Missouri is the latest SEC team to make a move and hire an assistant coach following National Signing Day, however, this one comes with a bit of a twist. Tigers head coach Barry Odom has hired his younger brother Brian Odom to coach outside linebackers.

Brian Odom has some history with Mizzou, as he served as a graduate assistant for a short time back in 2005. Odom comes over from Washington State, where he was a defensive quality control coach the last two seasons. Odom also has some history with the team’s offensive coordinator Josh Heupel, as they both played for Oklahoma.

Brian Odom has never held an on-the-field role in college football.

“I am extremely grateful this opportunity, and I’d like to thank Coach Odom and his staff and Director of Athletics Jim Sterk for giving me the opportunity to come back to Mizzou,” Brian Odom said via release. “I’m excited to get my family back to the great town of Columbia and be part of a school that I’ve followed closely for over 20 years now. I’m really excited about the future of the program and it’s an honor to coach in such a prestigious league as the SEC and represent the state of Missouri. I’m looking forward to doing great things with this outstanding staff.”

The elder Odom shared these thoughts on adding his brother to the staff:

“I’m excited to have Brian join our staff,” Odom said via release, “he will be a great fit for us in a variety of roles. He has an understanding of the defensive structure we’re going to run, he’s been around it extensively his last couple of years at Washington State, and he and I have spent a lot of time together personally prior to that studying and sharing defensive philosophies. He’s got a great mind for football, and he has a strong background in leading, mentoring and motivating players to improve themselves and attain goals. I know what I’m getting with Brian, and I know the opportunity to be back at Mizzou means a lot to him.”

With Brian Odom now coaching up half of the linebackers, here’s an interesting thought into what defensive coordinator DeMontie Cross’ role exactly will be moving forward:

The more defensive coaches on the same page the better for Missouri, as the Tigers have a long way to climb to retain the success on the defensive side of the ball under former coach Gary Pinkel.