UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Penn State Football head coach James Franklin has named Justin Lustig as the team's new special teams coordinator, outside linebackers and nickels coach. Lustig spent the previous three seasons at Vanderbilt.
"We are thrilled to welcome Justin, his wife, Beth, and sons, Samuel and Henry, to our Penn State Football family," said Franklin. "I have followed Justin's career closely and have been thoroughly impressed with the way his special teams units have consistently performed. He's spent 19 seasons as a special teams coordinator and also brings valuable experience from a very successful stint as a head coach. Justin is a Pennsylvania guy who will fit in well within our organization and this Happy Valley community."
"Growing up in Pennsylvania I have long held the Penn State program as the gold standard of college football," said Lustig. "My family and I are incredibly excited for this opportunity to come back to our home state and join this historic program. I want to thank Coach Franklin for this opportunity to join the Penn State Football staff. I'm eager to get to work with this remarkable staff and community."
Lustig, a 2022 Broyles Award nominee as the nation's top assistant coach, served the previous two seasons as associate head coach and special teams coordinator at Vanderbilt, while also coaching the tight ends. Lustig was promoted from assistant head coach following the 2021 season.
Lustig was instrumental in the development of special teams during his Vanderbilt tenure. The 2023 and 2022 seasons saw Vanderbilt rank 41st and 44th, respectively, in ESPN's Special Teams Efficiency. He inherited a special teams unit ranked outside the top 100 in FBS in 2020, the season before his arrival. As a team in 2023, Vanderbilt was one of 20 programs in the country to block multiple punts and finished 11th nationally in net punting.
During his career, Lustig has mentored 53 all-conference selections, including the 2018 Lou Groza Award recipient Andre Szmyt at Syracuse, 2023 Ray Guy Award finalist Matthew Hayball and two-time All-SEC long snapper Wesley Schelling with the Commodores.
Prior to his time at Vanderbilt, Lustig spent four seasons at Syracuse where he guided the special teams, and also had stops Edinboro, Ball State, Louisiana, Eastern Illinois, Christopher Newport and Villanova.
COACHING ACCOMPLISHMENTS
- The 2023 campaign saw a pair of All-SEC specialists in Matthew Hayball (first team) and Wesley Schelling (second team), marking the first time in school history Vanderbilt had multiple specialists earn All-SEC honors in the same season.
- Hayball was a finalist for the Ray Guy Award and became Vandy's first All-SEC punter since 1996, as he posted the best career punting average in school history and owns two of the top-five single-season punting averages at Vanderbilt.
- With second-team All-SEC long snapper honors, Schelling became the first Vanderbilt player since 2016 to earn all-conference accolades in consecutive seasons.
- In 2022, Schelling became the first Vanderbilt player in six seasons to earn first-team All-SEC honors from the league's coaches.
- Hayball emerged as one of the nation's top punters in 2022. His 45.36 yards per punt ranked second in the SEC and 13th nationally.
- During his four seasons at Syracuse, Lustig served as the special teams coordinator, while also guiding the Orange running backs in 2017 before shifting to outside receivers from 2018-20.
- With the Syracuse special teams units, Lustig helped the Orange lead the ACC in net punting in each of his first three years and finish in the top 10 nationally in 2019 (3rd; 43.03 ypp) and 2017 (10th; 41.3 ypp). During his time on staff, the Orange averaged 43.7 yards per punt.
- Syracuse's 2017 punt team was No. 4 in the country in punt return defense (2.67 ypr) and set the school season record for fewest opponent punt returns with nine. Additionally, SU led the conference in kickoff coverage.
- In 2019, the Orange ranked fifth in the FBS in punt return defense (1.7 ypr) and surrendered just 17 punt return yards.
- In all, Lustig's punt coverage teams yielded just 369 yards over four seasons while the kickoff coverage teams averaged 21.6 yards per return during his tenure.
- Lustig's dominant special teams helped propel the Orange to a 10-3 record in 2018. His units contributed two touchdowns (punt return; blocked punt return) and the Orange finished sixth overall, and second among Power Five programs, in ESPN's special teams efficiency ratings.
- Lustig coached eight All-ACC players at Syracuse, including six specialists. Andre Szmyt captured the 2018 Lou Groza Award as the nation's best placekicker, the third freshman to win the award and a unanimous All-American, as he made an ACC-record 30 field goals and led the FBS in scoring (11.6 ppg).
