PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Rutgers football head coach Greg Schiano has named Eric Finney cornerbacks coach. Reuniting with Scarlet Knight defensive coordinator Travis Johansen after being on the same South Dakota staff in 2025, the California native coached two All-America picks this past season. He played in the Big Ten for Illinois and has previous coaching experience at Cincinnati, Iowa Western CC and Concordia, Chicago.
Working under Johansen, Finney helped the Coyotes to a 10-5 mark and a second-place finish in the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC) with a 6-2 league record this past season. That featured three straight victories over ranked opponents to end the regular season and a final ranking of No. 9 (Stats Perform). USD earned an FCS Playoffs berth, shutting out Mercer, 47-0, to reach the quarterfinals.
Cornerback Mikey Munn was named Second Team All-America by FCS Football Central in his first season as a starter after leading the conference and ranking third in the FCS with five interceptions, adding 10 pass breakups, while cornerback RJ Stewart was selected as a Freshman All-American with 10 passes defended (seven breakups, three interceptions). The defense placed 22nd nationally with 12 interceptions overall.
Photo credit: Adam Pearson
While at Cincinnati in 2024, Finney assisted with the defensive backs in a quality control role. That included supporting overall operations and in positional meetings for the Bearcat defensive backs.
Previously, Finney spent six seasons at Iowa Western Community College (2018-23) where he was the defensive backs coach and special teams coordinator. He served as the pass game coordinator for the Reivers and was a part of two national championships and three title game appearances.
Finney began his career as a graduate assistant at Concordia University, Chicago (2016-17), coaching two all-conference selections and helping to orchestrate the top pass defense in the NACC in 2016 (193.9).
Finney played three seasons at Illinois (2013-15), seeing action in 35 career games with 70 tackles. The two-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree served as a captain as a senior in 2015. That season saw him make eight starts in the secondary and record 35 tackles with 7.5 tackles-for-loss and three pass breakups.
Finney earned his bachelor's degree in human development and family studies from the University of Illinois in 2015. In 2017, he earned his master's degree in sports leadership from Concordia University, Chicago.
Personal
Hometown: Riverside, Calif.
Alma Mater: Illinois, 2015
Coaching History
2026-present: Rutgers (cornerbacks)
2025: South Dakota (cornerbacks)
2024: Cincinnati (assistant defensive backs)
2018-23: Iowa Western CC (pass game coordinator/defensive backs/special teams coordinator)
2016-17: Concordia, Chicago (graduate assistant)
