Upcoming Event: Football versus Georgia Tech on October 18, 2025 at 12:00 p.m.
Football
vs Georgia Tech
Football
Matt O'Donnell
- Title:
- Graduate Assistant Coach/Defense
- Email:
- matthew.odonnell@duke.edu
- Phone:
- (919) 684-2635
Matt O'Donnell joined the Duke coaching staff in July of 2016 and serves as a graduate assistant coach while working primarily with the defensive unit.
During his first season with the Blue Devils, O'Donnell worked with a trio of All-ACC selections and a Freshman All-America honoree in linebacker Joe Giles-Harris. Duke's defense had three tabbed as ACC Players of the Week and redshirt senior defensive tackle A.J. Wolf repeated as a First Team CoSIDA Academic All-America honoree.
O'Donnell spent the 2015 season as a defensive graduate assistant at Southern Miss where he helped the Golden Eagles to 9-5 record and Conference USA Championship Game appearance against Western Kentucky. The Golden Eagles returned to a bowl for the first time in four years, playing Washington in the Zaxby's Heart of Dallas Bowl. Led by first team all-league defensive back Kalan Reed, USM held opponents to 25.6 points per game.
Prior to joining the Golden Eagles, O'Donnell worked as an intern for one year at the University of Iowa. Before his stint with the Hawkeyes, O'Donnell was a linebacker at Brown, helping the Bears claim the 2008 Ivy League Championship. A member of the football team's Leadership Committee, O'Donnell was an All-Ivy League selection in 2011.
A native of Tipton, Iowa, O'Donnell graduated from Brown with a bachelor's degree in economics in 2012 and is pursuing a master's degree in Christian studies. He is married to the former Katie Witt.
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