ACUCOACHES ryan kobbe Quarterbacks Ryan Kobbe is in his first season as the ACU quarterbacks coach after spending the last three seasons working at BethuneCookman, working exclusively with the quarterbacks and special teams. Before moving to Bethune-Cookman, Kobbe spent the 2012 season on the University of North Texas football coaching staff working directly with the quarterbacks and special teams. After his only season at UNT, Kobbe’s quarterback, Derek Thompson, signed a free agent contract with the Denver Broncos. In 2013, Bethune-Cookman quarterback Quentin Williams led the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference in pass efficiency, completion percentage, yards per attempt and yards per completion. In 2014, Larry Brihm and Williams finished first and third, respectively, in the MEAC in pass efficiency. They also finished first and third, respectively, in the league in completion percentage. Williams again led the conference in yards per attempt in 2014. In both of my years at Cookman, we won the MEAC championship. We also beat an FBS team each season. Williams ended up signing with Winnipeg in the CFL after his collegiate eligibility was completed. A native of Corning, N.Y., Kobbe played football and baseball at Marshall University from 1998-2002. In baseball, he started every year for the Thundering Herd at catcher while playing linebacker and on special teams on the gridiron. He was part of the 2002 Marshall squad that finished 19th in the Coaches Poll, won the Mid-American Conference, and defeated Louisville in the GMAC Bowl in Mobile, Ala.
CODY MOORE Defensive Line Cody Moore is in his third season as the defensive line coach at ACU after spending the 2013 season as the assistant recruiting coordinator at the University of Arkansas. Moore has 10 years of collegiate coaching experience, including four years in the SEC and Big XII. Last fall he coached LaMarcus Allen and Josh Bloom to honorable mention all-Southland Conference honors. In his first season at ACU (2014), Moore coached a defensive line that produced a first team all-Southland Conference selection in senior defensive end Nick Richardson and an honorable mention all-conference pick in senior defensive tackle Damon Williams. Richardson finished the season with 9.0 sacks, which gave him 32.5 sacks his career, good for second on ACU’s all-time sacks list. Before spending the 2013 season on head coach Bret Bielema’s staff at Arkansas, Moore was the recruiting coordinator and interior defensive line coach at Central Arkansas for three seasons. He coordinated all recruiting efforts for the Bears, who reached the second round of the FCS playoffs in 2011 and 2012. 28
2016 ACU WILDCAT FOOTBALL
The 2012 team won the Southland Conference and earned a first-round bye, reaching a final ranking of 10th nationally. In 2011, UCA, in just its second year of postseason eligibility, won its first-round game on the road and was ranked 14th in the country at the end of the year. Prior to his time at Central Arkansas, Moore was a defensive quality control coach at Texas A&M, where he worked with the Aggies defensive line in 2009. That season, he helped coach Super Bowl 50 MVP Von Miller, who led the NCAA with 17.5 sacks and was a first-team All-American as the Aggies were selected to play in the Advocare 100 Independence Bowl. During the 2007 and 2008 seasons, Moore was a defensive administration assistant coach at Auburn University with a focus on the defensive line. In those two years, the Tigers earned 14 wins, including a win over Clemson in the 2007 Chick-fil-A Bowl. Auburn ranked sixth in the country in total defense in 2007 and produced three NFL Draft picks from the defensive line during Moore’s time. He began his coaching career as a defensive graduate assistant coaching the interior defensive line at Hardin-Simmons, where he also assisted with video editing and in the strength and conditioning program, in 2005 and 2006. Moore coached three All-Southwest Conference selections at Hardin-Simmons and helped the Cowboys qualify for the Division III playoffs in 2006. Moore was a team captain, four-year starter and all-conference performer at Oklahoma Panhandle State University from 2001-04. He earned his bachelor’s degree in health and physical education in 2004 and graduated from Hardin-Simmons University with a Master’s in sports and recreation management in 2007. He and his wife, Kristen, have three children: a daughter, Bentley, a son, Cooper, and a daughter, Avery.
MARK RIBAUDO Linebackers and Special Teams Mark Ribaudo will be in his fifth season on the ACU football coaching staff in 2015, coaching linebackers and directing the Wildcats’ special teams units. In 2015, he coached middle linebacker Sam Denmark to first team all-Southland Conference honors and the league's Student-Athlete of the Year Award. Denmark led FCS football in solo tackles (90) and was fourth in total tackles (138) and tackles per game (12.5). In 2014, senior linebacker Justin Stephens earned honorable mention all-Southland Conference honors after leading the Wildcats in tackles with 100. Stephens – who played under Ribaudo for the final three years of his career – finished among the top 15 tacklers in ACU history with more than 300 career tackles. Ribaudo also worked true freshman middle linebacker Sam Denmark into the starting lineup, and Denmark responded with 77 tackles, four tackles for loss, two sacks and two interceptions. Ribaudo coached outside linebacker Mike Wallace and Thor Woerner to all-LSC honors in 2012. He also coached punter Spencer Covey to first team all-LSC honors and deep snapper Brent Schroeder to all-LSC honors.