K-State Names Nick Toth New Linebackers Coach
Dec 22, 2025 | Football
MANHATTAN, Kan. – A 25-year college football coaching veteran who has worked with all three levels of the defense, Nick Toth has been hired as Kansas State's linebackers coach, head coach Collin Klein announced Monday.
Toth (pronounced TOETH) comes to Manhattan from Air Force where he served the last four seasons as the Falcons' safeties coach.
"Jen and I are fired up and blessed to be a part of Collin and Shalin's Kansas State Football Family," said Toth. "K-State Athletics has a standard of excellence that Gene Taylor has pushed to the highest level, and the championship tradition that legendary coach Bill Snyder created is what all coaches strive to be a part of. We cannot wait to get to work. EMAW!"
Toth brings seven years of defensive coordinator experience to K-State, serving in the role at Mercyhurst (2006), Ashland (2007-08) and Fresno State (2012-15), while he called the Air Force defense during the second half of the 2025 season. He has also been part of 13 teams that have advanced to postseason play. Toth worked on the same staffs as K-State defensive coordinator Jordan Peterson at Texas A&M (2010-11) and Fresno State (2012-16).
"Nick brings a wealth of experience from a schematic and recruiting standpoint," Klein said. "He is of extremely high character and hard working. We are excited to have him help us take K-State to the next level."
In 2024, Toth was part of a Falcon defense unit that led the Mountain West Conference in total defense (341.9 yards per game), while Air Force ranked third nationally first down defense (204) and 27th in passing defense (188.5 yards per game). His work in 2024 came on the heels of helping safety Trey Taylor win the 2023 Jim Thrope Award as the nation's top defensive back, while Taylor was also a First Team All-American. Toth helped the Falcons to the No. 1 total defense in the Mountain West Conference for five-straight seasons.
Toth was part of an Air Force defensive staff in 2022 that led the nation in total defense by allowing 254.4 yards per game, while the Falcons ranked second in pass defense (159.1 yards per game), third in scoring defense (13.4 yards per game) and fifth in rushing defense (95.3 yards per game). The 13.4 points allowed per game ranked sixth in program history.
Toth went to Air Force after working with the outside linebackers at Oregon in 2021. He coached All-American defensive end Kayvon Thibodeaux, who was a finalist for the Chuck Bednarik Award and Bronko Nagurski Trophy before he was the fifth overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft by the New York Giants. That season, the Ducks finished with a 10-4 record, won the Pac-12 North and played in the Alamo Bowl.
Prior to his year at Oregon, Toth spent three seasons at UCF as the Knights' special teams coordinator. UCF won the 2018 American Athletic Conference (AAC) Championship and earned a berth into the Fiesta Bowl during his first season, while the Knights produced a 10-3 record in 2019 that was capped by a win over Marshall in the Gasparilla Bowl. In 2019, UCF rose to as high as No. 7 in the Associated Press Top-25, while it went 6-4 in the COVID season of 2020.
The Knights' special teams units played an integral role in the team's success in 2018, blocking a pair of field goals and inducing four other misses. Placekicker Matthew Wright earned All-AAC honors after connecting on 85.7% of his field goal attempts to rank 15th in the nation. Wright also collected 110 total points, the third most in a single season in UCF history.
Toth's first stint at Air Force came in 2017 when he coached the Falcon spurs/nickels, helping USAFA rank 10th in the country in passing defense (171.1 yards per game).
Prior to his first stint in Colorado Springs, Toth worked five seasons at Fresno State as the inside linebackers coach in addition to serving as the defensive coordinator the first four years. His defense earned 17 All-Mountain West selections and one unanimous All-American in safety Phillip Thomas in 2012. Thomas was a finalist for the Jim Thorpe Award, won the CFPA Defensive Back Trophy and was the Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year after leading the nation with eight interceptions.
After having only nine turnovers gained the year before Toth's hiring, Fresno State came back in 2012 and recorded the greatest turnover turnaround in the FBS since the turn of the century. Finishing with 35 takeaways in 2012 (ranking fifth in the FBS), the Bulldogs' differential in turnovers gained in one season under Toth was plus-26.
His 2013 defense ranked sixth in the nation with more than three sacks per game and 40 total for the season, while the Bulldogs ranked fourth with 8.2 tackles for loss per game. Over the 2012 and 2013 seasons, Fresno State and Stanford were the only schools in the country to rank in the top 10 in sacks both years.
Toth's lone experience in the Big 12 came at Texas A&M in 2010 and 2011 – the Aggies' final two years in the conference – as he coached the outside linebackers and special teams. In College Station, Toth oversaw the development of linebacker Von Miller, who captured the prestigious Butkus Award during an All-America campaign in 2010. Miller went on to be the No. 2 overall pick of the Denver Broncos in the 2011 NFL Draft. He was also responsible for coaching the No. 1 kicker in the nation, Lou Groza Award winner Randy Bullock.