- In 2020, punter Nolan Cooney was a third-team All-ACC selection while returner Nykeim Johnson carded second team accolades. Cooney succeeded Sterling Hofrichter, the Syracuse career leader in punting yardage.
- In 2019, Hofrichter became Syracuse's first finalist for the Ray Guy Award, given to the top collegiate punter, and earned All-America honors from seven outlets. Return man Sean Riley ended his Orange career as the program's all-time leader in kickoff returns (115) and kickoff return yardage (2,433) and stood third with 4,358 all-purpose yards.
- In his first year as Syracuse's outside receivers coach, Lustig oversaw the development of Jamal Custis, a 2018 All-ACC second team honoree. In 2019, Trishton Jackson was voted to the All-ACC second team after he became the first Syracuse junior to record a 1,000-yard receiving season. The 2020 season was capped by Taj Harris being a third team all-league pick.
- Before joining the Orange, Lustig was the head coach at Edinboro in 2016, when he was named the D2Football.com Coach of the Year.
- He inherited an 0-11 team and led the Fighting Scots to a 9-2 record, the biggest turnaround in Division II football history.
- Along with his National Coach of the Year award, Lustig was voted the Don Hansen Football Gazette Super Region One Co-Coach of the Year and the Pennsylvania State Athletics Conference (PSAC) West Coach of the Year.
- He was the special teams coordinator and running backs coach from 2011-15 at Ball State, leading the Cardinals to appearances in the 2012 Beef O'Brady's Bowl and the 2013 GoDaddy Bowl.
- Following his stint at Eastern Illinois, Lustig worked for two seasons at Louisiana as the special teams coordinator and running backs coach.
- Lustig served as special teams coordinator and running backs coach at Eastern Illinois from 2006-08, helping the program to two FCS playoff appearances while mentoring three 1,000-yard rushers.
- He spend four total years at Christopher Newport with his first stint coming from 2001-02 as the defensive backs coach and then as special teams coordinator, recruiting coordinator and defensive backs coach in 2004-05. His four-year tenure with the Captains featured a USA South Atlantic Conference co-championship and three NCAA Division III playoff berths.
- Lustig spent the 2003 season as the cornerbacks coach at Villanova.
ACCOMPLISHMENTS AS A PLAYER
- Lustig played collegiately at Bucknell where he was a four-year starter at defensive back for the Bison and captained the team as a senior.
THE LUSTIG FILE
Personal
Year at Penn State: First
Hometown: Erie, Pennsylvania
Education: Bucknell, 2000; B.A. English and History; George Washington, 2005; M.A. Human Resource Management
Family: Wife: Beth; Sons: Samuel, Henry
Coaching Career
2022-23 – Vanderbilt (Associate Head Coach/Special Teams Coordinator/Tight Ends)
2021 – Vanderbilt (Assistant Head Coach/Special Teams Coordinator/Tight Ends)
2019-20 – Syracuse (Assistant Head Coach/Special Teams Coordinator/Outside Receivers)
2018 – Syracuse (Special Teams Coordinator/Outside Receivers)
2017 – Syracuse (Special Teams Coordinator/Running Backs)
2016 – Edinboro (Head Coach)
2015 – Ball State (Assistant Head Coach/Special Teams Coordinator/Running Backs)
2011-14 – Ball State (Special Teams Coordinator/Running Backs)
2009-10 – Louisiana Lafayette (Special Teams Coordinator/Running Backs)
2006-08 – Eastern Illinois (Special Teams Coordinator/Running Backs)
2004-05 – Christopher Newport (Special Teams Coordinator/Defensive Backs/Recruiting Coordinator)
2003 – Villanova (Cornerbacks)
2001-02 – Christopher Newport (Defensive Backs)
Playing Experience
- Bucknell University (1997-2000)
Postseason/Bowl Games as a Coach
- 2018 Camping World Bowl - Syracuse
- 2013 GoDaddy Bowl – Ball State
- 2012 Beef O'Brady's Bowl – Ball State
- 2007 FCS Playoffs – Eastern Illinois
- 2006 FCS Playoffs – Eastern Illinois
- 2004 Division III Playoffs – Christopher Newport
- 2002 Division III Playoffs – Christopher Newport
- 2001 Division III Playoffs – Christopher Newport
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