The former head coach of Duquesne (1992-04), Greg Gattuso is in his second year as the defensive line coach at Maryland after spending the last six seasons at the University of Pittsburgh.
Gattuso has a long history of success, winning a national title in 1982 as a defensive lineman at Penn State, leading Duquesne to a 97-32 record during his head-coaching tenure and building Pittsburgh’s defensive line into one of the best in the nation as an assistant head coach. He has also developed a name as a top recruiter, having hauled in a top-10 class while serving as recruiting coordinator at Pittsburgh.
During his time at Pittsburgh, Gattuso turned the Panthers’ defensive line into one of the team’s major strengths. The last two seasons, the line was one of the top sack producers in the nation.
Brandon Lindsey (10.0) and Jabaal Sherard (9.0) both ranked in the top 20 nationally in sacks during the 2010 regular season and Pittsburgh led the nation in that category in 2009 (3.6 per game).
Sheard was the 2010 Big East Defensive Player of the Year, the second straight season Gattuso coached the award winner. Pitt defensive linemen Greg Romeus and Mick Williams shared the award in 2009.
Three starters on Pitt’s defensive front were honored on the 2009 All-Big East Team, as tackle Gus Mustakas earned second-team honors.
Gattuso initially joined the Pitt staff as tight ends coach and recruiting coordinator in 2005. In his first season, he helped the Panthers sign a recruiting class rated 10th in the nation by Scout.com, 16th by ESPN.com and 21st by Rivals.com. He began coaching the defensive line in 2006 and was promoted to assistant head coach in 2008.
Prior to his time at Pitt, Gattuso had a successful 12-year stint as head coach at Duquesne University, where he built the Dukes into one of the elite I-AA football programs in the nation. The winningest coach in school history, the Dukes went 97-32 (.752) under his direction, won eight Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) titles, made five bowl appearances and captured the 2003 consensus Mid-Major Division I-AA national championship.
The Western Pennsylvania native was twice named the national Mid-Major I-AA Coach of the Year and was a seven-time MAAC Coach of the Year. The Dukes dominated the conference during his tenure, going 66-7 (.904) in league play, including a 33-game winning streak.
Gattuso was an assistant coach at Duquesne in 1992 before taking over the head coaching post the following year.
From 1989-91, he served as head coach at his high school alma mater, Seton-LaSalle. Taking over a team that went 6-34 during the four seasons prior to his arrival, Gattuso led the Rebels to a 28-10-1 mark (.731), including three WPIAL playoff berths, a WPIAL championship and Parkway Conference title.
During his playing career, Gattuso was named the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Class AA Player of the Year his senior season at Seton-LaSalle and was a two-time All-East defensive lineman at Penn State. He was a member of the Lions’ 1982 national title team and graduated in 1983 with a bachelor’s degree in administration and criminal justice.
Gattuso and his wife Colleen have two daughters, Jacqueline and Kaitlin.