Prior to his two seasons at Texas A&M, Toth was the defensive backs coach and oversaw the special teams at The Citadel in 2009. He went there after three years as a defensive coordinator, working at Mercyhurst (Pennsylvania) in 2006 and Ashland (Ohio) in 2007 and 2008.
Toth coached defensive backs at Elon (2005), defensive linemen at Ohio (2004) and defensive backs at Dakota State (2002). He was also the special teams coordinator at Elon, spent the 2003 season as the tight ends coach at Ohio and was a defensive graduate assistant with the Bobcats from 2000-01.
A native of Cleveland, Ohio, Toth played both running back and defensive back for Ohio University from 1994 to 1999. He earned his undergraduate degree in political science from Ohio in 1999 in addition to a master's degree in athletic administration in 2002.
Toth and his wife, Jennifer, have three sons – Nicholas IV, Michael and Johnathon – and one daughter – Susan.
THE NICK TOTH FILE
Hometown: Cleveland, Ohio
College: Ohio – Bachelor's degree in political science (1999); Master's degree in athletic administration (2002)
Family: Wife: Jennifer; Children: Nicholas IV, Michael, Johnathon, Susan
Playing Career: Ohio (running back/defensive back), 1994-99
NICK TOTH'S COACHING CAREER
2000-01, Ohio (Graduate Assistant)
2002, Dakota State (Defensive Backs)
2003, Ohio (Tight Ends)
2004, Ohio (Defensive Line)
2005, Elon (Defensive Backs)
2006, Mercyhurst (Defensive Coordinator/Defensive Backs)
2007-08, Ashland (Defensive Coordinator)
2009, The Citadel (Special Teams/Defensive Backs)
2010-11, Texas A&M (Outside Linebackers/Special Teams)
2012-15, Fresno State (Defensive Coordinator/Inside Linebackers)
2016, Fresno State (Inside Linebackers)
2017, Air Force (Spurs/Nickels)
2018-20, UCF (Special Teams Coordinator)
2021, Oregon (Outside Linebackers)
2022-25, Air Force (Safeties)
2026, K-State (Linebackers)
Toth (pronounced TOETH) comes to Manhattan from Air Force where he served the last four seasons as the Falcons' safeties coach.
"Jen and I are fired up and blessed to be a part of Collin and Shalin's Kansas State Football Family," said Toth. "K-State Athletics has a standard of excellence that Gene Taylor has pushed to the highest level, and the championship tradition that legendary coach Bill Snyder created is what all coaches strive to be a part of. We cannot wait to get to work. EMAW!"
Toth brings seven years of defensive coordinator experience to K-State, serving in the role at Mercyhurst (2006), Ashland (2007-08) and Fresno State (2012-15), while he called the Air Force defense during the second half of the 2025 season. He has also been part of 13 teams that have advanced to postseason play. Toth worked on the same staffs as K-State defensive coordinator Jordan Peterson at Texas A&M (2010-11) and Fresno State (2012-16).
"Nick brings a wealth of experience from a schematic and recruiting standpoint," Klein said. "He is of extremely high character and hard working. We are excited to have him help us take K-State to the next level."
In 2024, Toth was part of a Falcon defense unit that led the Mountain West Conference in total defense (341.9 yards per game), while Air Force ranked third nationally first down defense (204) and 27th in passing defense (188.5 yards per game). His work in 2024 came on the heels of helping safety Trey Taylor win the 2023 Jim Thrope Award as the nation's top defensive back, while Taylor was also a First Team All-American. Toth helped the Falcons to the No. 1 total defense in the Mountain West Conference for five-straight seasons.
Toth was part of an Air Force defensive staff in 2022 that led the nation in total defense by allowing 254.4 yards per game, while the Falcons ranked second in pass defense (159.1 yards per game), third in scoring defense (13.4 yards per game) and fifth in rushing defense (95.3 yards per game). The 13.4 points allowed per game ranked sixth in program history.
Toth went to Air Force after working with the outside linebackers at Oregon in 2021. He coached All-American defensive end Kayvon Thibodeaux, who was a finalist for the Chuck Bednarik Award and Bronko Nagurski Trophy before he was the fifth overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft by the New York Giants. That season, the Ducks finished with a 10-4 record, won the Pac-12 North and played in the Alamo Bowl.
