Rob Schlaeger begins his second season on the Washington State Football staff and first as the program’s General Manager. Schlaeger spent the 2020 season in a similar role in Pullman.
Under Dickert, Schlaeger oversees all of the Cougars’ recruiting efforts, from identifying talent at the high school and collegiate levels, as well as managing the transfer portal.
Prior to WSU, Schlaeger spent the 2018 and 2019 seasons working with the defense at Minot State University (N.D.). Schlaeger worked as the MSU defensive front coordinator and defensive line coach. He worked the 2017 season as a defensive graduate assistant at the University of Wyoming, where he worked under Dickert, who was the school’s safeties coach. Schlaeger also previously coached at West Florida and Southwest Minnesota State.
Schlaeger served as a graduate assistant coach on the defensive side of the ball at Wyoming in 2017 where the Cowboys posted an 8-5 overall record and defeated Central Michigan 37-14 in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl. Wyoming had one of the top defensive units in the country in 2017, finishing ninth in the nation in scoring defense allowing just 17.5 points per game and No. 23 in total defense.
Prior to Wyoming, Schlaeger served as the outside linebackers coach at West Florida in 2016 where, during the program's inaugural season, developed practice plans for the outside linebackers, created scouting reports on opponents, and participated in constructing game plans. On game days, he communicated directly with the defensive coordinator from the coaching booth in the press box. Schlaeger recruited parts of Alabama, as well as recruiting the states of Minnesota, Iowa, and Kansas junior colleges. West Florida went 5-6 in its first season of college football, including recording two shutouts and defeating the 16th-ranked Florida Institute of Technology.
Prior to his one season at West Florida, Schlaeger was an undergraduate assistant at Southwest Minnesota State from December, 2011 to June, 2016. He assisted in coaching the linebackers for three seasons and spent one season working with the defensive secondary. In 2015, he was promoted to a graduate assistant position responsible for coaching the outside linebackers.
In 2013, Southwest Minnesota State earned its first-ever Division-II bowl bid to the Mineral Water Bowl, and in 2015 it posted and 8-3 record, which is its best record at the Division-II level.
Schlaeger earned his bachelor’s degree in physical education and sport management from Southwest Minnesota State in 2015, and completed his master’s degree in coaching of sport, also from Southwest Minnesota State, in 2016.
