March 22--Illinois football coach Lovie Smith completed his coaching staff by hiring Thad Ward as running backs coach. Ward has served as a wide receivers coach at Northern Illinois the last three seasons.
"Thad Ward will bring a new level of energy to our program," Smith said in a statement released Monday by the athletic department. "He has been successful at each stop of his career, and is a proven recruiter. Thad has helped develop several outstanding players along the way, and I'm confident our current players will respond to his coaching in a positive way."
Ward previously coached at Western Michigan in 2012 and also spent one season at Gardner-Webb in 2011. He was a running backs coach for six seasons at Western Illinois from 2005-10.
Ward played at Central Florida from 1999-2001.