Prior to his year at Oregon, Toth spent three seasons at UCF as the Knights' special teams coordinator. UCF won the 2018 American Athletic Conference (AAC) Championship and earned a berth into the Fiesta Bowl during his first season, while the Knights produced a 10-3 record in 2019 that was capped by a win over Marshall in the Gasparilla Bowl. In 2019, UCF rose to as high as No. 7 in the Associated Press Top-25, while it went 6-4 in the COVID season of 2020.
The Knights' special teams units played an integral role in the team's success in 2018, blocking a pair of field goals and inducing four other misses. Placekicker Matthew Wright earned All-AAC honors after connecting on 85.7% of his field goal attempts to rank 15th in the nation. Wright also collected 110 total points, the third most in a single season in UCF history.
Toth's first stint at Air Force came in 2017 when he coached the Falcon spurs/nickels, helping USAFA rank 10th in the country in passing defense (171.1 yards per game).
Prior to his first stint in Colorado Springs, Toth worked five seasons at Fresno State as the inside linebackers coach in addition to serving as the defensive coordinator the first four years. His defense earned 17 All-Mountain West selections and one unanimous All-American in safety Phillip Thomas in 2012. Thomas was a finalist for the Jim Thorpe Award, won the CFPA Defensive Back Trophy and was the Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year after leading the nation with eight interceptions.
After having only nine turnovers gained the year before Toth's hiring, Fresno State came back in 2012 and recorded the greatest turnover turnaround in the FBS since the turn of the century. Finishing with 35 takeaways in 2012 (ranking fifth in the FBS), the Bulldogs' differential in turnovers gained in one season under Toth was plus-26.
His 2013 defense ranked sixth in the nation with more than three sacks per game and 40 total for the season, while the Bulldogs ranked fourth with 8.2 tackles for loss per game. Over the 2012 and 2013 seasons, Fresno State and Stanford were the only schools in the country to rank in the top 10 in sacks both years.
Toth's lone experience in the Big 12 came at Texas A&M in 2010 and 2011 – the Aggies' final two years in the conference – as he coached the outside linebackers and special teams. In College Station, Toth oversaw the development of linebacker Von Miller, who captured the prestigious Butkus Award during an All-America campaign in 2010. Miller went on to be the No. 2 overall pick of the Denver Broncos in the 2011 NFL Draft. He was also responsible for coaching the No. 1 kicker in the nation, Lou Groza Award winner Randy Bullock.
Prior to his two seasons at Texas A&M, Toth was the defensive backs coach and oversaw the special teams at The Citadel in 2009. He went there after three years as a defensive coordinator, working at Mercyhurst (Pennsylvania) in 2006 and Ashland (Ohio) in 2007 and 2008.
Toth coached defensive backs at Elon (2005), defensive linemen at Ohio (2004) and defensive backs at Dakota State (2002). He was also the special teams coordinator at Elon, spent the 2003 season as the tight ends coach at Ohio and was a defensive graduate assistant with the Bobcats from 2000-01.
A native of Cleveland, Ohio, Toth played both running back and defensive back for Ohio University from 1994 to 1999. He earned his undergraduate degree in political science from Ohio in 1999 in addition to a master's degree in athletic administration in 2002.
Toth and his wife, Jennifer, have three sons – Nicholas IV, Michael and Johnathon – and one daughter – Susan.
THE NICK TOTH FILE
Hometown: Cleveland, Ohio
College: Ohio – Bachelor's degree in political science (1999); Master's degree in athletic administration (2002)
Family: Wife: Jennifer; Children: Nicholas IV, Michael, Johnathon, Susan
Playing Career: Ohio (running back/defensive back), 1994-99
NICK TOTH'S COACHING CAREER
2000-01, Ohio (Graduate Assistant)
2002, Dakota State (Defensive Backs)
2003, Ohio (Tight Ends)
2004, Ohio (Defensive Line)
2005, Elon (Defensive Backs)
2006, Mercyhurst (Defensive Coordinator/Defensive Backs)
2007-08, Ashland (Defensive Coordinator)
2009, The Citadel (Special Teams/Defensive Backs)
2010-11, Texas A&M (Outside Linebackers/Special Teams)
2012-15, Fresno State (Defensive Coordinator/Inside Linebackers)
2016, Fresno State (Inside Linebackers)
2017, Air Force (Spurs/Nickels)
2018-20, UCF (Special Teams Coordinator)
2021, Oregon (Outside Linebackers)
2022-25, Air Force (Safeties)
2026, K-State (Linebackers)
– k-statesports.com –
How to follow the Cats: For complete information on K-State Football, visit www.kstatesports.com and follow the team's social media channels on X (formerly Twitter), Instagram and Facebook.
How to follow the Cats: For complete information on K-State Football, visit www.kstatesports.com and follow the team's social media channels on X (formerly Twitter), Instagram and Facebook.
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