Missouri has juggled its defensive staff this offseason and officially announced an addition and other changes to the staff for 2022 on Saturday.

The first piece of the changes is the introduction of new assistant coach Al Pogue. Pogue joins the Tigers to coach cornerbacks and comes to Missouri after working at Troy in 2021. He spent 2 separate stints at Troy and has previous stops at Auburn and West Virginia.

“Al Pogue brings a ton of experience to our staff,” said head coach Eliah Drinkwitz. “I know him well and I know what he brings to the table. I’m confident that the group of coaches and staff we’ve assembled will be impactful for our program on and off the field.”

Along with adding Pogue to the staff, Missouri announced the promotion of Blake Baker to defensive coordinator. The DC position was left vacant with Steve Wilks leaving the Tigers to return to the NFL. Baker was brought on in January to coach safeties and will continue working with the safties in addition to the DC role.

DJ Smith also saw his role increased with the addition of co-DC duties. Smith will continue to serve as linebackers coach and recruiting coordinator in addition to the co-DC responsibilities.