his first time on the Cougar staff. Bobbit was a defensive graduate assistant and quality control coach during the 2020 and 2021 seasons. He primarily worked with the linebackers for a WSU program that earned a berth in the Sun Bowl during the 2021 campaign.
Bobbit arrived in Pullman having spent the past three seasons at his alma mater, South Dakota State, the last two as defensive coordinator/linebackers coach. This past season, the SDSU defense ranked first in scoring defense at 13.9 ppg, the second-straight season leading the nation, holding seven opponents to 10 points or less. Additionally, the Jackrabbits ranked fifth in FCS in total defense, allowing 283.7 ypg, fifth in rushing defense (93.2 ypg) and 17th in passes intercepted (14).
Bobbit mentored two linebackers to first-team All-America accolades in Adam Bock and Caleb Francl, while defensive backs Dalys Beanum and Tucker Large also earned All-America honors.
In 2023, his first season as defensive coordinator, the Bobbit-led Jackrabbit defense held the opposition to an average of 9.3 points per game, a standard that ranked more than five points per game better than the next closest Football Championship Subdivision squad. SDSU held six of their 15 opponents without a touchdown and shut out an opponent three times, including twice in the postseason, as the Jackrabbits held a 146-15 scoring advantage in four playoff games en route to their second consecutive national title.
In addition to leading the FCS ranks in scoring defense during the 2023 season, SDSU also led the subdivision in total defense (257.2 yards per game), turnovers gained (29) and red-zone defense (.588). The Jackrabbits also ranked second for passes intercepted (19) and rushing defense (89.6 yards per game).
Individually, linebackers held the top four tackling totals during the 2023 campaign, led by All-American Jason Freeman with 105 stops. Freeman was a first-team all-Missouri Valley Football Conference selection who later earned third-team All-America recognition from Stats Perform. Isaiah Stalbird, who was second on the squad with 80 tackles, was a second-team all-MVFC honoree and later signed a free agent contract with the New Orleans Saints.
Bobbit returned to the South Dakota State football program in February 2022 and coached the team's safeties during the Jackrabbits' first national championship campaign. He also served as the Jackrabbits' recruiting coordinator for one season.
During the 2022 season, the Jackrabbits led the Football Championship Subdivision with 18 interceptions, with the team's safeties combining for seven of those pickoffs. SDSU also led the FCS ranks in rushing defense (88.1 yards per game) and finished third in scoring defense (15.8 points per game).
In addition, redshirt freshman Tucker Large was honored on the 2022 MVFC All-Newcomer Team after contributing at both safety and linebacker.
A linebacker for the Jackrabbits from 2013-16, Bobbit began his collegiate coaching career as a graduate assistant at SDSU in 2019, before moving on the Washington State for the 2020 and 2021 seasons.
A team captain at SDSU during his senior season, Bobbit registered 306 career tackles, including racking up a career-high 110 tackles in 2016, when he was a second-team all-Missouri Valley Football Conference selection.
Bobbit, who twice was honored on the Missouri Valley Football Conference All-Academic Team, graduated from SDSU in 2017 with a degree in physical education and a minor in health education. For his first two years out of college, he taught elementary physical education in the Omaha Metro area and served as an assistant football coach at Bellevue West High School.
